What next?

Bruno is really suffering at moment with his back leg and I am just wondering where we go from here.

He has HD< and athritis in both knees but had an X-ray at beginning of year and the athritis isn't really awful compared to how it was when initially diagnosed.

He is generally fine, but last year really suffered with his hips and back legs in the cold and being 11 he is getting on a bit.

In the last month or so, he has been suffering with his back left leg and is not putting much weight on it at all, and thus has struggled with the stairs up to our house, gutting in car and been hopping on walks. I have reduced the walks down and been trying to make things as easy as possible for him, I got more Rimadyl from vets the other day and he said to have him on it for a few days then bring him in if no improvement. Its certainly not improving and its been a week. so am wondering where we go from here,.

He is 11, has bad hips and athritis and is suffering on that leg, and although his weight is transferred on to the other, the hip is equally as bad....
are there any other options to explore?

He is very well with respect to everything else and still loves his walks etc, just suffers for it...

If the rimadyl isn't working what will be offered next ?

Any advice appreciated

dani

I know he's not a water lover, but would he really really hate hydrotherapy? If you haven't tried it, I do think it worth a shot even if you think he will hate it (he may surprise you)

You could ask your vet to try metacam rather than rimadyl - I know they are basically the same, but I have heard of some dogs doing better on one than the other.

Poor lad - give him a gentle hug from me.

I tend to agree with Hali, Metacam worked fabulous with Reah, I only had her on it on cold days or wet days and gave it to her half hour before her walks, which she would manage well.

And Hydro pool helped her greatly, the water is warm and soothing plus excising as well

Sorry to hear this Dani.

I can only agree with what has already been said. Perhaps try hydrotherapy.

I have been told about this place and am going to contact them about Rip and Flame.

http://www.linksvet.co.uk/canine-rehabilitation-centre

I hope you can find something to help Bruno.

we did hydrotherapy with him in the early days after diagnosis and he hated it but it did really help his muscle, to be honest I had to stop as wasn't insured for it and it cost so much... we are not in a hugely better position now to pay for it and not sure 9 years on if he would hate it even more !! :P
I do think its an option though and there is somewhere close by again as there wasn't before...

He was on metacam and it started to make no difference which is why they went with rimadyl....

thanks ladies, gives me an idea, off to the vet with him next week and take it from there again

eta: i wonder if acupuncture would make a difference to him ,,.,

Have you tried Cartrophen injections?
They really helped with Teagans arthritis

Reah had acupuncture the vet referred her, and it really helped her (much to my astonishment because I didn't think it would)

I have a 7 year old boxer bitch who was struggling getting up and limping after excercise.Initially we thought it was muscle strain and rested her with lead walks but after no improvement we pushed for an x ray and were shocked to find that she has severe arthritis in her hip.We were really upset at the time but the Vet suggested a monthly injection and several months on the improvement is fantastic.She runs.jumps and is really happy in herself.We also give her half a paracetomol if she has overdone it and is a bit stiff and that seems to help.

Rimadyl, Metacam, Previcox can all be prescribed as pain killers and which of them suits one dog, may not necessarily suit another so trying an alternative may help. Also, if things are still not improving, Tramadol can be given as an extra to the above.

Glucosomin and Chondroitin can help and also the addition of Green Lipped Mussel can work for a lot of dogs with arthritis pain.

Short walks more often are better than longer walks and, if possible, a ramp over the steps is a great bonus.

There are also injections (sorry the name escapes me) that can be given which many say have had extremely good results.

It's a matter of juggling the meds to find the ones that suit and, often, when the dog has been on them a while, they may need to be switched as the beneficial effects lessen.

I really do hope that you find the right combination to help your lad out. Good luck!

Sorry to read this Dani.

Roxy was on Metacam and she improved so much on it - it really helped her mobility 100%.

Maybe hydrotherapy would also help Bruno?

Gentle hugs for my favourite lad..... x0x0x