Is there any chance Dr. Franks Joint Relief will help my dog?

[Oslo_Ostragoth]

@RealityChuck

Vets have Cosequin and Dasuquin for dogs. It’s a formulation of glucosamine that seems to come in a chewable tablet (meat flavored, I assume). Your vet can prescribe it. If those aren’t what your vet prescribed, they’re worth trying out. It did wonders for our cat almost immediately.

I’ll try to find out what they tried.

[Oslo_Ostragoth]

@DiosaBellissima

Way back when, my German Shephard, Ogie, was having joint issues. He was doing that bouncy springy step thing, followed by a whimper, whenever he walked.

The vet told us before we medicated him, to try making him some food for a few weeks. Vet did it for his own larger dogs who had similar issues and they got much better without medicine. Let me tell ya, within a week, the dog was fine. I’m not pretending this will work in every case and maybe he was a furry anomoly, but hey, what not try?

I’m sure somebody here could find some ways to improve the recipe, so totally suggest away!

Anyway, cook up a bunch of brown rice, ground beef (you can get the cheap stuff- the vet told us back then that the fat was good for the dog in moderation), carrots (good for coats and eyes), and- most important- broccoli. The vet said the broccoli was the ingredient that really helped the joints, the other stuff just had other good effects.

We would keep this doggie stew in a big pot in the 'fridge all week and just mix a scoop or two in with the kibble we fed him every day. If we had extra veggies around that were ok for doggie, we’d toss those in, too. Same thing with left over meat.

Interesting idea. He has always been fed Science Diet, except in emergencies, and he didn’t care too much for the replacements.

[Oslo_Ostragoth]

Thanks to all for the helpful suggestions - I’m starting to feel a bit more optimistic about his future.

[elfkin477]

@Oslo_Ostragoth

I have been asked if I have tried baby aspirin with him. I don’t know how the hell I would get it down him without adversely affecting our relationship to a very large extent.

I was instructed to begin giving Princess asprin every day that she seemed achy from the age of 12 or so on. This is how I did it:

step one: buy a package of hot dogs
step two: cut off a third of a hot dog, then nick the side (try to center this cut) and shove the asprin in the hole. Also cut off a similar size piece without putting anything in it. Save the last 3rd for tomorrow.
step three: Offer dog the undoctored piece of hot dog.
step four: after that piece is gobbled up, tease dog a little with the doctored piece until it really wants it too
step five: watch excited dog wolf down the hot dog without noticing that there was a pill in it.

This worked almost 100% of the time for the last three years of her life.

[porcupine]

@SeaDragonTattoo

If the pain is such that a glucosamine/chondroitin supplement isn’t enough - such as the joint has really worn all the way to the bone - ask your vets about Adequan injections.

I came into this thread to recommend the same thing.

Adequan has also helped my 15 year old Elkhound Gizmo. It’s also easy enough to learn to give the shot yourself. The shots are intramuscular, not subcutaneous , so there is a little trick to it but not much. Small needle, much smaller than whatS used to give cats subQ fluids.

[valleyofthedolls]

@Oslo_Ostragoth

EFA?

Essential fatty acids. You can get them from fish oil as someone else mentioned or flax seed oil.

[Jackmannii]

The right NSAID (nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug) can work wonders on a dog with painful arthritic joints. Aspirin is usually not recommended for dogs; some of the commonly prescribed NSAIDS can cause digestive or other problems, but it’s worth finding the right one. Our aging Lab went through several of these meds before we found one that didn’t upset her stomach, and it’s helped her to be a lot more active and relatively pain-free.

Homeopathy is nothing more than extremely dilute placebo, and I don’t think dogs are nearly as impressed by placebo as humans.

Glucosamine/chondroitin have a mixed track record and limited research backing, both for humans and dogs. We had our Lab on a supplement for quite awhile, but I never saw convincing evidence that it did anything, though she found it tasty.