The chronic pain of arthritis affects nearly 10 million adult dogs in the United States alone. It is heartbreaking to watch your best friend limping and sore, struggling to keep up on his much loved walks. Glucosamine for dogs is as important for our furry friends as glucosamine is for people - you want to do something that is safe and can help.
So you start speaking to people - veterinarians such as myself, friends, family and people at the dog park. Everyone has an opinion on these nutraceuticals (nutrients with medicinal properties) - they are a confusing and costly minefield. When choosing glucosamine for dogs you need to tread carefully because:
There are a large number of supplements on the market.
The lack of regulation of the nutraceutical market makes quality control and treatment claims very difficult to assess.
Dose rates and even the effectiveness of these products are highly variable
Choosing a joint supplement can be very difficult. You can trawl through the tangle of online products and promises or spend a lot of time and money trying different products and see what works.
As a veterinarian I see people confused over these products every day! The good news is that I have professionally researched these products so you don't have to. I am not here to suggest any particular product to you - I want to teach you what works so you can make your own mind up. I want you to know and understand the ingredients, the doses and what is safe and effective.
Six Tips to Choose Glucosamine for Dogs
Here are my tips for choosing the best supplement for your best friend.
Tip 1. Make sure your dog needs this stuff
Many dogs with early arthritis respond well to weight loss and regular, gentle exercise. You should always be working on these common sense treatments.
Tip 2. Check the products are safe
Almost all of these drugs are amazingly safe and this is partly why they are so popular.
Products containing Menadione (may be listed as Vitamin K3 or Vitamin K) can build up to toxic levels and active yeast cultures can cause stomach problems in dogs so avoid these.
Also remember that not every herbal / natural treatment is safe for dogs even if it is for people.
Tip 3. Use ingredients that actually work!
Here is the biggest question of all for dog arthritis glucosamine products: do they work?! Unfortunately the verdict is still out. The large clinical studies in people would say probably not BUT many dog owners would say they absolutely do.
My opinion is that many dogs have received amazing improvements in mobility and quality of life. Yet some dogs receive little or no improvement. The frustrating part is that the only way to know if they will work or not is to give them a go.
Because they are SO SAFE most owners and veterinarians are happy to try them and see what happens. I think They should form the baseline arthritis treatment for just about every dog.
For your dogs arthritis, glucosamine remains the mainstay of treatment but here is the list of what I think works:
Glucosamine hydrochloride (Glucosamine HCl) seems most effective and is usually combined with (low molecular weight) chondroitin sulfate. Glucosamine and chondroitin seem to work best together.
Methyl Sulfonyl Methane (MSM) seems to be a helpful anti-inflammatory as well as an anti-oxidant.
Avocado / Soybean Unsaponifiables (ASU) seem to reduce pain and inflammation. They are pretty new.
Omega 3 fatty acids have a mild anti-inflammatory function and can also help the skin but need to be derived from fish sources (flax seed is not effective in dogs).
Green lipped mussel extract (perna canaliculus) is a good source of chondroitin but does not have much if any glucosamine. For this reason I do not use it as a first line treatment but it is ok.
Tip 4. Combine quality ingredients and use the correct doses
There is an amazing dose variability with these products. Dasuquin is the gold standard so I would use this as the guideline for dosing. Note that after 4-6 weeks the dose can be halved and once consistent improvement is seen this maintenance dose can be given every second day. This is helpful with the costs as Dasuquin is expensive on the initial doses. For atable of dose guidelines visit my blog - you can access it through the resource box below.
Omega 3 fatty acids could also be added but I would try Dasuquin first. The sister drug to Dasuquin is called Welactin and is mainly used for skin conditions but can help for arthritis as well.
Tip 5. Don't cut corners with price
Remember that this whole industry is unregulated. That has led to serious problems with product quality and consistency. It is estimated that 80% of human glucosamine products do not contain what the bottle says they should. This is scary
So remember if it is too cheap it is probably not worth buying. Instead you should invest in the better quality preparations and stick with them and when you get to a maintenance or an every second day dose the price will be more tolerable.
Tip 6. Don't count on one treatment or product to control your dogs arthritis
There are always going to be new products with amazing promises. When treating arthritis I would strongly suggest that you take what I call a multi-modal approach rather than focus on one product or technique. This means you use different treatment modes and combine them to produce the best results with the least side effects. Here are the areas you should also be looking at:
Weight control
Exercise and physical therapy
Prescription pain killers as needed
Surgery is absolutely needed for SOME dogs with operable causes of joint trauma
Other treatments such as acupuncture, trigger point therapy etc
What Should I do Now?
If your best friend is not already on some dog arthritis glucosamine supplement then you should fix this - they are a very helpful baseline treatment for arthritis.
Choose a quality product that at least has glucosamine AND chondroitin. Use the guidelines above and consider adding a product with MSM and ASU as well for best results.
Get moving! Exercise helps those stiff joints and will also help with weight control.
My name is Christopher Durin, I am a veterinarian with a passionate interest in dog arthritis.
If you like this article and would like more information visit the website below for access to a great e-book called the Dog Arthritis Survival Guide. It is full of information on how to recognize and treat the signs of dog arthritis. You will get HEAPS of helpful tips and access to my blog. On my blog you can also find a handy glucosamine dose chart.
So visit http://www.dogsarthritis.info and help bring arthritis to heel!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_Durin
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