Border Collie with Arthritis

Border Collie with Arthritis suggestions...Good Morning


I hope everyone is having a great week! I have been doing a bunch of research and thought maybe the best way to go is to put this out there and see if anyone has had experience and what their best treatment options were.

My Border Collie Lucy (my angel) is 8 years old she has always had bad legs since she was a puppy. The past year though it has gotten rough. About 6 years ago we put her on Glycoflex 3 and she had done pretty well until the past year. Basically it is very hard for her to get up and once she is up she is very stiff almost like her back legs are locked up. She does walk it out.. sometimes very quickly and sometimes a few minutes. Then she can go on her walk and does pretty good really no limp. If she plays ball even for a few minutes she gets very stiff (she lives for ball so its sad). Her back end has lost a ton of muscle tone so I think that is part of the ball problem her muscles are not built up for it so it makes it worse on top of the arthritis.

We went to the vet last night and for once he is one of the vets that does not push NSAIDS. I realize she will probably need these one day but I want to avoid it as much as possible. Below is what we are doing.. does anyone have any suggestions on additional supplements that have worked for your dogs.. or if you disagree with one of the below. Any advice or thoughts would be wonderful. I plan to keep Lucy around for another 8 years god willing!

Started Cold Laser Therapy last night - 2 times a week for 2 weeks - once a week for 2 weeks then will go to every other week then once a month (Silly me thought she seemed better this morning not even 24 hours after first treatment.. wishing I am sure).

Switched her from Glycoflex 3 to Dasuquin Advanced Loading dose for 6 weeks now ( I really do not see how this was better then Glycoflex 3 seems the same)

EicosaDerm from vet which is omega 3 and 6 fish oil.. starting on this today

Tramadol only if needed if we have a very bad day or she has a few bad days will start this. The vet also gave me Deremaxx but that is also as needed if she is going for a long hike or something big 1 Deremaxx that morning

I have read about other supplements and the vet provided me a packet on them.. things like Vitamin C etc.. any suggestions with additional supplements here would be awesome.

Also the vet thought Laser Therapy was a better choice over Adequan for now. If Laser does not work then we would possibly try Adaquan. He said he is on the fence with this treatment as she is already on large does of the supplements which is the same thing pretty much.

One additional note she is a nightmare with pills .. NIGHTMARE!! LOL! If anything comes in tasty treats or liquid so much better

My 15 year old bearded collie has had a course of cold laser treatment and I felt it did help. Currently he's started acupuncture which also seems to help. He has changed from trocoxil to onsior and I've started him,in the last few days,on cortaflex with super fenn, so really too early to tell. He also has a back on track coat and shin supports, also from back on track. He goes for very short walks but just sinks down after a few minutes walk. We have a large garden and he potters about there as and when he likes. Still as bright as a button though. I think it is really trial and error to see what makes a difference.
Wonder if hydrotherapy would help your dog?

I'd recommend you give your dog Glucosamine, chondroitin and MSM which you can buy in liquid form online or from your chemist. Turmeric (curcumin) is also a good anti-inflammatory for painful joints which you add to your dog's food. And if you're not already doing so then its advisable to feed your dog on a grain free diet.

Hope that helps.

My Border Collie was diagnosed with hip displasia and severe arthritis when he was six years old after a year of limping that was misdiagnosed.

The vet suggested Glucosomine and Chondroitin and that helped, but didn't fully do the trick. We added Green lipped mussel for the arthritis and the improvement was vast. It doesn't work for all dogs, but for Sam it made the difference in living and living life with quality.

He lived until he was 16 and it wasn't until the last couple of years of his life that this hip problems gradually deteriorated to a point where, in the end, we had to say goodbye to him.