Do you take vitamins for your health every day? Well, we all know we should, and it turns out, your dog needs them too, especially as they get older and get the aches and pains as seniors much like people do as well.
“He was on the couch, he couldn’t even get off the couch, and I have a low couch and he was just crying and I didn’t know what was wrong with him, so I went up to him and he’s just squealing, crying and then I saw he just couldn’t move,” pet owner Mikey Verdugo said.
Ten-year-old rescue pup Toby woke up one day a completely different dog.
“I literally had to help him off the couch and I just saw him limping and limping, so I took him to the vet,” Verdugo said.
Dr. Alison Birken from Victoria Park Animal Hospital sadly sees cases exactly like Toby’s every single day.
“Their joints start to get painful, slow to rise, shorter walks, don’t want to play as much, and it’s usually due to degenerative joint disease, which is called arthritis in pets,” Birken said.
Our pets are not so different from us humans.
“She’s got limited range of motion in her hip joints,” Birken said. “I think the two biggest things we can do as preventative with our pets for arthritis and degenerative joint disease is starting them early on glucosamine chondroitin sulfate and keeping their weight down -- that’s a big one!”
Weight is also an issue.
“In a matter of 8 months, he gained 13 pounds. I don’t know how? I’m going to blame this on the dog sitter,” Verdugo said.
Weight, age and joints -- a trifecta of concerns can be overcome by tackling one at a time, starting with the glucosamine.
“That just helps promote joint health, increases cartilage growth, and it’s just really great overall for their joints. I kinda think of it as like a vitamin for their joints,” Birken said.
Taking daily vitamins like this is pretty typical for us humans right? But our dogs need them too. In fact, ever since Toby started with his daily dose of vitamins, he doesn’t even use these stairs anymore at all to get up on this bed in his favorite spot.
Running while pulling his dog dad on rollerblades helped Toby peel off the extra pounds.
“He was out there taking me on a ride around the block on my skates, just pulling me, it was night and day, different dog,” Verdugo said.
And finally age:
“They’re running again, they’re playing again, they’re going on walks with their owners. We’re extending not only their life but they’re quality of life,” Birken said.
So when do you start your pooches on that glucosamine chondroitin sulfate?
Dr. Birken says as puppies!
Joint supplements at a young age actually prep and prepare the body for the aging process to be a more positive experience, so it’s never too early (or too late) to start giving your pups those necessary vitamins.