Alfalfa and Arthritis?

[MonteQ's]

My dog has been having trouble with her joints lately. This is really my first go round with a senior dog. I do have pain pills for her, but I try to only give them to her on really bad days.

My dad keeps telling me to give her alfalfa tablets... Any thoughts?

If anyone has suggestions for low impact exercises...I'd love to hear them too! She still has alot of energy, but running her just seems to aggravate things.

 

[clegault]

have you considered trying dr maggies supplements? or the missing link/ missing link plus? both of these products are all natural and help with joint pain without doing any damage... the missing link also has alot of other benefits to it... im not sure where you are located but most pet specialty shops can usually get these products in

 

[gitrdone0420]

Vitamins and supplements dont do much for joints and arthritis because they just get mostly filtered by the kidneys and dumped as excess. The best way to control arthritis is mostly either through food or surgery. Surgery for an older dog and the pocket book are usually not the best of options. I recommend trying Hill's J/D diet. It is amazing! It is filled with omega-3s and a bunch of other stuff that helps with joints and arthritis. I have had my dog on it for about two months now and she is moving around so much better. The food is really expensive, but if you buy the big bag, for one dog it will last a whole month or more.
I also recommend going on walks routinely. Running is not a good thing for bad joints, but walking seems to help sometimes.

 

[Alusdra]

Glucosamine and chondroitin can help with joints. I think one of the two has actually been scientifically proven. There is also prescription NSAIDs. A great exercise would be swimming, if she likes the water. Exercise is good in moderation, but try to figure out how much is too much and stop her right before that. Dogs have no conception of what is going to make her sore in the morning lol.

 

[MonteQ's]

Thanks for the replies everyone! I appreciate the help.

I'm actually going to be taking her back in sometime this week. Hopefully we'll find something that'll do the trick! We used to have her on the Hills food, had to switch when my sister's dogs were here. It got really expensive for 3 dogs.

I might try taking her for longer walks. She's still got the energy of a puppy. But she pays for it later... Swimming is definitely not an option with this one lol... .

Thanks again! I'll let you know if anything helps.