What can I do for my dog?

Question

I don't have the money to take her to the vet.
She's 9 years old and has really bad arthritus. She limps when she walks and can't jump on the couch anymore. She's also really overweight which makes it harder for her, but her joints hurt her too much to excercise. I feel terrible for her...what should I do?
She's half pomeranian and half chihuahua.

she's not DIEING min! geez...

okay...should we kill PEOPLE too when THEY get arthritus? that's messed up. If your going to tell me to KILL my dog then don't even answer the question, ok?

Answer 1

Thank you Renata! You're the first person to advise glucosamine! Its exactly what the dog needs for her joints. My 12 year old Shih Tzu takes glucosamine treats for his bad joints. It has worked wonders... he has started jumping and running again. You can buy the pill form (for humans) by the boat load very cheap at a warehouse store, like Costco or Sam's Club. Grind it up and put it in your dog's food. Run by a pet store, or even check online, and find out how much they recommend to give your dog. Supplements at the pet store break down their ingredients and will tell you how much you should give your dog.

And yes, you absolutely should put her on a diet. There are tons of dog foods that are formulated for overweight pets. Also, get her exercising again, little bits at a time. Just play with her as much as she can handle around the house, the try taking her for walks. As the glucosamine builds up in her system, she will be able to handle more activity.

Answer 2

Dogs can be given Aspirin as a pain-reliever, but you need to ask a vet how much to give her. Not much, I'm guessing, being such a small breed. Never Tylenol or anything else, though. Only Aspirin. The vet should be okay with giving you that information for free, I hope.

Sometimes massage can help, too. And you need to get her to lose weight. Extra pounds will kill a dog a lot quicker than a human. You'd be surprised in the difference in her if you could get her to shed those pounds. Decrease her food intake a little bit at a time until you find the right weight for her. Give each new amount a few weeks to see how it is affecting her. And don't ever feed her "people food" unless it's carrots, plain yogurt, green beans, or something of that nature. Chihuahuas will do well on a diet including veggies.

Good luck to you! Oh, and try to ignore the 'killers'... It sounds like the world is having a bad day today and taking it all out on you and your little dog. Take the good advice and go with it, then go spend time with her.

Answer 3

They sell the glucosamine at the pet stores. That is good for the arthritus. It does take some weeks befoe the effects start showing. In the mean time you can give asprin, but it needs to be given by the weight of the dog.
Here's a website with the dosage chart.
http://animalsunlimited.net/meds.htm

Answer 4

I am not sure what to tell you. Part of being a responsible pet owner is to take them to the vet. I own a pomeranian mix and I have had the responsibility to take her to the vet yearly. If you had you would know that it is a common trait in Pomeranians that their knee joints are weak and are known for breaking down.

If she is in so much pain then find a way to get her to the vet or a clinic for some treatment and medication. 9 years old is not old age for a dog of this size and she most likely has at least 6 to 7 years of life left.

You could possibly lessen her pain through over the counter meds. Half a baby asprin would cut it but nothing is going to replace the care and guidance of a vet.

Yes they are expensive but it is for their health. You wouldn't, at least I hope, leave a human child to suffer through pain and not take them to the doctor. I saw you rant at someone about putting her to sleep and bringing up the same scenario. I am sorry if this sounds mean and critical but I am speaking from experience.

My Pom Mix is ten. She has the "trick knees" that is common for her major breed. Last summer she was in pain for two months. I gave up vacations and everything but the bare essentials to get her to the vet and treated. She needed steroid treatments and medicine to help with the pain and medicine to protect her stomach from the other medicines.

She was worth every penny.

Unfortunately there is little you can do without a vet. They will need to x-ray and examine her to determine what is wrong. With mine last summer it wasn't even her knees. She strained her back, well that is the best the Vet could diagnose because he thoroughly checked her out. He gave her gentle massages and she was well in two months.

So please. If you love her, find the funds and get her some medical help.

A diet is good because the excess weight will just put stress on her joints. Try just to get her to walk around the house to get her use to moving.

Stop the jumping up and down from furniture the jarring is not helping her.

Unfortunatley, as I said before, the breed has a default. My vet told me when she was four that she may need knee surgery in the future. The last appointment, because of following his advice and having her checked every year he said her knees should be fine without surgery for the rest of her life.

I hope you can find a way to help her. It sounds as if you really love her so I wish you luck.

Answer 5

One thing you can do is to give her a low dose asprin everyday. This will help make her a little more comfortable. But the most important thing you can do is get her to lose weight! The extra weight is not only making her pain worse, but also shortening her life! Any exercise is better than none, and put her on a diet. No human food either! Don't let her suffer!

Answer 6

The weight coming off will make the arthritis much more tolerable. If you have access to a pool or small body of water, she could swim a little for exercise. This is much better for arthritic people as well as dogs.I have heard benadryl ,may also help. It would have to be an extremely small dose though.

Answer 7

1) First start giving your dog glucosamine every day. It will protect and heal the joints.
2) Next start your dog on a diet so that there is not so much stress on the dogs joints.
3) Then start with an exercise program that your dog can handle.

Following this program will cost you very little money and reduce your dogs suffering.

Answer 8

First, I would put her on a diet. Change her food to natural dog food for seniors and limit the amount of treats and table scraps if any. Then maybe call and ask your vet what you can do at home to help with the arthritis. I have heard giving baby aspirin will help, but I would ask the vet to be sure.

Answer 9

This is not about you. It's about your dog. If it is crying and is in pain you need to take it to the vets. Where are you going to get the money to have it put down if the need arises. It costs money to own pets, a lot of money as a matter of fact. If you cant afford to own one you should never get one to begin with. You owe it to that poor dog to get it medical attention.

Answer 10

give her light dog foods. No people food. Take a lot of short walks. Try a baby aspirin. Not tylenol, that is toxic to dogs.