Geriatrics for Dogs

Son&Heir’s dogs are 16 (or 17*) and 13 years old. The older one’s a medium sized mutt that looks like a Heinz 57 that’s predominantly some sort of herding dog and beagle. Weighs maybe 45 pounds. The younger is a German Shepherd/Yellow Lab mix. And there lies the tale…

Saw “young fella”–Leo–“rabbit hopping” when running the other day, and I’d already noticed that he’s become more clumsy on our vinyl tile floor in the kitchen (where we feed “the boys”). Yep. Weakened back legs, probable hip dysplasia exacerbated by arthritis. Immediately changed the boys’ diet. Since the older guy (Buttons) was still very energetic (I think “bouncy” is the word I’m looking for :-)) but just taking longer to start getting moving, after checking some dog health sites manned by veterinarians, I made up a batch of supplements for them to be fed in some canned food mixed with their dry. (Note: I know both dog foods we feed have some C, D and other supplementation but dogs do not synthesize D-3 and get it from prey in the wild, and C&D do work together in dogs, as in humans, in joint and bone maintenance, soooo… just keeping things within the general guidelines here )

• some canine-allowed pain meds apportioned according to their weight/size
• some glucosamine supplements for Leo
• vitamin C (yeh, I checked to be sure it was a calcium ascorbate form and in very small amounts)
• vitamin D (again, much smaller doses than for a human of their respective sizes)

So far–three days in, well before I could get a non-emergency vet appointment–I think the pain meds have had the most immediate effect. Leo’s pretty much stopped dragging his back legs and rabbit hopping. Buttons is just as energetic, but still takes about as much to get him started moving. We’ll see what the vet has to say as this progresses, but to this point I’m very pleased with Leo’s response. Oh, I also have started “brewing” some relatively weak decaffeinated green tea for their water dishes. COX2 inhibitors and anti-oxidants, you know. Weak as it is, even though “decaffeinated” does not mean “cafeine free” it doesn’t seem to have caused any problems in the last three days, and from mmy own joint pain experiences, I know the COX2 inhibitors aren’t hurting…

I just wonder if Leo could use a beer now and then… 🙂

Yeh, yeh, picking up some supplements specifically for dogs this week as well.

*Buttons was “2 or 3 years old” when we got him from owners inhuman brutes who’d kept him “crated” about 22-23 hours a day. He’s been an outdoor dog–even in the harshest of weather–since then. He likes to come in only for the company and can’t STAND being confined (no surprise). Very active for an “old guy” and loves “protecting” his turf. Our fenced back yard is his domain. In fact, we have little purpose for our back yard apart from providing roaming room for the boys, apart from using the deck to grill (or do wood working outside), now that I’ve gotten rid of the above ground pool that only I used once the kids were “gone” (Even though they’re temporarily back, they have lives that don’t leave a lot of room for lounging in a small 4′ deep X 15′ wide above ground pool, and all I did with it was sit on the bottom holding my breath or float along, cos it was never big enough for swimming *heh*).