How do we give our older dog exercise without straining his body?

Question

We have a 9 and 1/2 year old Estrela Mountain dog who is a very large breed. The life expectancy for larger dogs isn't usually as long as smaller breed and his little mate was put to sleep some months ago. Since then we adopted a slightly younger dog who is full of energy. It's obvious that our older dog isn't as spry and has some trouble sitting or coming up the stairs, but he gets so excited when we play ball or go for walks. We try to limit the amount of playing and walks for him because of his age, but I'm worried that this might have some negative effects on his health as well. I want to give him exercise but am afraid of his body not being able to handle it well. Also, it's difficult to balance our younger dog's energy with our older dog, since they both want to be very active but one is more capable than the other. Sorry to ramble on, but does anyone have any advice?

Answer 1

First, take him to your vet to be sure he doesn't have any major health problems. If he is slowing down due to arthritis, there are a number of excellent medications out there which your vet could prescribe. If there are dog parks in your area you could take him there and he could regulate his own activity and the younger one could play with other dogs.

If you take him for walks be sure to take him on grass if possible instead of pavement to reduce the stress on his joints. And you may have to take the younger dog out separately to run off a bit of energy before letting the older dog out--maybe one of you could do that while the other plays in the house with the older dog before bringing him outside.

I have an elderly arthritic beagle who tries to follow me and the more spry dogs and it's very difficult to see her limping along after us. So if possible I have someone leash her up and stay with her, petting her and walking her very slowly, so she doesn't feel left out.

Good luck!

Answer 2

You have demonstrated that more effective pain relief brings the dog better quality of life. Unfortunately you cannot give dogs Paracetamol or Ibruprofen safely, it harms their Liver and the Ibruprofen can cause Stomach bleeds. So stop giving those from now. So, what you need to do is have the vet do a blood test for Kidney function to see if the dog can take stronger medication. If it is still OK then there is a drug called Metacam (or Meloxicam) that will control pain relief. Ask your vet also for Sucralfate or Antepsin for the first week so that stomach problems are lessened (the first dose is a big one). If the kidneys are already under pressure then Tramadol is an option. In the meantime give the drugs your vet has prescribed and nothing else. You could however give Glucosamine and Chondrotin supplements (also in Pedigree Joint Care sticks) without causing problems.

Answer 3

Give him glucosamine chondroitin with MSM for his joints, that will help if he is experiencing pain in his joints.

Run that younger pup, in fact, if you can find someone great on roller blades, my guy when he was young loved being able to run with my son on roller blades. Will help with that energy.

But back to your older pooch, I got 2 of them one 10 1/2, one 8. The 8 yo one has a heart problem. We take walks, slow walks, some days a mile takes 15 minutes others 30. It is what he is up to.

The older guy, 10 1/2, can easily walk 3 miles in about an hour and 10 minutes. But I let him decide the pace and the length of the walk. Some days after a mile he heads into the driveway, others he will go 3 miles. But both of the boy get a minimum of 2 miles a day. Let the dogs decide the pace.

Answer 4

keep the level of excercise for your older dog to short periods of time. the troudle of getting up and donw steps could be because of the on set of arthritis. as long as the dog has some level of daily exercise there should not be any probles with the dogs health. let the older dog dictate what play time they have together. think of your older dog being an old person. at some time thier body will start to slow down. and just like some old people dogs need to be told when to stop doing thier thing. put your older dog on a lead when you think that it has had enough. the dog wont like being stopped from playing but in the long run it is better than vet bills for injury that can be avoided. it sounds like it would be a good idea to have your dog vet checked for arthritis. this is a simple procedure. the vet will test the movment of your dogs front and rear legs to see if there is any limited movement. i had a 14 year old lab/staffy X who was run over by a 4x4 towing a trailer. this happened before i got her. she to was full of life if a ball or lead was shown to her. we had to restrick her excercise towards the end of her life. have your dog vet checked it will make life eiser for you and the dog. it may also help your old dog if you could put a dog ramp on any steps that you may have. all you need is a plank of wood that is wide enough for the dog to walk on the ramp can also be covered with carpet so the dog wont slip on it. it also needs to be fixed to the steps so it wont slip of when the dog walks on it. i did this for my old lab/staffy X. hope this helps

Answer 5

I have a 9 year old boxer and he get's tired pretty easily also, but if you give your dog long walks at a moderate pace, he will be healthy. It's a good idea to also let him run around your yard.
Your dog will let you know when he is tired, but if not just make sure he gets plenty of rest, my dog always sleeps a lot because he is an older dog.
Hope this helps.

Answer 6

Well if you're playing ball with both younger and older dog, let your older dog play until he is done, once he wares out take him inside to rest, and if your younger pup still wants to play then play with him while your older guy is sleeping. Also taking certain vitamins and supplements are good for the older dogs. My older dog had pretty bad arthritis in his back and hind legs/rear end. So my vet gave him some medication to help him out, we also gave him pills with glucose- mine in them. Talk to your vet and ask for something to help your dogs elderly aches and pains if he has any.
And as for walks, maybe take you younger dog 1st, then take them both for a shorter walk. That way they are both happy.
With my senior dog I took him for short walks, about a block he could walk, maybe shorter, but I would try and walk him more then once a day, so that he could keep his muscle mass.

Good luck and hope you older dog has a long happy life! ^_^

My senior dog was a standard American Eskimo, about 17 inches at the shoulder, he lived to be 16 1/2 years old. He crossed the bridge just a few months ago, in September it was.
I miss him dearly but I know he's in a better place now.

Answer 7

I've lived with older dogs before. Mine would love to play fetch out in a field with me and some of the younger dogs. When my ol' friend got tired, he'd just hang out with me and let the pups do all the running. Your dog will know when he's reached his limit. Try not to feel sorry for him. The dog isn't feeling self-concious for not being able to keep up, he's just happy that he's able to spend time with you!

Answer 8

Give him plenty of excercise...he'll let you know when he's had to much. He will start to lie down alot adn his attitude will become slightly more aggresive and/or more stand-offish. If he gets very tired, put him in a room away from the younger pup, he will just drain out the remaining energy.

Answer 9

My guess is he won't do anything he's not able to handle. I could be wrong about this, but I think his instincts will guide, though dogs can be pretty stupid sometimes. I know cats will withdraw when they're sick. I can understand you're not wanting to overwork him. Sounds like he's still full of energy.

Answer 10

I think your dog probably knows what's best for him. If he doesn't already have arthritis, hip or other health problems, the excercise and play will be good for him both physically and mentally. You can always ask your vet what he/she thinks. Good luck!