Arthritis - has anyone tried this & if so does it help?

Hi,

Would be pleased to hear from anyone has tried Thermotex infrared heated dog beds or who knows if they are anywhere as good as the retailers say, as I'm a bit cynical about their claims. My dog has severe arthritis & I'll get her anything if it really helps, but they're about £175 so thought I'd check on here 1st to see if anyone has any experience of them before splashing out such a lot of money on a dog bed. Would a cheaper, ordinarily heated bed be just as effective.

Thanks:

Im sorry i have no idea, but id be interested to know too, as i too have a dog with bad arthiritis.

I'd have a word with your Vet, he may have some cheaper ideas for you.

As you say it's a lot of money if it does not work.

My oldies wear an equafleece when it`s cold. That seems to help.

Thanks for comments so far - did ask vet - didn't know anything about them. I'll wait a bit to see if anyone here's used one, otherwise think I'll get her one - though next problem is getting her to sleep on it - seems to prefer hard floor to something comfortable, which, of course, is no good for her swollen elbows. If I get it, I'll put a post on here as to its effectiveness

Thats just like our eldest dog who also have arthiritus yet instead of getting in his bed lays on the cold hard floor!

I know you can get beds with reflective material inside that reflects the dog's own body heat, to warm it up - doesn't cost you anything in electricity that way, and no fire hazards if left unattended/the dog gets chewy. I remember showing one to a customer when I worked at a petshop, and another customer heard us talking and said that she had the same bed and her dog had improved a lot since using it.
Have you looked into magnetic beds, or magnetic collars at all? I don't know if/how much solid evidence there is that they work, but I know lots of sceptics have given them a try and found the dog's stiffness has improved.

Yes, got her a bioflow collar a couple of months ago, but she started on carthogen (not sure if I've spelt that correctly) injections & vivitonin at same time & improved greatly for about a month, so not sure which worked, but then got bad front legs & not too good at the moment. Will do a search for the reflective pads & see what can find out - it's just that they reckon infrared gets deep into the joints/muscles, etc. so I'm wondering if it would be more beneficial than ordinary heat.

Have you tried dogs joint supplements? They are supposed to really help!

Yes, been on synoquin for over 2 years and vet's changed her steroid to a stronger one, which worries me because of probable side effects. Wonder she doesn't rattle!