Arthritis is a young dog’s disease
Did you know a major cause in the UK for elective euthanasia is canine arthritis? It is heart-breaking, isn’t it!
1 in 35 dogs are affected by arthritis, and approximately 80% of dogs over 8 years old have arthritis. Wow! Yet, it is a young dog’s disease (but normally it gets diagnosed later in a dog’s life). Most owners of older dogs believe that their dog is ‘just slowing down’ and miss the all-important diagnosis to allow their dogs to live longer and as pain free a life as much as possible.
Dogs in the UK (and all over the world) are suffering needlessly with it. Canine arthritis is now classed as a welfare issue. The good news is that there is no need for dogs to suffer in silence, there is a lot that we can do to help, and the very foundations do not have to cost the earth. Prevention is the best way forward as we slowly but surely, learn more about this debilitating and somewhat avoidable disease.
So, what is arthritis? And how does it affect our dogs and why are there so many suffering with the condition? How can we tell if our dog has arthritis – what are the signs?
Arthritis is a painful and progressive disease, which affects young and older dogs, but it is mainly diagnosed in a dog’s elder years hence why people consider it an old dog’s condition – ‘my dog is just slowing down’... Arthritis is a developmental disease that effects the joints and bones (it is a complex disorder) – it reduces movement, flexibility and causes pain, stiffness, and behavioural changes, along with compensatory pain and secondary issues. Arthritis affects the nerve receptors that convey messages of pain. These receptors increase in volume, thus more pain is felt, and it is felt more intensely – this is when we as dog owners usually notice something is wrong because the subtle signs have made themselves obvious. The fluid that protects the joint thins and loses its normal function of support for joint movement. New bone occurs surrounding the joint as the cartilage remodels to compensate for lax structures, such as ligaments. The joint becomes weak, unstable, and the dog uses compensatory muscles to cope – which then cause additional problems.
It waxes and wanes – with better days and not so good days – there is often no vocalisation, only subtle changes. Dogs learn coping mechanisms extremely well. There is no cure, so multimodal management is the key. Prevention is best as much as possible from an early age, with basic body conditioning training (moving away from the usual puppy obedience and trick training classes), appropriate home environment (i.e., non-slippery flooring), and good nutrition - avoiding over processed food and treats, more importantly keeping your dog’s weight down – nice and lean.
We are so used to seeing overweight dogs, we think this is normal, but a nice slim waistline is simply perfect. How do you feel carrying even just a few pounds overweight? Add to that joint stiffness and pain – it is not a healthy feeling and our behaviour changes too – we become less tolerant of others and unable to manage our daily tasks as we should – with vigour and oomph, will feel tired and are more prone to illnesses. Canine obesity is growing – it takes a reduction of 30 – 50% of your dog’s diet for him/her to lose the weight required to live comfortably – exercise alone just does not work.
Did you know that a dog’s weight bearing is 60% on the front and 40% on the rear? The front end is mainly for shock absorption and the rear end is mainly for drive. This percentage changes with certain conditions such as limb amputation, or lameness, or arthritis etc.
Arthritis causes compensatory problems for example if a dog has arthritis in his rear end, he will compensate for this by using his front end more. His front end (including neck) will become overused (for ease of explaining, it is a bit like respective strain syndrome). These muscles will be tight and sore and may even become ‘blown up’ abnormal large musculature. Additional pain (look up Central Sensitisation for further information), stiffness, and lack of normal range of movement including flexibility will incur – functionality is affected.
To add a quick note – arthritis often affects more than one joint (my dog Shilo a 5yr young SBT, has severe arthritis in both stifles) and is considered a secondary disease because the main cause of the condition is developmental joint disease for example elbow and hip dysplasia. Shilo was also neutered at an early age – new research is ongoing to determine the combination of neutering before growth plates have fully developed and early onset arthritis.
So, how do we effectively treat canine arthritis?
The Primary source of treatment is of course efficient pain management. A variety of different drugs may be trialled prior to finding the most beneficial. A fairly new (approx. 1.5 yrs. into its live use) monthly injection of a pain killer called Librela has had some wonderful results. It works differently to the usually NSAIDs by focusing on the nerve pathways (targeting Nerve Growth Factor – which is a key player in arthritis pain), so it is much gentler and does not have an adverse effect on the kidneys or liver. It is great for dogs that cannot tolerate NSAIDs. Check out Librela | Zoetis UK for further details.
Then we need to look at weight management – keeping your dog as lean as possible hugely helps with lessening the additional weight on the already painful and limited joints.
Add in physiotherapy to include targeted exercises, hydrotherapy, and massage to help improve the dog’s range of movement, flexibility, functionality, and strength (more on this later).
Plus, lifestyle and home environment management – nonslip flooring, only doing the stairs when absolutely necessary, using ramps wherever possible for example getting in and out of the car. Keeping your dog moving – regular short walks daily, rather than weekend warrior type exercise. Correct fitting harnesses (no Julian K9 types that restrict shoulder movement, preferably Y shape or custom made to perfectly fit your dog’s shape). A warm coat during winter months, plus it helps to keep them dry. Oh and no ball chucking – the negative impact this has on a dogs joint out ways the joys of fun. If your dog loves his ball, try hiding it instead and get him to search for it, or perhaps play ping pong with him (roll the ball towards him and train him to roll it back towards you). You can also do scent work or why not bring the outdoors in so that he can have a good sniff in the comfort of his home. A choice of supportive beds and places to sleep is useful too – avoiding drafts.
There are also supplements however do your research and choose wisely as some are expensive and a complete waste of your hard-earned money – money that could be spent on things that are proven to work. Glucosamine and Chondroitin and Omega 3’s are helpful (omega 6 is pro-flammatory so avoid this).
Some other complementary therapies such as acupuncture and red-light therapy, perhaps even Reiki (Vets now recognise Reiki as a therapy and some insurance companies will include this treatment in their policies) can be worth trying.
So, as you can see the best way to manage this incurable disease is by using a multimodal approach. Check out Canine Arthritis Management (CAM) #yourdogmoreyears.
Massage can be more cost effective than physiotherapy and a good therapist will be able to show you techniques to use at home specifically for your dog’s condition (it is often covered with your insurance policy – but please check). Massage is great to use in conjunction with targeted exercises and hydrotherapy (which is usually done with a physiotherapist), some canine massage/myotherapists are also trained in exercise conditioning.
A professional qualified massage therapist will always seek your vet’s consent - as we work under the Veterinary Act 1966 and follow strict guidelines and a strict code of practice. We do an initial consultation which includes talking through the history and lifestyle of your dog and home environment, any injuries and behaviour changes, diet and nutrition including activities etc, and what you personally are looking to achieve with /for your dog. We then carry out a comprehensive posture and gait assessment/analysis prior to getting our hands on. We then use touch to palpate for any tension, tightness, effusions, and asymmetries. After this we conduct appropriate massage depending on your dog’s needs. Always working with the dog not against him allowing for his intolerances. A thorough report is given to you and to your vet if they request it. How many treatments will depend on outcome of assessment, findings, history, and condition.
Massage helps by bringing increased blood flow to areas that need it and removes toxins. Reduces swelling and inflammation. Reduction in chronic pain by releasing the happy hormones. Reduction in stiffness by increasing and or maintaining range of movement and flexibility. Reduces muscular tension which also helps relieve aches and pains. Decreases some unwanted behaviour changes by aiding calm and relaxation, thus reducing tension (pain is one of the main causes of negative behaviour and aggression and can result in avoidable euthanasia – if only pain medication was trialled first). Massage also improves sleep pattern and decreases lethargy; dogs need roughly 12 – 14 hours of sleep a day (depends on age and breed – senior dogs and puppies need more sleep, sometimes up to 18hrs daily). Most of us know how the lack of sleep affects our lives. Regular massage can improve your dog’s comfort and he will find it easier to manage everyday activities such as climbing the stairs and initiating play. A pre walk warm up massage and post walk cool down massage is beneficial especially on chilly days (wearing a coat help arthritic dogs too by keeping them dry and warm). The big one - is that in some cases massage can reduce the need for heavy dosing of pain killers especially when working as a multimodal approach.
Remember it is your dog’s life too!
(Capon, 2022)
(Librela, 2022)
(Canine Arthritis, 2022)
(Capon, CAM Education, 2022)
(Murray J. McAllister, 2017)
(Moore, 2016)
www.cardiffcaninemassage.co.uk
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