[joyfull]

My almost 4 year old Neapolitan Mastiff Ollie has been diagnosed with severe arthritis in her front elbow (they didn't x-ray all her other joints but they assume she will have it in those too). Now we know she won't live a normal lifespan of 8 years but we are trying to make sure that any pain she has at the moment is managed. She is on Anti inflammatory tablets and pain killers (the same as I take when I get a potential migraine coming on - but hers are only half the strength). She also has to lose weight and the vet has said he would prefer her to be underweight rather than overweight.
The two therapies above were also mentioned so wondering if anybody has any experience of them with dogs.

[Dawnuss]

I have no first hand experience but hydrotherapy i know has been suggested to be great. It is an option i would definately take. Greyhound racers use it to keep their dogs joints subtle also it may help with getting some weight off without overworking your dog. You may have heard about it but a suplement called yumove    which you can get from bestpet or simular sites and its very good. Hope you find an option suitable for you a ollie 

[ANHBUC]

Sorry to hear Ollie has arthritis.  I don't know about in dogs but I have had accupuncture before and did get some relief from it.  I don't think it would work if the pain was really severe though.  Good luck with Ollies treatment.  

[joyfull]

well the vet has said it is servere and not just the onset of it which surprised us but when we saw the x-ray we could see just how bad it is. she has about 50% movement in that elbow.
Getting her tablets into her is proving very difficult - for one ill dog she is amazingly strong so far even when she was dosed up on methadone we have had 2 fights 

[ANHBUC]

They never want what they are supposed to have.     That could make a new sport for the Olympics though, Neapolitan Mastiff Wrestling.   

The pain should be reduced with the anti inflammatories so she may be suitable for the accupuncture then.

Sending you both big hugs.   

[Cake Lady]

I'm an acupuncturist, and although I don't really treat animals I have treated my mums dog in the past for arthritis and I have to say I didn't really know what I was doing but amazingly she sat still for the treatment and seemed to get up better for a while afterwards.  Its not something I was able to do frequently though.

I know other colleagues who treat animals more frequently with good success so it would be worth making sure the person doing the acu has had some formal training with dogs & acu - i think vets sometimes do it too.

With regards to the severity, acupuncture could help regardless but the more severe the pain, the less likely you are to get rid of it completely but it should still help lower the pain level.  Acu & arthritis is quite well researched in humans and the majority of my patients fit into this category, but it is something you need to keep doing so you may want to factor this in.  The goal of any treatment is to reduce the symptoms as much as possible and for as long as possible, but initially more frequent treatments are needed which are then usually spaced out. I have some patients who only come once every 3 months and that keeps the pain at bay or at a manageable level.

Hope this helps.

[joyfull]

Thank you Cake Lady that was most helpful, I'm not sure if our vets do it themselves or have some details of people who do - I shall ask next Thursday when we go back. I have found a canine hydrotherapy place that is less than 8 miles from me so assuming she isn't too bad and can get into the van I can take her once or twice a week.
In the meantime whilst buying her some liquid glucosamine with chondroitine from Holland and Barrets (buy 1 get another for 1p) the lad working there was discussing his standard poodle who has just got over a stroke with a lady whose 13 year old collie had arthritis so I have purchased some of those as well.

[RichardA]

 I had two labs with arthritis and both went to hydrotherapy with a local greyhound trainer and they really benefited and loved it. They were in a buoyancy coat and swam against a current that was adjustable so good weight reducing exercise as well
R

[mobilekat]

I hope you are having more luck with the tablets these days- we use cheap ham to help tablets go down!

Hydro is great for arthritis, it will also really help with weight loss too!

Under UK law to do acupuncture on animals you must be a qualified and registered Vet, so its worth checking this.

Good luck and I hope he is feeling a bit better.

[joyfull]

yesterday I took Ollie to the hydro pool for a visit because even though she is a giant breed she is frightened of all things new and things not where they should be. After meeting the lady and her husband she was well relaxed so the lady asked if we would like to try her out in the pool. She showered Ollie then put a life jacket on her - got her to walk up the ramp with me at her side and then Ollie carefully walked down into the water. A little hesitant at first but once fully in the warm water off she went - she loved it. Her tail was wagging all the time (not sure if she was showing happiness or using it as a rudder. The lady kept getting her to the side to feel her heart rate and check on her ears and joints - both were warm showing that her blood was pumping around her body well. In the end Ollie spent over 40 mins swimming and then got out to have a shampoo and shower followed by a blow dry. Her next session is on Wednesday. The lady is an accredited therapist and has loads of qualifications on dog physio and stuff and she also checks with the vets to make sure it is safe for that dog to have this treatment.

[joyfull]

Decided against the acupuncture for now as I cant see Ollie allowing somebody to carry it out on her to be honest.

[sunshineband]

The hydrotherapy look slike a realy good option for Ollie, and with her weight loss and glucosamines etc  this shuld help her a lot

Plus of course the feel good pamper factor 

[joyfull]

she really loved it

[Agatha]

I know a couple of dogs that had hydrotherapy and they loved it and found it really beneficial too.  Sounds like Ollie really enjoyed herself - I rather liked the sound of it myself!  I hope it continues to be helpful and that she is able to enjoy life again in spite of her problem.

[ANHBUC]

I am so glad she is enjoying her treatment.  I hope she gets plenty of benefits from it.