Preventing arthritis in dogs is exceedingly important as I can say from personal experience that arthritis is one of the worst diseases to afflict a dog. Also, Arthritis in dogs is fairly common. You will find it painful to see your beloved dog who till some days ago was jumping and frolicking suddenly unable to even get up let alone walk. Once arthritis sets in and the cartilage in your dog’s joints have been damaged they rarely get repaired completely. So for all practical purposes, arthritis cannot be cured however the pain that the dog experiences can be reduced. However prevention is always better than cure.
Below the some tips for preventing arthritis in dogs and if you are a dog parent, read them fully.
1) Exercise – Exercising your dog is very important as without exercise, dogs tend to put on weight and this adversely affects the bone joints. Exercising should start at an early age. The best exercise is walking or running so make sure your dog gets enough of this. However, DO NOT over exercise your dog as excess of anything is harmful. Over exercising leads to stress and even injuries in the dog’s joints and can lead to arthritis instead of preventing it. If your dog looks tired or exhausted then it is time to stop. Playing frisbee, hide and seek are other wonderful exercises.
2) Bed – Your dog will be more prone to get arthritis if it sleeps on a cold hard floor. Sleeping on a cold floor causes stiffening of the joints. Even in a hot tropical country, winters can cause or aggravate arthritis in your dog so do ensure you have a good warm bed or a mattress for your dog to sleep on.
3) Injury treatment – If while playing or due to any other reason such as accident, etc. your dog sustains injuries in the joints, get him treated immediately and take no chances at all. Injuries can also be caused by inexperienced dog owners when they drag their pet down the staircase. Be patient and give your dog the time to recover fully. Do not be over anxious to get your dog to exercise as per his usual routine before the injury.
4) Nail trimming – This is often one of the most ignored preventive methods especially by new dog parents. Dogs living in apartments or houses with vitrified tiles often develop an unnatural gait (often resulting in pain if the nails grow too long). This is because the long nails do not allow the feet of the dog to get a grip on the hard stony ground so the nails tend to slip over the surface. When a dog walks on a softer ground such as in a park, the nails go inside the ground and give the paws a good grip. Also, I have rarely seen stray dogs with arthritis. This is because the rough surface of the road causes adequate friction between the nails and the rough ground so the nails of stray dogs remain naturally trimmed.
5) Supplements – Ask your vet to suggest supplements that will delay arthritis in your dog. Supplements may become necessary for an ageing dog. Even otherwise periodic checkup visits to the vet are needed to keep your dog healthy. Glucosamine And Chondroitin Sulfate are two supplements that are recommended. However it is best that you do not give supplements without consulting your vet.
6) Good diet – Ensure that you give your dog a healthy diet. It is most important that your dog does not become overweight as this increases the risk of arthritis. Some foods that are anti arthritis and dog joint friendly are coconut oil, alfalfa, turmeric, celery, blueberries, papaya, ginger, fish oil and sweet potatoes.
7) Educate Yourself – This is not just for preventing arthritis in dogs but for being an overall wonderful dog parent. Educate yourself as much as you can about the breed that you have. The more you know about your dog’s breed the better you can take care of your pooch.
Do follow the above points and your dog’s chances of getting arthritis get greatly reduced. The above article was for preventing arthritis in dogs. I will write also about how to treat a dog when it is suffering from arthritis.
The above article is written by Manish Jaitly.
I am a dog lover and creator of this site. I am also the author of ‘Keep Sleeping Keep Missing- if only you knew’ (available on Amazon, Flipkart, Kobo, Google Store, etc.).
