Degenerative joint disease (osteoarthritis) and pain therapy?
Our 7 year old cocker spaniel, Bismark, is plagued by what was determined last year to be degenerative joint disease (osteoarthritis). The x-rays show that the cartlidge in his knees is almost completely gone. He has his good and his bad days, but lately, more bad than good. Originally, our vet prescribed him 30 days of an anti-inflamatory and told us to give him glucosamine on daily basis. He won’t treat with pain meds for long periods, but the gloucasamine hasn’t improved his mobility at all. Should I start over with a new vet (we’ve been taking our 4 dogs to our current vet for 9 years) or should I simply try to order the pain meds online (I think it was Rimadyl)? Do you have any suggestions for other forms of pain management?
Hi there,
I find DJD one of the most heartbreaking conditions to treat because we can only manage it rather than cure it. Obviously keeping animals on long term non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (of which Rimadyl is one) is not ideal as it can have detrimental effects on the kidneys, etc. However, you need to weigh up the con of this with the pro of actually keeping your dog comfortable. Does the Rimadyl help?
Personally I start dogs on a short course of Rimadyl and if it’s helping I then try to cut them down to a maintenance dose (usually aiming for about half the initial dose) to minimise the bad effects. It also gives us somewhere to go during the flare ups as you can double it again for a short period.
Alternatives to try if the Rimadyl isn’t working are Previcox, which is another anti-inflammatory, but it’s a bit different in its action. I’m getting some good responses to that in animals who were no longer comfortable on Rimadyl. You could also speak to your vet re cartrophen injections, am getting mixed reviews with this.
If you’re planning on ordering drugs online, you will still need a prescription from your vet, beware those that don’t ask for one!
I’d recommend keep going with the glucosamine as well and go speak to your vet, explain the situation and your views because obviously you can’t leave an animal in pain.
Hope this is helpful.
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