Has anybody ever gone thru this recently that can give me some input? My
yellow lab is suffering from arthritis (I think), poor guy. He is only 6
and has had it since he was 3. We have had him to two different vets with
the same diagnoses. But we have been given nothing positive at all. They
say he has arthritis. So, okay, then what? We seem to get no more input
from the vets. Do we just let him suffer?

We have hesitantly tried the Rimadyl, only when we have to, but have had no
good results from it. We have had better results with one St Joseph's baby
aspirin a day (a very low dose). But then we have heard that is not good
for his stomach. What to do? I notice around his rear it appears he is
having black loose sticky poops. Because he is a yellow lab, it is quite
noticeable. Is that from the aspirin, or something else? THEN I noticed
a swollen something under his right front leg (gland?). It is about the
size of a half dollar and movable. Does he maybe have something else and
not arthritis? He has a hard time getting up, especially with his hind
quarters, and he licks his front "elbows" quite a bit. He has his good
days and his bad days. On his bad days, he can't even step up one step to
come into the house, so I bring his food outside and he eats it while
laying down. Those bad days are getting more and more common. On his
better days, he chases rabbits and digs in his hole (if he wasn't sick, I'd
hire him out for excavation work and get rich).

Okay, now another weird thing. My other lab, an overly huge 130 lb
chocolate about 3 years old, adores the yellow lab. But the yellow only
tolerates him on his bad days, usually just curling his lip to tell him to
leave him alone. The chocolate senses this and keeps his distance, tho he
always longingly watches over the yellow. The chocolate is ver-r-r-ry
affectionate and I think he hurts the yellow without meaning to because of
his size and by always nudging him or trying to snuggle. Anyway, when the
yellow lab is at his worse, the chocolate comes in the house and keeps away
from him. But lately, I have noticed the chocolate is constantly laying
next to the yellow, even at his worse, and totally ignores the curled lip.
And the yellow seems to be really bad lately. Am I being really stoooopid
and naive in thinking the chocolate knows something we don't?

Anyway, we have another vet appointment this week. I'll let you know what
we find out. Anybody else have any input on what they have done for their
dog that we can maybe do?

Thanks so much for any input.

Chocolic

"Chocolic" wrote in message
newsky6b.129332$0v4.9399814@bgtnsc04-

Thanks so much for any input.



Choc, i would say there are so many symptoms it really needs a vet to
diagnose. Let us know what he says.

"Chocolic" wrote in message
newsky6b.129332$0v4.9399814@bgtnsc04-

Thanks so much for any input.



Choc, i would say there are so many symptoms it really needs a vet to
diagnose. Let us know what he says.

In article kaz6b.129457$0v4.9404885@bgtnsc04-
news.ops.worldnet.att.net, says...

Thanks Deb. The vet did do blood tests but not a fecal test. But my
husband is the one that takes him so he's not good in relaying the
information from the vet IMO. Maybe you know how husbands are? I used
to have the same problems when he took my daughters to the doc.

Pretty much the info I got was it was arthritis (and we have to deal with
it?). I don't think so. We did try the Glucosaine but didn't really see
any results. Maybe we should give it another try as maybe we didn't try it
long enough. For some scary reason I think it is maybe something (shudder)
else. He is my buddy and this is killing me (us). My husband is very
attached to him even more so, and I think sometimes he sort of is in
denial. Sort of like "he's going to be just fine", kind of thing. I
think he would be that way if I were dieing of something too.

When I got my very arthritic chi mix at the age of 9, she was on
Rimadyl. I had her liver values checked every couple of months, and I'm
glad I did because the Rimadyl started to have an adverse affect after a
few months - when I stopped it all went back to normal. I then put her
on Dr. Foster & Smith's Gluco-C Plus, and was able to wean her off
prescription meds pretty much completely (I still keep some etogesic on
hand for very bad days, but that only happens about once every 6 months
now). It did take about 6 months for it really kick in. She also eats
Wellness Senior food with Missing Link. One day I realized she was
bouncing instead of waddling, and I could no longer outrun her. It's
been a pretty amazing transformation - sometimes when she runs around
the yard it's hard to believe it's the same dog. Of course, this might
not work for every dog, but it may be worth a try.

He's going to the vet this week so maybe we will find out something more.
The lump under his front leg in the armpit area has me worried.

Will keep my fingers crossed for you.

--
Debbie the Underdogged das at spamcop dot net
"I'm not crazy, I've just been in a very bad mood for 40 years."
_Steel Magnolias_

In article kaz6b.129457$0v4.9404885@bgtnsc04-
news.ops.worldnet.att.net, says...

Thanks Deb. The vet did do blood tests but not a fecal test. But my
husband is the one that takes him so he's not good in relaying the
information from the vet IMO. Maybe you know how husbands are? I used
to have the same problems when he took my daughters to the doc.

Pretty much the info I got was it was arthritis (and we have to deal with
it?). I don't think so. We did try the Glucosaine but didn't really see
any results. Maybe we should give it another try as maybe we didn't try it
long enough. For some scary reason I think it is maybe something (shudder)
else. He is my buddy and this is killing me (us). My husband is very
attached to him even more so, and I think sometimes he sort of is in
denial. Sort of like "he's going to be just fine", kind of thing. I
think he would be that way if I were dieing of something too.

When I got my very arthritic chi mix at the age of 9, she was on
Rimadyl. I had her liver values checked every couple of months, and I'm
glad I did because the Rimadyl started to have an adverse affect after a
few months - when I stopped it all went back to normal. I then put her
on Dr. Foster & Smith's Gluco-C Plus, and was able to wean her off
prescription meds pretty much completely (I still keep some etogesic on
hand for very bad days, but that only happens about once every 6 months
now). It did take about 6 months for it really kick in. She also eats
Wellness Senior food with Missing Link. One day I realized she was
bouncing instead of waddling, and I could no longer outrun her. It's
been a pretty amazing transformation - sometimes when she runs around
the yard it's hard to believe it's the same dog. Of course, this might
not work for every dog, but it may be worth a try.

He's going to the vet this week so maybe we will find out something more.
The lump under his front leg in the armpit area has me worried.

Will keep my fingers crossed for you.

--
Debbie the Underdogged das at spamcop dot net
"I'm not crazy, I've just been in a very bad mood for 40 years."
_Steel Magnolias_

"Chocolic" wrote in message
news
He has his good
days and his bad days. On his bad days, he can't even step up one step to
come into the house, so I bring his food outside and he eats it while
laying down.

Does he normally live outside? That could make it worse--cold is hard on
arthritis.

Okay, now another weird thing. My other lab, an overly huge 130 lb
chocolate about 3 years old, adores the yellow lab.

And another question. You say your other lab is about 130 pounds. That is
HUGE. I'm sorry to put it this way because I don't want to make you mad, but
there is just no way a lab could weigh that much without being terribly
obese. Is your yellow dog obese too?

To measure obesity, first look down on him from above. Does he have a good
"waist" from back of ribs to hips--a nice dip inward? Can you very fainly
see his ribs when he runs? If you place your hands on him, thumbs on spine,
fingers going down the sides, can you feel his ribs if you very lightly rub
back and forth? (digging for them doesn't count!).

Looking at him from the side, does he have good tuck up? That's a line that
should go upward from the bottom of the rib cage to the groin area. It
shouldn't be level or sagging, it should go upward.

The thing is, fat is a REAL problem for dogs with arthritis. Well it's a
problem for any dog, but for a dog with arthritis, it makes things much,
much worse. The more weight the dog has to carry on arthritic joints the
more they will hurt and the more quickly they will deteriorate. Some vets
will tell you that if your dog has arthritis he shouldn't do much work or
get much exercise. This is absolutely wrong. You should get him THIN, keep
him THIN, and exercise him as much as possible, especially with swimming,
which labs love anyway.

How much do you feed a day? Include not only any kibble you give, but also
treats, snacks, leftovers, etc.

"Chocolic" wrote in message
news
He has his good
days and his bad days. On his bad days, he can't even step up one step to
come into the house, so I bring his food outside and he eats it while
laying down.

Does he normally live outside? That could make it worse--cold is hard on
arthritis.

Okay, now another weird thing. My other lab, an overly huge 130 lb
chocolate about 3 years old, adores the yellow lab.

And another question. You say your other lab is about 130 pounds. That is
HUGE. I'm sorry to put it this way because I don't want to make you mad, but
there is just no way a lab could weigh that much without being terribly
obese. Is your yellow dog obese too?

To measure obesity, first look down on him from above. Does he have a good
"waist" from back of ribs to hips--a nice dip inward? Can you very fainly
see his ribs when he runs? If you place your hands on him, thumbs on spine,
fingers going down the sides, can you feel his ribs if you very lightly rub
back and forth? (digging for them doesn't count!).

Looking at him from the side, does he have good tuck up? That's a line that
should go upward from the bottom of the rib cage to the groin area. It
shouldn't be level or sagging, it should go upward.

The thing is, fat is a REAL problem for dogs with arthritis. Well it's a
problem for any dog, but for a dog with arthritis, it makes things much,
much worse. The more weight the dog has to carry on arthritic joints the
more they will hurt and the more quickly they will deteriorate. Some vets
will tell you that if your dog has arthritis he shouldn't do much work or
get much exercise. This is absolutely wrong. You should get him THIN, keep
him THIN, and exercise him as much as possible, especially with swimming,
which labs love anyway.

How much do you feed a day? Include not only any kibble you give, but also
treats, snacks, leftovers, etc.

We did try the Glucosaine but didn't really see
any results. Maybe we should give it another try as maybe we didn't try
it
long enough.

How long did you try it for? It can take a couple of WEEKS for it to
start having an effect; what it does is increase the level of synovial fluid
(S. fluid cushions and lubricates the joints, like oil in machinery) in the
joints, but it does it gradually. And even if it doesn't have an effect of
relieving pain, it may help prevent further damage to the joint.


The lump under his front leg in the armpit area has me worried.

Well, you need to have your vet take a look at it, but in a Lab the odds
are pretty good that it's a benign fatty tumor. They're usually round or
oval, smooth, found on the torso, and in the skin (IOW not attached to
muscle or bone). DO get a vet opinion on it, though!




--
Sarah
Brenin, CGC, AD, O-EAC-V, O-EJC-V, EGC
Gwydion, Handy Cat
Morag Thistledown, Novice Triple Superior, S-OAC, S-OJC, O-OGC, EJC
Robyn Meezer, Inspector of Human Activity
Rocsi Cadarn, S-NJC, NAC, NGTG, OGTG

we can be seen at: http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs1
and http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs2

We did try the Glucosaine but didn't really see
any results. Maybe we should give it another try as maybe we didn't try
it
long enough.

How long did you try it for? It can take a couple of WEEKS for it to
start having an effect; what it does is increase the level of synovial fluid
(S. fluid cushions and lubricates the joints, like oil in machinery) in the
joints, but it does it gradually. And even if it doesn't have an effect of
relieving pain, it may help prevent further damage to the joint.


The lump under his front leg in the armpit area has me worried.

Well, you need to have your vet take a look at it, but in a Lab the odds
are pretty good that it's a benign fatty tumor. They're usually round or
oval, smooth, found on the torso, and in the skin (IOW not attached to
muscle or bone). DO get a vet opinion on it, though!




--
Sarah
Brenin, CGC, AD, O-EAC-V, O-EJC-V, EGC
Gwydion, Handy Cat
Morag Thistledown, Novice Triple Superior, S-OAC, S-OJC, O-OGC, EJC
Robyn Meezer, Inspector of Human Activity
Rocsi Cadarn, S-NJC, NAC, NGTG, OGTG

we can be seen at: http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs1
and http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs2

"Robin Nuttall" wrote:

Does he normally live outside? That could make it worse--cold is hard on
arthritis.

Yep. And so is lying on hard surfaces. If you're going to keep him outside-
and if, of course, he doesn't already have something like this- you might
want to look into setting him up with a sheltered spot that's got a heated,
soft bed.


And another question. You say your other lab is about 130 pounds. That is
HUGE. I'm sorry to put it this way because I don't want to make you mad,
but
there is just no way a lab could weigh that much without being terribly
obese.

Actually, Robin, while I agree 110% that the OP should take weight into
account, I KNOW Labs who are that big and not obese. On the East Coast, we
have some "breeders" who operate on the "big is better" principle, and I
know at least three Labs who are in the 110-130 lb range and not what I
would call overweight. They're just St. Bernard-sized.
Interestingly, they're also all so-called "white" Labs.



--
Sarah
Brenin, CGC, AD, O-EAC-V, O-EJC-V, EGC
Gwydion, Handy Cat
Morag Thistledown, Novice Triple Superior, S-OAC, S-OJC, O-OGC, EJC
Robyn Meezer, Inspector of Human Activity
Rocsi Cadarn, S-NJC, NAC, NGTG, OGTG

we can be seen at: http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs1
and http://photos.yahoo.com/amberdogs2



To measure obesity, first look down on him from above. Does he have a good
"waist" from back of ribs to hips--a nice dip inward? Can you very fainly
see his ribs when he runs? If you place your hands on him, thumbs on
spine,
fingers going down the sides, can you feel his ribs if you very lightly
rub
back and forth? (digging for them doesn't count!).

Looking at him from the side, does he have good tuck up? That's a line
that
should go upward from the bottom of the rib cage to the groin area. It
shouldn't be level or sagging, it should go upward.

The thing is, fat is a REAL problem for dogs with arthritis. Well it's a
problem for any dog, but for a dog with arthritis, it makes things much,
much worse. The more weight the dog has to carry on arthritic joints the
more they will hurt and the more quickly they will deteriorate. Some vets
will tell you that if your dog has arthritis he shouldn't do much work or
get much exercise. This is absolutely wrong. You should get him THIN, keep
him THIN, and exercise him as much as possible, especially with swimming,
which labs love anyway.

How much do you feed a day? Include not only any kibble you give, but also
treats, snacks, leftovers, etc.