Anyone any opinions on these supplements ? Holly is 5 (6 in Nov) and she walks like an old dog there is very little muscle tone in her hind legs plus she weighs 37kg which is approx 4/5kg more than she should be (she is a large dog her parents were huge) anyway i think with over feeding and under exercising she has no muscle tone and when she gets up from lying down or after a long walk and a rest she is very stecky and sometimes lame on her front leg for a few steps and then she is fine again - i had her to the vets and they said she was showing no pain on inspection in her legs other than a wee flinch when her front shoulder was pressed she was given a pain med and we just collected her on Saturday from her few days at the kennels and she wasnt limping anymore however she is again today so i think she may have overdone the jumping around with Dylan when we got her home ! Anyway, i think she suffers from arthritis so have started her on a maintenance level of Yumove of 6 tabs a day for 3 weeks and then down to 3 tabs per day i have her on a diet she gets no treats other than 1 carrot a day or an apple (minus pips and core) she has 4 short walks on the lead (she loves a rabbit run !) so trying to keep the pressure of her joints while also keeping her active enough to bring her weight down. Has anyone had good results from Yumove ? Holly is on a ten fish based kibble which is grain free so Omega 3 is plentiful in her diet already. I just wondered if it was worth while keeping her on these or is it really trial and error see if they make an improvement ?
There are lots of people on here with experience of various joint problems. I'm (thankfully) not one of them, but hopefully they'll be along with their experience soon. I'd say that the number one thing you can do is getting that excess weight off her so she's not putting the extra strain on her joints. That's luckily a very easy fix, simply by restricting her diet. Don't try to increase her exercise too much too quickly, especially if she has joint issues, as you could compound them. The biggest way to get weight off is by reducing intake, not increasing exercise. People who have done this successfully talk about reducing the meals by a third and keeping an eye on the dog's condition, adjusting as necessary. You say you suspect arthritis. Has your vet confirmed this? I'd be concerned about displasia, too, which can be addressed through surgery - the sooner this is done, the better the outcome. I believe that an X-ray is needed to determine if this is the case or not. Again, there are members of the forum who have experience of both elbow and hip displasia. Having read others' experiences, I'm very leery of joint issues and would want to have a thorough assessment carried out as soon as possible if either of my dogs was manifesting issues - especially at such a tender age.
We adopted Casper, a male, naturally chunky black labrador at five and a half from a pound in Ireland where he had been surrendered. He had been there for approx 6 weeks. When he came to us he was a bit overweight, he had lost some weight in the shelter. He had very poor muscle tone in his back legs, and had a very stiff and dipped back, sort of sway backed. He does have some mild HD, and he has a problem with his back, but we found that out a bit later. Initially it was healthy, but small portions, and gradually building up muscle strength, we did this by using different terrains, swimming and longer and longer walks, no repetitive stuff though. We also worked on his balance, co-ordination and flexibility. In terms of supplements he has salmon oil twice a day, plus Yumove advance formulation as prescribed by the vet. He is doing really well, very fit, although we still avoid stop/start activities, he does like to use his nose so we work with hidden treats, blind and memory retrieves which he loves!
Hello there 5 years is very, very young to be suffering from arthritis without an underlying cause (eg elbow, hip dysplasia etc) so I'd be back to the vets and asking for x-rays, which would show you what is going on with her joints. Best of luck with it
Yes, good point, I would personally start the weight reduction plan, very gentle exercise for a couple of weeks before seeing the vet, but get the insurance started asap as there is a 2 week window where you can't claim, anything diagnosed within this "window" may be classed as a pre-existing conditio. Obviously if there is a lot of pain or injury, I wouldn't hesitate to go. The best thing we did was get lifetime cover for Casper as his Xrays, treatment/meds would've cost a small fortune!
Insurance now theres a mine field currently with animal friends £1k per year per conditon for lifetime of the pet considering increasing this to £4k per conditon per year lifetime it has £99 excess no percentage just the excess should i increase to this its £26 quid a month so overall £14 more than the current policy
Well, when I was looking at it a hip dyplasia op was £3000 a side (not including rehab etc) @JulieT 's cruciate ops for Charlie cost considerably more than that, each time. Kind of depends how much you can afford and how much you can release in an emergency........ For Lilly, her premiums went up automatically when she turned 5, and another £150 on top of that this year now she is 6. Money pit. But is it worth the risk not to??
I haven't added it all up recently...but a rough guess it was in total about £20k.... Edited to add: but in part this was because I had that much cover - and was covered for rehab, and so I spent the money. It could have been done cheaper, but I didn't look to save money, and just bought the best I could. The insurance company paid out without a quibble.
I used GNC Pets Ultra Mega Hip and Joint for large breed after I found out from the vet that my previous dog had Arthritis but his wasn't caused by wear and tear but rather his immune system was attacking the joints. His daily supplement was like this; 1500 mg Glucosamine 1200 mg Chondroitin 1000 mg MSM 1 Omega-3 Fish Oil Turmeric Boswellia All were recommended by his Vet. I also had him on three different medications to try and help combat the illness. One of the Medications alone was something like $130.00 a month (USD) Another was $100.00 every month and the last one which was a pain medication was $60.00 every three months. Also because of the medication he was going in for monthly blood work and X-rays every 3 months. Unfortunately once it started there was no reversing it. I tried everything but nothing worked and this went on for about a year. Definitely get him checked out. I would hate to see any pet or their owner have to go through the pain of feeling helpless when their best friend is suffering.
I took out the Pet Plan Classic for life policy so £7000 per year for the lifetime of Holly she has been having only garden exercise 4x a day for a short time and she is not limping much at all when getting up from a snooze kids have been told no toy throwing or tuggy play and as i am back at work she is getting plenty rest through the day with some garden time around lunch with my son She also is looking thinner so weight is clearly coming off too i will take her to be weighed next week as in and out the car is a jump for her and dont want to cause her any pain with that but looking at her she is definitely looking much slimmer So all is going in the right direction however i will have her at the vets at the first sign of any pain or if the limp comes back again thank you
