Question by indigogirl111: When a dog has pathological fractures due to bones weakened by cancer, what can be done?
My dog was just recently put to sleep after 11 beautiful years. She had bone cancer in her right front leg. I only found out about it 10 days ago. Three days after find out, we saw an oncologist. By that time because of the weakened condition of the bones due to the cancer, she already had two fractures in that same leg. The oncologist said that he’d never heard of an orthopedist working on a cancerous limb.
Does anyone know of any cases where the limb was operated on in a situation like this? My dog was not a candidate for amputation due to the severe arthritis she already suffered from.

I’m really feeling bad about putting her to sleep. Any insight from anyone knowledgable would be very helpful.

Best answer:

Answer by barthebear
You gave her such a wonderful life and I can tell you feel guilty but please try to realize that nature knows best and that she wasn’t herself at the end. You wouldn’t have wanted to prolong the agony by exposing her to new people, different and painful situations that are further surgery, would you? Plus she already had arthritis. I mean they rarely cry when they aren’t feeling well. so its difficult to know exactly how much pain but if her bones were fractured, that is not comfortable. Please google the ‘rainbow bridge’ poem if you do not already know it. It may bring you some peace of mind.

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Question by maddiekaykay: Our Rottweiler is almost 6. She has had both knees done (I guess ACL in our terms) and minor hip dypslasia…?
and she was prescribed Rimadyl, which from what I hear can be very upsetting to the gastrointestinal system. I rarely give it to her unless she is in obvious pain (I have arthritis myself, plus hardware in the femur bone), and I watch it very carefully when I hurt, I think if I hurt, she might be too, but don’t like to administer the rimadyl if at all possible. I have heard an aspirin is OK, but then I heard it’s not for the same reason (gastrointestinal). I knoe the answer is to take her to the vet, but I am asking for open suggestions from you folks that have heard or have used medicine for their dogs that is easier on their gastrointestinal system. I would like some input from folks that have dogs that suffer from arthritis, etc. and your experience with the newer medications that are available to help when she is in pain other than Rimadyl. I maintain her with Cosequin (glucosamine). Sorry to have such a huge question, and thanks for your humble opinion
*
Dysplasia
I am not comparing my pain to hers. I am just asking for different medications that relieve pain for hip dysplasia and knees that have been surgically repaired. I thought I made the question clear, what are the newer medications that are milder to the tummy then Rimadyl. Again, I am just saying I know what arthritis feels like, and anyone that suffers it, it’s not fun. I am not comparing humans to canines. I am asking for the newer medications and experiences for those folks that have dogs that suffer same or close to the symptoms. Thank you.

Best answer:

Answer by Bonsylar
First, I want to say, your pain has NOTHING to do with hers.
You can’t judge the dog’s pain by what you’re feeling.

It’s 2 completely different problems, 2 completely different species.

Dogs instinctively hide pain from the most beloved humans. So, if she’s only getting relief when YOU hurt, how is that helping her?

To answer your question, buffered asprin is safe for dogs, BUT!!! You need a vet to tell you if it’s OK for your dog.
There could be some other reason your vet doesn’t want him taking it.

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Question by joe: my dog diagnosed with severe arthritis. What can be done to make his life easier now?
My 8 and a half year old newfoundland has been diagnosed with arthritis. He has severe joint pain and this first came to notice when he had difficulty climbing stairs. also he can’t stand for long period of time and has to sit down every 4 minutes for a minute or 2 before continuing. In short old age has hit him hard and i now want to make his life as easy as possible since he has severe arthritis. What can be done?

Best answer:

Answer by Giagal
Get your dog down to a weight that is on the lower end of normal for the breed. You should also be giving a glucosamine supplement.

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Question by doubledreaming: Is there such a thing as dog massage? How is it done?
My 15+ year old dog has arthritis all in her legs and hips, and with her joints cracking and grinding, I expect she probably aches all over. Would massaging her joints help? How do you do it? I have no idea how to do it.

Best answer:

Answer by angltouch
I bet shes hurting badly. Im a MT student and we are thought to massage animals the same way we do humans, they have joints and they ache at those joints. What we do is massage gently around the areas and she lets you with your 2 fingers or even your thumb friction those same joints gently, we dont know the degree of her pain if any. Make sure you get her calm by dong gently massage in her entire body, “Feather Touch” type of massge and then go for the joints, and of course “NO OILS” just your hands. If she lets you while you giving her a warm bath you can massage her there to.
Hope this works
Student of massage therapy
MT
Found this web site
http://www.dogmassage.com/massage.htm

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Question by <3: what can be done for arthritis in dogs?
my dog is about 16 years old his dingo cross kelpie, he seems to be limping in his back leg, i think its arthritis he doesnt seem like his in pain, he still loves going for walks and stuff, im planning on taking him to a vet, but is there anything that can be done for arthritis in dogs

thanksz

Best answer:

Answer by BCHS
i have a 12 year old Labrador with the works on his back legs and hips.
We give a 1500mg glucosamine tablet every night and a course of quarterzone injections once a year this helps but they will never recover and its just a fact of life for old dogs, especially labradors

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Question by scindy76: my question is arthritis in dogs and what can be done to make the pain more bare-able for them?
I was wondering if anyone had heard of or if they have used a product called Dr. Franks pet pain spray.It sounds to good to be true and yes I do know what that usually means but I am hoping to find that out before I get my hopes up with a purchase.Thank you if you can give me some sort of fed back .

Best answer:

Answer by stacyandjason212
Have you tried Rimadryl? I have seen it work miracles.

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Do you think that if the breed or breeds (if mixing) have a predisposition for hip dysplasia that they should be x-rayed? Or do you think it is OK to breed if your dog doesn’t show any signs of it?

Do you think that you should run tests to verify that your animal does not carry and genetic defects? Or not?

Why or why not?
My mistake in wording “makeup2more”! I meant in depth testing to make sure that there aren’t any genetic issues. Sorry!

Dogjudge, I was trying to be “politically correct” ….which is rare for me. There are a lot of “designer hybrid” (gag!) breeders that I thought should see this question and the answers.

I just found out recently that my 1 year old hound/beagle mix has pretty severe hip dysplasia in both hips and he is developing arthritis already. He has a consultation with a surgeon comeing up, but I was wondering if anyone can give their personal experiences after the surgery? Like what to expect, best types of physical therapy etc. He is not a big dog, he is only 43 pounds and he is full grown. He is very active so he does not have any weight problems.