My dog is 10 years old and has arthritis. A friend told me that baby aspirin may help her. Is this true?

Answer 1

As a matter of fact, my ex boyfriend had a little wiener dog that had arthritis...and the vet told them to give him regular aspirin...just to disguise it by wrapping it up in cheese.

Before giving YOUR dog any sort of medication, however, I would call your local vet and see if they can recommend something over the phone.

Answer 2

Aspiring is too hard on a dog's stomach so I'd check with the vet first. Two of my dogs have the beginnings of arthritis and are on glucosamine as a preventative. However, if the arthritis is bad, that won't help them at all. My bearded collie was on Rimadyl until he was 12 and played like a puppy - totally pain free. However, Rimadyl can cause severe side affects, so again, check with your vet, there may be something better out there now that will stop the pain.

Answer 3

Hi... We have a German Shepherd who is 11, almost 12. There are great things you can do to help your dog. Asprin is fine and will help your friend, but make sure you give the correct dose for their size. There are other things you can do too...

Our shepherd receives half an asprin (because of her size... 50kg) each night before bed. This was recommended to us by the vet. We also do the following which has helped her age gracefully and still be full of beans!
She has a walk daily (no questions, rain, hail or shine)
She plays with some younger dogs a few times a week.. if you let your dog stop excercising, their muscles and bones will stop too) If there are no younger dogs, run around with your friend/throw a ball
She has sardines in oil 2-3 times per week. Not only does she love them, but the oils are great for her joints and coat
You can also give a Cod Liver Oil or a Shark Carlidge tablet in some fresh meat... Our shepherd has the 'joint formula' a combination of both from the health shop.

Hope this helps you!

Answer 4

Early stages of arthritis asprin can help. Be sure to check with your vet about proper doage.

Glucosamine Chondriotin helps as well. It works better to slow the progress of srthiritis down than as a pain reliever though.

Once my dog started getting more severe arthiritis she went on Rimadyl. Yes, it can have very negative side effects(specifically liver damage), but the vet should do blood work every 6 mo or so to make sure too much damage isn't being done. Additionally my and my vets opinion on the potentially liver damage, is by the time she went on these meds at ten years old she was elderly for her breed and size (Dobie/Rott, 100 lbs.), so it was worth the risk to improve her quality of life.

After a couple of years she become resistent to the Rimadyl, and my vet didn't want to keep upping the dose, so she switched to Zubrin. This worked for another year or so, until she was once again resistent.

Finally she got injections of Ado-van (not sure about the spelling). She had two injections a week, for four weeks. My vet said this was entirely different type of medication. I believe it is from the thyroid of cows (don't quote me on this). This worked much better than I had even hoped. She was still getting around fine for a year after these shots. Until she developed cancer at 14 and had to be put to sleep.

So my advice is to get your dog to the vet to get the best options for your dogs care. The arthritis treatments are really good these days. They can really improve their quality of life and extend their life.

Answer 5

I have had advice to give both of my labs (one 10 and the other 9) reg. Asprin. The older one had aarthritis (sence passed away), and the 9 year old currently still takes one a day because he has arthritis in his spine, and has had a stroke that effected half his face. Sometimes he scratches harder then usual on that side and we will give it to him. We were also told recently for our St. Benard puppy that when he fell on the ice this last winter when he was only a couple months old and started to limp, we were told to give him that for paid. Keep an eye on him after you give it to him though. Just like people dogs have allergies too, and asprin might be one of them. Good luck!!

Answer 6

Okay, well first of all, I feel really bad for your dog, and you. I can't imagine how you two must feel. Second of all, I highly suggest that you go to your vet, and ask him/her to prescribe you arthritis medication for your lab. Next, I think you should give your dog a lot of attention, and make him feel really comfortable. Long tummy rubs, treats maybe, and lots of hugs and kisses. Anything that you think will keep him happy. That's really all dogs ever wanted, was love, and right now, your lab is going to need a lot of it. Once again, I can't imagine the pain both of you are going through right now, I hope things get better Hope this helps, Sandy

Answer 7

Yes, it is true, according to my vet. My Doxie has arthritis, and my vet also has him on Glucosamine/Chondroitin. You will have to ask your vet about the dosage of that to give, but it's better for dogs than the pain medicine Rimadyl, which has A LOT of side effects that are not good for older dogs. Hope this helps, and good luck with yopur best friend!!

Answer 8

I had a Labrador who had terrible arthritis for the last 5 years of his life. The only thing that helped (apart from anti-inflammatories, which provide only temporary relief) was a product called Athro-ease. I'm not sure if you get it in your country, but I hope so because it gave my boy a wonderful new lease on life. Best of luck.

Answer 9

Yes, roughly one aspirin tablet per 30 pounds of body weight every 12 hours. It is extremely important to pay attention to your dog's eating habits when administering aspirin. Dogs have no way to tell you their stomach is upset so you must watch for signs of this. If your dog stops eating while you are giving aspirin it is important to stop giving the aspirin. If any signs of gastric ulcers develop (like blood tinged vomiting or depression) it is important to stop the aspirin.

Answer 10

Here's a site with the dosage by weight. Depending on how big your dog is, a baby asprin may not be enough. Or if this is a little dog, it might be too much.
http://animalsunlimited.net/meds.htm
Glucosamine can be bought over the counter at the pet store and would be better. Asprin is rough on the stomach.