Advice for joint issues

Hi we have a five year old that began limping in mid November. The vet took xrays and found a large flat spot on her right front shoulder joint and a small bone chip in each front elbow. The vet gave us metacam for her to take on a daily basis and we also give her glucosamine, chondroitin and msm. She goes back to the vet on Thursday because despite the meds she is only about 40% better and has now started limping on her back right leg as well. She is not over weight nor has she ever been and her mother/father do not have joint issues. We are first time dog owners and would appreciate any help/advice we can get to make Sofe more comfortable and get her back to her happy self. I never thought I would miss her tearing through the house and yapping after the cats but it's heartbreaking to see her just wander off by herself and lay around most of the day. Pauline

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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on December 28, 2010 at 7:58pm

Hi Pauline, hydrotherapy will be much easier on her joints, it'll strengthen her muscles and reduce inflammation. A lighter weight will also put less stress on her joints.

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Permalink Reply by Pauline Cornett on December 29, 2010 at 10:01am

Thanks Sam, I am currently trying to find a hydrotherapy place in our area. Unfortunatly we live in a rural area and I'm finding that we don't have many options. Even though Sofe isn't over weight I'm trying to keep it that way since she isn't getting as much exercise as she used too. I've noticed that I give her a lot more treats and nibbles since she hasn't been feeling good so I'll cut that out.

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Permalink Reply by Melissa and Franklin! on December 29, 2010 at 1:55am

Did the vet mention possibly surgery to remove the bone chips? So sad when a young dog is experiencing pain and discomfort. She may be limping in the hind end because she was overcompensating due to pain in the front. Hopefully your vet will have suggestions tomorrow on how to treat her. If he doesn't have any better suggestion than lots of meds, it might be worth finding a vet who uses alternative therapies like hydrotherapy or acupuncture.

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Permalink Reply by Pauline Cornett on December 29, 2010 at 10:10am

The vet did talk about surgery but did not feel it was in Sofe's best interest because the chips are small (they float around) they would be hard to locate and remove and she thought it was likely to happen again. She also felt that what was really bothering her more was the shoulder. I didn't think about her compensating for her shoulder and straining her other muscles, that makes a lot of sense. Have you heard anything about stem cell treatment for dogs with arthritis? We should have more answers tomorrow, I'm also asking about the hydrotherapy and acupunture but my guess is no one in our area does this. That's the difficulty of living in a rural area. Thank you for the suggestions.