Cocker Specific Discussion > Oldies (Over 9s)

Osteoarthritis

(1/2) > >>

Nicola:
I thought I would start a thread on OA as it is something that affects a lot of older dogs; it's certainly one that I've had a lot of experience of dealing with over the last few years with Tilly, so it might be interesting to share stories and maybe pick up some new or different treatment and management ideas.

Osteoarthritis: also known as degenerative joint disease (DJD), is defined as the progressive and permanent long-term deterioration of the cartilage surrounding the joints. Arthritis is the medical term for inflammation of the joints, while osteoarthritis is the term referring to a form of chronic joint inflammation caused by deterioration of joint cartilage. Older dogs are at the highest risk.

Tills is now 10 (:o) and was diagnosed with severe OA about 3 years ago, with noticeable deterioration in the joints showing on the x-rays at that time. She has it particularly badly in her hips and shoulders, but also in her elbows, spine, knees, neck, hocks, wrists and toes, and she has spondylosis in her lumbar spine. She also has a condition called IOHC (incomplete ossification of the humeral condyle) which has been evident from a very young age (diagnosed via CT scan at around 2 years old) which causes elbow lameness, although luckily she never fractured it which is extremely common. She has a very limited range of movement in her hips and especially her shoulders, which are the worst-affected joints. I initially took her for the x-rays as she was suffering from chronic lameness on her front legs, especially after playing with a tennis ball, and seemed generally stiffer and slower than usual. Her ball obsession was undoubtedly a factor in worsening her underlying condition and unfortunately for her had to stop immediately, the sudden sharp movements and heavy impacts involved in chasing and catching tennis balls is very bad for the joints.

She also has eosinophilic inflammatory bowel disease, having been diagnosed with this when she was 5. The vet believes that the two are linked, both being immune-mediated conditions. Her IBD is well under control though and the OA causes us far more problems on a day to day basis. It's interesting to me though that the two are linked, under vet advice Tills hasn't had any vaccinations since she was 6 as he believes that it would be very detrimental to her health. She has also always suffered from chronic ear problems (malassezia), and again, this is probably linked to immune issues.

Tilly's OA is quite severe, it affects most of her joints and she is probably in a degree of pain most of the time. This obviously causes me huge concern, but it is currently still manageable and so she is still happy, waggy tailed, stubborn and playful, and still eats like a horse, rolls in poo and goes mad to go out for walks (even if they are more gentle trots than runs now) and is as tennis-ball obsessed as she ever was (I don't ever throw them for her any more though, her shoulders give way and she chins the ground if she tries to turn suddenly to fetch a ball :-\). She isn't chronically lame but she walks with a rolling gait - a bit like a bear - and she sits and stands with her front legs bowed to take the weight off her shoulders.

There is no cure for OA, and it is progressive, so she is gradually deteriorating, and barring her developing cancer etc. it will be a life-limiting condition in her case. However we have found an effective management system for her symptoms that has so far let her maintain a good quality of life. She is currently on daily Tramadol (3x50mg), Pardale-V (paracetamol and codeine) as Tramadol works more effectively when given alongside a NSAID drug, plus the steroid/painkiller combination drug Prednoleucotropin (PLT, or 'poorly leg tablets' as the vet calls them :lol2:). This is an extremely hefty dose of painkillers; it's basically a post-operative management system which she has on a daily basis, but she tolerates it extremely well, has very few side effects (the Tramadol makes her a bit sleepy so I the highest dose in the evening), and it gives her a good quality of life in terms of managing her pain.

She still manages at least 2 daily walks, although I don't bring her on long hikes and she can't remotely keep up with Rodaidh and Caoimhe any more, but she pooters along quite happily on shorter walks. In terms of additional treatment, she goes to hydrotherapy once a month, she's always enjoyed swimming, and I think it does help her. She has had acupuncture and massage but she didn't particularly like either of them, and I was doubtful as to their efficacy in her case, so stopped taking her. In terms of supplements she has daily Yumove and fish oil along with Ro and Caoimhe - her condition is so advanced they are unlikely to make any real difference to her now but they can't do any harm so I give them anyway. I started giving all of them coconut oil and turmeric ("golden paste") every day last year as well, again my rationale with Tilly being that it can't do any harm. I monitor her weight carefully, I have always kept my dogs on the lean side of average and this helps, the less weight she has to bear on her joints the better.

Practically speaking, keeping her warm helps, she definitely suffers more in the winter and slows down considerably when it's really cold. I got her a new Equafleece with a zip up the back as it was impossible for her to get her front legs into the normal one. She doesn't wear the Equafleece on walks as she doesn't like it when she's moving around, but I make sure she gets dried off immediately on return from a wet walk and put it on to warm her up and she'll happily go to sleep in it. She finds lifting her back legs up difficult so I stand her on a towel and just dry the tops of her paws with another one. I lift her in and out of the car - she hates this but she's no longer capable of jumping in and out safely. I have considered getting a ramp for her, and as she doesn't really like being picked up I may actually do this fairly soon.   

OA is a difficult condition, it causes pain and undoubtedly affects quality of life unless carefully managed, but it's not something acute that's going to actually kill them, so you have to constantly monitor and weigh up said quality of life. It's a very individual thing, but with Tilly I have always taken the view that while she still wants to go for walks and can still manage to pooter along and she's not chronically lame, falling over or in severe pain, then I will manage her symptoms like this for as long as possible. As soon as she no longer wants to or is capable of coming on walks, loses her playfulness and appetite and/or she has a level of pain that cannot be managed with the medication she is on - I will not up her current dosages any further, put her through surgery or consider putting her on morphine etc. - then I will make a decision for her, because I know her and what reasonable quality of life is for her.

I've gone on a bit here, but any other thoughts or experiences of dealing with OA or other chronic joint/mobility conditions would be welcome!

vixen:
Over two years ago when she was just 5, Marley started limping on her rear right leg - it came after a wonderful day out at the beach when she had really exerted herself.  I thought it was a result of doing too much and left it for a few days to settle down.  It didn't so we went to the vets.  They suspected a torn cruciate ligament and took x rays.  The results were that she didn't have a torn cruciate but OA and the deterioration had been going on for quite a time  :o I felt terrible as I felt I should have known but Marley hadn't displayed any symptoms at all apart from lagging behind a little on the occasional walk but I had credited that to wanting to be near me.  The vets gave me the option of sending her away to a veterinary hospital where they would cut through the bone, rotate the joint and then pin everything together again.  There was no guarantee of success and the thought of putting her through that  sounded horrific to me and I knew Marley wouldn't cope with the separation.  The second option was to manage her pain with prescription drugs but when I looked into it, their long term use could cause other problems.  I decided to try to manage the OA myself.  She has a magnetic collar, she has Flexijoint tablets,  salmon oil, turmeric paste and I try to keep her weight down.  To begin with she went to weekly hydrotherapy sessions but she absolutely hated it so much so that I had to stop as it was distressing her too much.  I have no idea if the things I am giving her help her or not.   :huh:  If you saw the speed she can run to get to her sister and join her in poo rolling, you would never think she has OA but adrenaline can mask the signs.
She still enjoys her daily walks but she simply can not keep up with her sister.  I know when the pain is getting to her as comes to me and walks at a leisurely pace but most days she doesn't display any symptoms. I try to keep her warm in winter as I feel this helps and she is the first to be dried after a wet walk.
I am very conscious that my more natural approach to her pain relief won't always be effective and I will have to give her the prescribed drugs.  I am just taking each day at a time but I wouldn't let her suffer if I thought there was a more effective treatment.
She is still only seven so things will get worse but at least I am now aware of her condition and will help in every way I can.

Ben's mum:

--- Quote from: Nicola on January 05, 2015, 05:45:34 PM ---
OA is a difficult condition, it causes pain and undoubtedly affects quality of life unless carefully managed, but it's not something acute that's going to actually kill them, so you have to constantly monitor and weigh up said quality of life. It's a very individual thing, but with Tilly I have always taken the view that while she still wants to go for walks and can still manage to pooter along and she's not chronically lame, falling over or in severe pain, then I will manage her symptoms like this for as long as possible. As soon as she no longer wants to or is capable of coming on walks, loses her playfulness and appetite and/or she has a level of pain that cannot be managed with the medication she is on - I will not up her current dosages any further, put her through surgery or consider putting her on morphine etc. - then I will make a decision for her, because I know her and what reasonable quality of life is for her.


--- End quote ---

I can really relate to this part of your post, it causes me huge concern weighing up Ben's quality of life.  I struggle not to fall into the trap of giving him human emotions, but I worry that stopping him doing all the things he loves makes him low in mood/depressed or whatever the canine equivalent is  ;)  Like Tilly, Ben is very much an outdoor romping across the moors sort of chap, we always suspected he is half mountain goat as he will climb anything!  At nearly 12 he never does anything at a sedate trot, even now he runs full pelt all the time, and leaps around and over things where possible and he loves to jump.  If there is more than a few inches of water he wants to swim.  Its what I love about his character  :luv:

However over the last year it is clear that this impacts on his hips and back.  I have tried doing practical things like cutting out hills and walks with stiles, lifting him in and out of the car and keeping his weight down to protect his joints etc.  I also ensure a couple of days a week I do on lead walking while OH takes Harry on a longer walk.  But it is clear Ben finds the lead walking miserable, he doesn't seem to be animated or to be particularly enjoying the lead walks and I worry that if his arthritis deteriorates and he has to do more lead walks he will not be getting the same quality of life.   Weighing up how much to let him do is difficult for me he wants to run and jump, but clearly I have to limit this to some extent.

I would be keen to hear if others have had to manage an alert, lively and very fit dog and find a balance between keeping them active and enjoying walks and managing arthritic joints.
It's good to hear Tilly is still enjoying her walks and is happy in herself, it amazes me just how stoic our dogs are sometimes they are amazing.

Ben's mum:

--- Quote from: vixen on January 05, 2015, 08:55:16 PM ---Over two years ago when she was just 5, Marley started limping on her rear right leg - it came after a wonderful day out at the beach when she had really exerted herself.

--- End quote ---

 I had no idea it could affect such young dogs  :'( I have read a bit about the benefits of turmaric for dogs do you find it helps Marley?

vixen:

--- Quote from: Ben's mum on January 05, 2015, 11:32:00 PM --- I had no idea it could affect such young dogs  :'( I have read a bit about the benefits of turmaric for dogs do you find it helps Marley?

--- End quote ---

I really don't know if turmeric helps Marley or not  :huh: She does have other supplements so it is hard to accredit her improved health to any of them or a combination of them  :huh: I have read how turmeric does help other dogs and as it isn't harming her she will continue to have it.  It is quite cheap to buy a large bag from the World Food aisle at supermarkets.  I also give the same supplements at a reduced level to Stevie even though she isn't showing any symptoms of OA just as a precaution as initially Marley didn't show any symptoms either - it was diagnosed by x rays.
I also suffer from OA as did/does a lot of my family.  Even though OA is usually associated with age my younger daughter started having symptoms when she was just 10.  My elder daughter has had no such symptoms but may develop them as she gets older.  As mentioned, Marley was diagnosed at just 5 but the vet said that the condition had been there for a considerable time to have caused such damage to her hip joint.
I know Marley is not an 'oldie' but I have posted on this section as Nicola asked how others coped with OA in their dogs.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page