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Suzi Sevcik

Arthritis is a general term for abnormal changes to a joint. Arthritis can occur when joint tissue is damaged from an infection, from congenital defects that affect the structural integrity and from stress and trauma to joint surfaces and supporting structures.

Typical signs are dogs that are more careful getting up & laying down, walking up & down stairs more gingerly or at a more advanced state, limping. Arthritis affects larger breed dogs more than smaller breeds.

While it’s impossible to completely prevent this disease, there are steps you can take to keep your dog from being completely debilitated by it. The first step is to keep your dog fit and healthy. This means keeping them at a healthy weight with the correct amount of exercise. Extra weight on dogs increases the pressure on their joints & causes damage. A moderate level of exercise has the same benefits for dogs that it has for humans. It keeps their bones strong, their muscles conditioned, and their joints proper lubricated.

In addition to keeping your dog fit & healthy, there are many types of supplements you can feed your dog to increase their joint cartilage. Glucosamine & Chrondtirin are two of the more popular choices. Consult with your vet on what products they recommend for your dog.

Arthritis doesn’t have to slow your dog down, take steps when they’re younger to prevent the irreversible damaged caused by arthritis.

Suzi Sevcik is the creator of http://www.dogvetcare.com a site dedicated to providing dog owners with expert advice on care for their four legged member of the family. For more articles on care for your dog, see http://www.dogvetcare.com/articles/ You can reach Suzi by email at: suzi@dogvetcare.com

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A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Dog Arthritis... Natural Arthritis Care for Your Dog Rimadyl was hailed as a wonder arthritis treatment for pets when it came on the market in 1997. Over the next 3 years, due largely to an aggressive marketing campaign by the manufacturer, Pfizer, Rimadyl was prescribed for 5 million dogs. But it hadn't been thoroughly tested. According to statistics compiled by the FDA (Food And Drug Administration), in 1997 alone, Rimadyl was implicated in 30 per cent of all veterinary adverse drug reaction reports received! Side effects included gastrointestinal, renal and liver problems, and death. Within those first three years, 10,000 dog owners had reported an adverse reaction to Rimadyl, and there were at least 1,500 deaths or euthanasias attributed to the drug. And it is generally accepted that many adverse reactions are not reported, so the real statistics are likely to be significantly higher. You may remember the Rimadyl ads depicting older dogs bouncing around like puppies. Those dogs were the lucky ones. And of course, the...