# Does this sound like arthritis?



## SARAHSMITH (Sep 19, 2010)

My 12 year old male German Shepherd looks like he’s in pain. Some days worse than others. The vet said it’s arthritis. I’m not so sure. 

About 6 months ago we started him on cosequin d5 as our vet suggested along with a NSAID type med. It didn’t seem to help. We continued the cosequin but stopped the NSAID. After doing some research on this forum I asked my vet about Adequan. About 4 months ago we started him on Adequan shots. I didn’t see any improvement but have continued with Adequan. After more research on this forum I added eggshell membrane, and he’s been on that for about 2 months.

None of the things we tried seem to have made any improvement in his pain and stiffness, and weakness ( he needs to walk on rugs now or his back legs sometimes slip out from under him, and we no longer allow him to go down stairs as it seems dangerous to do so.) 

My husband has arthritis and feels better after exercising. So I’ve been taking Zeppelin for a short walk twice per day. Today instead of our 15 minute walk we went a bit further. He then couldn’t climb the 3 stairs to get into the house. So I had to take him around the front where each step has a lot more depth to the steps. 

When Zeppelin lays down he takes small steps with his front paws to lower himself. When he lays on his side he lowers himself and then just falls to his side with a thud. He looks stiff and limps some days. 

But some days are better than others. And after a recent operation to remove a cancerous tumor, he seemed to feel better than he has in a long time. The surgeon had given him an anti inflammatory (can’t remember the name) and gabapentin for pain. He was on those for 2 weeks. I thought the gabapentin must have been helping because he did seem to have less pain than usual so we continued with it, but now I don’t think it’s making any real difference as he is very stiff and had leg weakness today, and is limping. 

Should I request an X-ray? Should it be on the front and back? Does this sound like arthritis?

All the supplements and Adequan shots I’m trying are from info I got from this forum when I searched arthritis. You are all so knowledgeable so I’m hoping you can help.


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## Springbrz (Aug 13, 2013)

It does sound like classic arthritis to me. Our past chow x samoyed littermates developed late life arthritis and was very much as you are describing. Carpeting, as you are seeing, is very helpful in preventing slips and extra pain trying to keep their feet under them. A comfy soft bed to sleep on eases pressure point pain. We have stairs that lead to our backyard and got a ramp and trained the dogs to use that as the stairs became undoable and they were way to heavy for me to lift up/down the stairs several times a day. That was years ago and both were taking Cosequin, Rimadyl and tramadol daily for the last 2+ years of their lives. Vets don't much use tramadol for pain anymore as research suggests it isn't as effective as once thought. I would disagree but that is my opinion. Gabapentin in combo with anti-inflammatories seems to be the go to now. 
Our current GSD has pretty severe HD and is really slowing down and having more difficulty doing certain things. She gets anti-inflammatories and cosequin. 
Things you might try if available to you and affordable for you that some have seen good results are accupucture, cold laser therapy, therapeutic massage and swimming. For medications CBD oil is gaining traction in pain management in humans and dogs.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

ALWAYS x-ray new limps and pains in old dogs. ALWAYS.

First, if it's arthritis, it gives you a baseline to know where and how bad the degeneration is.

Second, sometimes it's not arthritis. I had an 11-year-old who suddenly had a new limp in a forelimb. We were 90% sure it was elbow arthritis emerging--most vets would not have x-rayed it. We x-rayed to be sure. It turned out that it wasn't arthritis -- it was bone cancer. 

If your dog has arthritis and the pain isn't controlled, you can ask to try a different NSAID. Dogs are very individual to which ones they respond to. I have a senior now who does better on Galliprant than Caprofen. Some do better on Meloxicam. Get your surgical records and find out which one he got after the surgery that helped him -- you know it works for him, so I would ask for more of that one! 

Acupuncture and chiroproactic adjustments can help too. There's also a medical device called an Assisi Loop that can help with pain (I've used our dog's on myself even though it's not for humans....I get about an hour of pain relief from it when I have acute pain).

Adequan has an analgesic (pain relief) benefit in about half of the dogs, and in all dogs it has a joint-protective benefit (slowing down degeneration) -- which is why it's best started as early as possible. 

Wobenzym N helps some dogs -- but you have to order the original one from Germany, not the American one from Garden of Life, I've been told. It also has to be given on an empty stomach.


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## SARAHSMITH (Sep 19, 2010)

Thanks for the great advise. I’ll make a vet appointment and ask for an X-ray. And I ordered the Wobenzym too.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

More on Wobenzym: Wobenzym: A Digestive Enzyme Supplement for Dogs - Whole Dog Journal


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