Need lots of advice (arthritis, bone spurs, etc)

[Bailey and Riley's Mom]

Hi there guys, I just got off the phone with my very sad mother. Her one year old boxer, Annie, has been lame for months now and the vets kept telling her it was just a strain but last week she asked for x-rays because it was going downhill. Her x-rays show very severe arthritis with bone chips and bone spurs in both front legs.

Any advice on alternitive meds, homeopathic, or anything else would be greatly apprieciated. We are so sad about this, and the vet said it just had to do with really poor genetics.

 

[susan fulcher]

You might start with checking out some holistic vets in your area and see which treatment would work for her. Homeopathy, herbs, chiropractic therapy, accupuncture etc. If Annie isn't on a natural diet I would look into a raw food diet and get her off of dog food. Start with her water if she is drinking tap water start giving her bottled water. Diet and water won't cure her but it willl make her body stronger. she is young and thats good.

 

[Bailey and Riley's Mom]

Thanks Susan, unfortunatly the closest holistic vet is about 6 hours way so tht will be a later option. She is on a homemade diet now of beef and rice with veggies and missing link.

 

[johnjohn]

Arthritis and bone spurs are usually cause by a genetic deformation of the bone. either Hip Dysplasia or Elbow Dysplasia.

Arthritis can occur naturally but usually on older dogs. With the severity of your case this must be genetic. Do not breed this dog! Your Vet should have told you what causes this.

You have many choices. Stay away from the drugs if you can there are lots of side effects.

First off, Vitamin C! actually Ester-C a fast absorbing C is great. X-rays have shown a reversal in the arthritis with 2000mg daily. Bone can actually repair itself quicker.

Glucosamine and condroiten! www.glycoflex.com give them a call they are very helpful. You can give double dosage of this if you can afford it, it is impossible to overdose. You can buy generic at costco if you want to save money.

check out these links.
Also do internet searches for hip dysplasia and elbow dysplasia, you will find good results from this. That is basically what your dog has.

Ester C The Miracle Cure for Hip Dysplasia?
www.workingdogs.com/doc0039.htm

Animal Health - CHD - Mega Vit. C Cures:
http://www.belfield.com/article5.html


> Taken from Northwest Shepherd News, German Shepherd
> Dog club of Wash. State, from Dog News, by Jorge &
> Shirley Landa, Deattle Times.
>
> HIP DYSPLASIA has been assumed to be hereditary, & dog
> breeders (particularly those in large breeds) have
> long been concerned about their inability to eliminate
> this condition from their breeding programs. A recent
> study by Dr. Wendell of Belfield, Veterinarian,
> entitled "Cronic Subclinica Scurvy & Canine Hip
> Dysplasia" that reports, "In large breeds of dogs, hip
> dysplasia, long considered an inherited birth defect,
> may be an easily controlled biochemical condition. The
> lesion in hip dysplasia appears to be mertely poor
> quality, low-strength collagen. * In eight litters
> from dysplastic German Shepherd parents or parents
> that produce dysplastic offspring, there have been no
> signs of hip dysplasia when the bitches were given
> mega doses of an ascobate during pregnancy & the pups
> were kept on a similar regimen until they reached
> young adulthood. In his opinion, it has been
> demonstrated that selective breeding of OFA
> (orthopedic Foundation for animals) certified dogs has
> not succeeded in eliminating hip dysplasia from their
> offspring." "During 25 year's of exposure to hip
> dysplasia, I have never found a genetic pattern." Dr
> Belfield stated. "I have seen dogs & bitches certified
> by OFA produce dysplastic pups & conversely,
> dysplastic parents produce normal offspring."
> According to him, canine production of ascorbate is
> extremely low when compared to other animals such as
> goats, mice & rabbits. The major biochemical functions
> of ascobate are as anti-stress agent & detoxifies & to
> maintain biochemical stability in the animal's body.
> When high stress situations increase the body's demand
> for ascobate, the liver increases production. However,
> some dogs appear to be particularly poor producers of
> ascobate, Dr. Belfield says. It is known that
> insufficient ascobate synthesis results in poor
> quality, low-strength collagen. Collagen is the
> supporting protein in tendons & ligaments. Adequate
> ascobate is essential to maintain strength & proper
> functioning of tendons & ligaments. Dr. Belfield says
> that "In potentially dysplastic pups of larger breeds,
> the first year of life is a high stress period. The
> demands for larger quantities of ascobate are even
> greater." The ensuing lack of high strength collagen
> is some ligaments & the muscles is obvious. The weak
> collagen in the ligaments causes them to stretch or
> loosen resulting in joint laxity which allows the
> young dog's hip joint to separate, After separation
> arthritis ensues. Varing amounts of scar tissue form
> in the acetabulum, preventing the head of the femur
> from returning to its normal position. Poor quality of
> collagen in the thigh muscles & ligaments retards
> their growth & development. The impaired growth &
> development of tendon & muscle, together with the
> rapid growth of the femur, contributes further, the
> Veterinarian said. During the past five years he has
> observed that "eight litters of German Shepherd
> puppies from dysplastic parents or parents known to
> have produced dysplastic puppies have been maintained
> on mega doses of ascobate. To date, NOT ONE OF THESE
> PUPPIES HAS SHOWN DYSPLASIA.
>
> The preventive treatment is as follows:
>
> Pregnant Bitch--2 to 4 grams of sodium ascobate daily.
> puppies (birth to 3 weeks)-- 50 to 100 milligrams of
> Ce-Vicol (mead Johnson) daily
> Puppies (3weeks to 4 months)--500 milligrams of sodium
> ascobate daily

 

[nanabear]

Poor baby, to be so young and have those problems.
Be careful of Rimadyl - it does give a lot of pain relief to these dogs, but she is so young....it is not something IMO I would give on a regular basis.
She should be kept as slim as possible - weight on those joints just exacerbates the condition. She should not be doing any jumping, especially jumping DOWN from things where the weight lands on the front legs first.
Swimming would be a good non-weight bearing exercise for her if she's one of those Boxers that likes the water.
Definitely put her on Glycoflex II - it lubricates the joints and the MSM and green lipped mussel have soothing anti-inflammatory properties.
Hugs to that little girl.
Oh - and she should have lots of soft places to sleep, both inside and out so that she's not laying on hard surfaces.

 

[cynthia76]

You could also try Cosequin for the arthritis. Actually, a type of arthritis is pretty common in dogs under 1year. It's called OCD (Osteochondritis Dessecans). My vet recommended Cosequin for that, but I went to the health store and bought Glucosamine/Chondroitin at about a third of the price of the Cosequin. It helps with their joints and can even repair some of the cartilage.