Old dog, arthritis and skin problems?

Arthritis and skin problems iin an old dog, supplements?
Hi there, I have an older basset hound/beagle mix, we are guessing that he is about eleven years old. He has the basset body and bow-legged look, and has a lot of weight on his front paws. He has developed arthritis in the front paws, and recently I started him on cosequin. He's been on it over a couple of weeks and he isn't limping as much.
I would like to find something more effective though.
What about Glycoflex, SynoviG3, etc..? Of the three, which is the best?
Next, we've been fighting with skin issues in my dog. He is on flea prevention, and doesn't seem to itch. His paws are red, he licks between the paw pads constantly, and I dont know why.. he has always licked his feet but they seem redder. They're also swollen.

He is missing fur on his stomach, it has thinned. He has sores on his mouth, he has always had them and since we switched him onto a ceramic bowl from plastic; the sores haven't been as bad. They're these red bumps, that break open from time to time and bleed, they're around his mouth on the bottom jaw and below his nose.

Little bites, he is on flea prevention, whats up with this? Or is it a reaction to something outside? Sometimes he'll even get these bumps under his skin that go away after a while.


Redness and bald spots:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...P1010003-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...P1010007-1.jpg

Sores around the mouth:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...P1010006-2.jpg

Pink, swollen paws:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...P1010005-2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...P1010004-2.jpg

Not sure what else to put..
We were wondering if the skin problem might have been caused by an allergy, maybe wheat or grains.
We switched him from Innova Senior to Earthborn Primitive Natural and Evanger's Chick en and Rice.. both of which are free of gluten.
I also started giving him fish oil, 1000 and Vitamin E 400. But that has only been going on for two or three days... I'm hoping to improve his coat and improve his joint function a little.

Can anyone give me some insight? The vet just says he might have a doggie version of athlete's foot... and had me washing his feet for months with an antifungal wash, with NO change.

"MismatchedMongrel" wrote in
message ...

Arthritis and skin problems iin an old dog, supplements?
Hi there, I have an older basset hound/beagle mix, we are guessing that
he is about eleven years old. He has the basset body and bow-legged
look, and has a lot of weight on his front paws. He has developed
arthritis in the front paws,
...........Probably because he's been compensating for hind end weakness and
his front end has been taking more weight

and recently I started him on cosequin.
He's been on it over a couple of weeks and he isn't limping as much.
I would like to find something more effective though.
What about Glycoflex, SynoviG3, etc..?
......................The one that works is the one you should use! I urge
you to compare ingredients. If they're not much different, they probably
won't act much differently. And you need more than 2 weeks for the whole
effect. Follow the instructions on the bottle. With glucosamine there's
usually a loading dose, don't know about these combo products.

His paws are red, he licks between
the paw pads constantly, and I dont know why.. he has always licked his
feet but they seem redder. They're also swollen.

...............Probably yeast infection, but no way to know if this and other
red itchy bumps are until you get a skin scraping.


Little bites, he is on flea prevention, whats up with this?
.............a critter with a flea allergy can react to one bite. Don't know
if that is what is happening or not. If fleas are an issue in your area,
treat the house also with an IGR. Lastly, if you're in the S. US.,
Frontline is just not working very well on fleas. Try switching flea
prevention product.

Or is it a
reaction to something outside?
.............If environmental allergy you should see waxing and waning
depending on the season.

We were wondering if the skin problem might have been caused by an
allergy, maybe wheat or grains.
We switched him from Innova Senior to Earthborn Primitive Natural and
Evanger's Chick en and Rice.. both of which are free of gluten.
I also started giving him fish oil, 1000 and Vitamin E 400. But that has
only been going on for two or three days... I'm hoping to improve his
coat and improve his joint function a little.

Can anyone give me some insight? The vet just says he might have a
doggie version of athlete's foot... and had me washing his feet for
months with an antifungal wash, with NO change.

.............Didn't have time to look at your pix, but I urge you to join the
Yahoo Group K9Nutrition. A lot of your questions are very common ones, and
you may get some answers to help your dog. You're going the right
direction. Any nutritional supplementation may take 6 weeks to see full
benefit.

buglady
take out the dog before replying

Any results from Cosequin in just 2 weeks is excellent! It takes 4 to 6
weeks to reach full effect. I have used this for one of my guys with
good results for just basic old age stiffness.... a little arthritis,
but not severe. Back nearly 20 years ago, when there were few choices,
I used GlycoFlex (which was just being started to be used for dogs after
having been a staple for horses for years) for my guy with hip dysplasia
bilaterally, starting when he was about 8 1/2 yo, and he was mobile and
doing stairs until he died at 15. I think that both Cosequin and
GlycoFlex kept both dogs from developing much more limitation of
movement. As a result, I start my young dogs on a glucopolysaccharide
supplement on a preventive basis at about 3 yo.... and they are moving
beautifully as oldsters. My friends who breed and train German
Shepherd Dogs for performance sports start the supplements in their
puppies.

The loading dose for this category of supplement is double the
maintenance dose, and lasts at least 30 days, although I think some
recommend 6 weeks. The reason is..... They make the fluid inside the
joint capsules thicker, more "slippery", make more fluid, and reduce the
inflammation from the tiny bone spurs and pits of arthritis, so those
surfaces aren't rubbing each other any more This "new and improved"
synovial fluid takes 4-6 weeks to replace what's in there to start with.
So a single missed dose once in a blue moon is no big hairy deal; it
takes days/weeks to loose all of these good qualities. And nothing
speeds it up, so don't get suckered into liquid glucosamine, which is
more expensive.

Pain in a body part often causes a dog to lick that area. Watch to see
if that constant licking of feet decreases as the Cosequin increases
relief to the larger joints. His feet may be arthritic, too.

Discuss using a human athlete's foot over-the-counter product on his
feet with your vet. My vet had me use Lotrimin brand for a fungus issue
at one point. There's even a spray-on version, although I used the
cream. But get the vet's consent FIRST!

I stopped feeding foods with corn, wheat, and soy a long time ago when
someone commented to me that dogs aren't cows..... {grin}. That summer
was the first one when I didn't have dogs with hot spots. They weren't
allergic to those grains, but were sensitive. There were no problems
with the other grains in foods I tried. In recent years, I've fed
grain-free.... which it looks like you are doing. I currently have a
dog in one of my obedience classes who was recently found to be
sensitive to chicken, when his owner switched foods. He's back on the
animal protein base food he'd been on for the last year, and itching
MUCH less. So sometimes it can be the animal protein in a food that
causes the problem. When dealing with food sensitivities, it can take
up to 90 days to get rid of the results of feeding something the dog is
sensitive to, although you can see results starting, much faster. And
if the dog is allergic to an ingredient, you see some improvement very
promptly, within days to weeks.

I suspect that your dog isn't dealing with food sensitivities or
allergies because you don't mention repeated ear infections, which go
along with excessive foot chewing and licking caused by food issues.

Once the Cosequin has reached time for maintenance dose switch, talk to
your vet about anti-fungal treatment of those feet.... at least on a
trial basis.... if the problem hasn't started to decrease.


Jo Wolf
Martinez, Georgia, USA

I suspect that your dog isn't dealing with *food sensitivities or
allergies because you don't mention repeated ear infections, which go
along with excessive foot chewing and licking caused by food issues.

There's another thing you can try to see if it allergies, which is
Benadryl. Ask your vet if this is recommended for your dog and what
the appropriate dose should be.

I too have found Cosequin to better than any of the OTC remedies, so
if it's working for you, stick with it.

And lastly, since I'm on my 2nd arthritic dog, sometimes a suplement
isn't anough, and you need to consider anti-inflamatories and pain
medicines. There are NSAIDs adjusted for dogs that are safer than
aspirin (don't give ibuprofin, naproxen sodium, or acetaminicin to a
dog, please!). Rhymadyl, Deramaxx, and Metacam are commonly used for
this. There can be side effects, and there is still a possibility of
liver or kidney damage (just much less than you get from the humabn
formulations). I've had good luck with Deramaxx, others I've spoken
to have sworn by Metacam (but it's a liquid and more expensive).
Rhymadyl has gotten some bad press due to interactions, so read up on
it before you decide to use it. And just as in human medicin,
sometimes a pain medicin and an anti-inflamatory don't have as much
effect when either is used alone as they do when used together.
Current dog is doing very well (for almost 16) on Cosequin, Deramaxx
and Tramadol. Your pet's metabolism may differ, so work with your vet
on this. Reactions vary dog-to-dog, not just by breed.

Good luck,
--Glenn Lyford

Glenn Lyford wrote in rec.pets.dogs.health:

And lastly, since I'm on my 2nd arthritic dog, sometimes a suplement
isn't anough, and you need to consider anti-inflamatories and pain
medicines.

Current dog is doing very well (for almost 16) on Cosequin, Deramaxx
and Tramadol. Your pet's metabolism may differ, so work with your vet
on this. Reactions vary dog-to-dog, not just by breed.

Yup! I'm with 2 arthritic dogs here (had another who has since passed
on named Sammy).

Sammy needed tramadol and a glucosamine suppliment. Cash doesnt seem
to benefit from the suppliments so doesn't get them but Aunti Mabel
does. Neither Cash or Aunti Mabel are on pain meds but we watch
carefully for this plus regular vet checkups on it all.

What's worked well here is our nooner bone broth and other natural
sources. Aunti Mabel gets the natural and the powder forms. She seems
best on both of them.

PS to all, Aunti Mabel turns 15 this Thanksgiving (best guess, adopted
her believed to be at least 14 last Thanksgiving). Smile, she and Cash
are doing fine. Aunti Mabel's cataracts are holding stable and she's
developed a permanent happy grin.