A Shared Pain: About Arthritis In Dogs

I share my food, my bed and my life with my dog, Pony.  It is also heartwarming to know that we will most likely share the experience of arthritis together.  When she is in her advanced years, I will be in my forties – the time my parents started getting arthritis pains.  

Although Pony and I share mostly everything, this is one thing I would rather keep to myself and not let her have any part of.  But arthritis in dogs is getting more and more common as dogs are living longer.

Prevention For Pony

Pony is a mixed breed, but arthritis in dogs does not check for a pedigree or lack thereof.  It happens for the same reasons it happens in humans – the joints of the body (such as the ankles, neck and hips) are inflamed.  Arthritis is actually an umbrella term for over 100 conditions that make the joints inflamed.  Most are preventable by keeping Pony eating quality food and not too much of it.  Overweight people and overweight dogs are more prone to arthritis than fit ones.

Pony also gets exercised at least six days a week, including walks, tug and fetch.  This not only keeps the weight off, but helps give strength to her overall body functions, such as her skeletal structure and autoimmune system.  When she was a puppy, I fed her a wide variety of good food and tried not to over exercise her.  Some puppies (especially in large or giant breeds) can get weak bones as a result of too much exercise and too little nutrition.

But some causes of canine arthritis are hard to prevent.  An accident or other kind of trauma may bring it on.  This also happens in people.  People and dogs also share a type of arthritis called idiopathic arthritis, where no one yet knows why the joints get inflamed.

Treatment Options

But perhaps, as the years go by, both Pony and I do get arthritis.  We both will need to see medical professionals in order to find out what kind of arthritis we have.  Each kind needs different medicines.  We both will need to stay active even if our bodies are stiff and sore.  We will both need to cut back even more on fatty foods. 

As Pony gets older, she will need less protein and fat in her diet than she does now.  We both can benefit from gentle massage and keeping our bones warm.  Arthritis in dogs has shown to lessen with acupuncture sessions.  Pony takes needles a lot better than I do, so I don’t think I’ll try it for my arthritis.