Is it safe to jog with my 6-year-old dog who has hip arthritis?

Her hips are not that bad but that one knee is pretty advanced. It is best to let her keep walking and climbing stairs to keep the joints in motion and prevent her from getting stiff. I would add a glucosamine and chondrotin supplement to help her joints and omega 3 fatty acids also. I would consider adding an anti inflammatory so she doesn’t get painful and can still fetch without paying for it the next day. From there they make other medicines to add but if she is getting around well with no lameness then I would wait until signs develop further

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Walking Gandhi may flare up his arthritis so shorter walks may help lessen this. Also, I would recommend a joint supplement if you have not already. Exercise is great for Gandhi still and providing appropriate joint support and helping reduce any arthritis pain would be recommended. I would consider the below products and discussing arthritis management with your veterinarian. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. 1. Dasuquin for dogs 2. Welactin omega 3 fatty acid capsules for dogs 3. Adequan injections with your veterinarian 4. Hills J/D food (requires a prescription) 5. Anti-inflammatory drugs such as Meloxicam and Carprofen for flare ups of arthritis.

I am so sorry to hear Molly is suffering from hip dysplasia. One of my own dogs suffers from this condition and it certainly is hard to see them uncomfortable. I would definitely continue to walk Molly as much as she is able. This will help to keep her joints moving, and also ensure that she does noy become overweight. Being overweight puts significant strain on the joints and can make the pain from hip dysplasia much worse. Speak with your veterinarian about the possibility of anti-inflammatories and pain medications as needed, some dogs do not require medication every day and you may find this is the case with Molly. I always recommend starting a good quality joint supplement as well, as this can contribute to a significant improvement in quality of life and sometimes can decrease the amount of medications that the dog needs to take. When you take Molly for her walks try keeping her on a leash so her activity is more controlled. This will help to ensure she does not over-exert herself. If you find that one long walk daily is too much for her then consider taking 2-3 smaller walks through the day. Many dogs with hip dysplasia lead happy active lives. My dog loves to hike and swim, and does this regularly! I monitor her discomfort level and use her pain medications as needed. I hope you are able to get Molly feeling better so you can continue doing the things you love.

Hi Annette! Managing arthritis can be tricky since Joe's kidneys did not seem to tolerate some of the more traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) like Metacam. I'm glad to hear that Joe is taking a glucosamine and chondroitin supplement, like YuMOVE, as this can protect his joint cartilage against further damage. Make sure that you are keeping him at a healthy body weight, as overweight dogs have more stress placed on their joints. Other strategies for managing arthritis include talking to your vet about a trial with Adequan injections for further cartilage protection or new classes of NSAIDs (such as Galliprant) that are much more sparing of the liver and kidneys. Acupuncture and water therapy can also be beneficial for some dogs with arthritis. I hope this helps!

It depends on the type to hip surgery the dog had, but arthritis is a common occurrence later in life in animals with early joint problems. The arthritis can be treated with pain medications and joint supplements, and you may want to consider starting her on joint supplements such as glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate now. She can still have a full life. I have a Chow Chow who needed two surgeries on her knees before she was a year old due to rupturing her cranial cruciate ligaments, and she is now eight years old still running around. I've had her on those supplements I mentioned, but I haven't had any problems so far. You are never going to a dog that doesn't have some kind of medical problem at some point in their life, but you can take measures now with the supplements to see her healthy. It's also important to keep her at a good weight and prevent her from being obese. Regular exercise is important, and you can consider doing hydrotherapy with her (swimming). It's a great low impact way to build up muscles and keep a dog in shape. I hope this helps!

I would exercise her at her pace. If she appears painful from her arthritis, then cut the walk short. I think any exercise she gets is great, and it's awesome you take her for three walks a day. I would keep up the good work!

In general terms, steroids are stronger anti-inflammatory medications compared with carprofen but they are more likely to produce side effects, like excessive thirst and appetite, weight gain, muscle wastage, stomach ulceration. For managing hip arthritis weight control is as important as medications, so if your dog is overweight you should address that as well. You could try to add food supplements, for example glucosamine and chondroitine and get pain killers for Toby from your vets. Finally, some of the hip problems can be treated surgically (removing the tip of the femour, replacing the hip joing etc). The decision how to treat is based on dog's condition, age and severity of the disease.