My dog has osteoarthritis and limps. What are the best treatments?

Question

My dog, Tasha, has Osteo-arthritis. She limps when first getting up from lying down. She is on 3/day of ConGlu 900-V. to Lubricate the joints. also? (which is a joint lubricant )? I don't see how it would make any difference Now in her condition. For pain and inflammation, she takes one to two pills of Tramadol 100mg., per day. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed | Female | spayed | 5 years and 7 months old

Rodrigo Roca, DVM · Accepted Answer

Hello, thank you for your question about Tasha. Osteoarthritis is a very challenging condition to manage in pets. Unfortunately we cannot cure the arthritis but instead focus on management and delayed progression. The first line of therapy is pain management; anti-inflammatory medications (such as carprofen) often help significantly. However, these medications can be hard on pet's kidneys and liver, so bloodwork prior to starting therapy is often recommended. Tramadol can be helpful in some pets, but for other dogs it is not strong enough to be used as a sole medication. Another option is a pain medication called gabapentin, which has a dose range and can be added in to therapy. The second aspect of treatment is slowing of progression. Key aspects in this kind of therapy include joint health. Dogs can take glucosamine supplements to help maintain the lubrication in the joints. There are also some specially formulated diets that can help in the management of joint health. Finally, maintaining a healthy lean body weight helps to ease the pressure on the joints and can slow progression. Additionally, if Tasha's pain is well controlled, short leash walks to maintain activity can also help prevent progression. Hope this helps, good luck!

My dog has osteoarthritis and limps. What are the best treatments?

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