I am sorry to hear Dino has been diagnosed with arthritis, especially so young. Thor has it in his shoulders. I would talk to your vet about something other then an NSAID (Non-Steroidal Anti-Infammatory Drug) such as Rimadyl and Derramaxx, especially if it going to be for long term use. It can play havoc on the liver and kidneys.
For the inflammation of joints, I give Thor fish oil and vitamin e. Fish oil is a natural anti-inflammatory. It does take a lot of vitamin e to break down the fish oil in the body, hence the vitamin e supplement. The standard dosage of fish oil for dogs is 20 mg/lb, but you need to double this for anti-inflammatory benefits. Vitamin standard is 100 iu's for a dog 50 lbs and over, but you will want to double that as well.
For days that he is in pain I give tramadol. On cold damp days put a jacket on him to keep his back warm and dry. I even have an old thermal shirt that that Thor wears on on cold winter days. Since Dino can't get up on the furniture, make sure he has a bed that is not too soft and not too firm. You'll want to keep him off a floor that is too cold.
As long as Thor stays on his fish oil we use a lot less tramadol. He was taken off the fish oil when he got pancreatitis, and he was getting tramadol 2-3 times a day. He had eye surgery last year and needed an NSAID, so I was told to keep the swelling down in his eye and not cause any complictions leading to losing his sight, and after debating with the eye doctor, he was put on Deramaxx, which is suppose to have less side effects than Rimadyl. It almost killed my boy. Some dogs tolerate them well. I am not trying to scare you. I just want you to be informed. If you notice any change such as lethargy, decreased appetite, or changes in urnation and drinking habits, please get your dog to the vet ASAP, and have them check his bloodwork.
) but we thought it was really early for him to develop such signs. We found it by accident, he ate some buttons so i took him to work (vet tech) to xray him, and make sure he didnt have anything stuck, the dr noticed "hooks" on a few of his vertebrae in his T-L junction (thoracic - lumbar). I xrayed him every 6 months until recently when we realised the spaces between the vertebrae were pretty much all filled in. It wasn't until they were half way to almost all filled in i started noticing physical symptoms...not able to squat to poop - kind of half squatting, not running and playing as much, stiff when he was getting up, he would also present with non weight bearing lameness in his rear right leg. We thought it was his cruiciate at first with the rear leg but then we realised it was all coming from his arthritis in his spine. I would give him rimadyl occasionally but we decided to try a solid week of low dose rimadyl. He responded amazingly, he was a different dog, he was so bad - running around like a loon, wouldnt sit still, it was like he had a new lease on life - what a 2yr old boxer should behave like! I felt like a bad mom as I was so worried about him taking drugs i kep him off the NSAID's. Well we also got some weight off him too - hes down to a lean 80lbs and before he was about 84lbs, this also made the world of difference and now he only takes rimadyl once or twice a week when he overdoes it. He is on a joint supplement Synovial Flexx, which consists of glucosamine, MSM, perna caniliculus and some fatty acids and anti oxidants. I also give fish oil, and milk thistle a few times a week to help his liver out. He also has a chondroprotec injection once a month or so - this is Polysulfated Glycosaminoglycan generic to Adequan - Since he was so young starting rimadyl i didnt want any bad side effects so i do try not to give the non steroidal drgs too often. while they do have side effects, they can also turn a pets life around. I suffer from really terrible arthritis myself and I know how much that inflammation hurts. i am always looking for new things for arthritis and would love to hear other peoples stories.