As arthritis affects humans, it affects dogs too. In simple words, it is inflammation of joints. Dogs make a lot of use of their joints, while running after cars and tennis balls and also for jumping to catch a treat in your hand. Obviously more movements mean more injuries and inflammation. You should observe your dog carefully, especially s/he is old, if signs of pain, swelling or stiffness are seen, and if they are present, you should take arthritis dog treatment on time.
A dog’s joint is made of bones, the surfaces of which are covered with a thin layer of cartilage which in turn is lubricated by joint fluid, because of which the bone surfaces glide smoothly and freely over each other with almost no friction. When with age or injury the cartilage undergoes damage or change and becomes less smooth, it results in rubbing of bones and causes pain and discomfort in the dog. It also causes further damage of cartilage. To prevent the excessive rubbing, a new bone develops around the joint making it stiff and limiting movements. This is called degenerative joint disease.
Arthritis is typically an age-related problem, but can take place at any age due to problems in bone and joint development. Based on the cause, one or multiple joints may be affected. In most cases, abnormal rubbing inside the joint because of unstable joints, abnormal or damaged cartilage development or injury resulted from trauma are the causes of arthritis.
Symptoms are easy to identify because pain is almost always associated with arthritis and so, the dog may not be keen to exercise like s/he used to be earlier and stiffness or lameness also may be seen. At times, stiffness may improve with exercise, while cold and/or humid conditions worsen the problem. However, hotness or swelling is generally not seen with naked eyes.
There are many treatment options available today. A treatment should be chosen as per the underlying cause of arthritis. In overweight dogs, arthritis becomes worse soon; so, weight management and exercise are primary treatments, to minimize load on joints and maximize the movements of muscles around the joints.
Many arthritic dogs benefit from anti-inflammatory medications for some weeks or months and long-term drug therapy proves to be very useful. It is important to control pain and the commonest pain-killers are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).
Stem cells are being proven to be very effective in dog arthritis treatment. Visit StemCellVet.co.uk to know about an innovative arthritis treatment for dogs and cats – Stem Cell Therapy! Stem cells are present in a dormant state in fat tissue and can be isolated with Stem Cell Therapy. Then they are activated and re-injected in damaged areas to improve the condition remarkably. It has shown a significant improvement in mobility and quality of life, and reduction in pain in 85% of cases within 5 months of treatment and sometimes even within 3 weeks. So, your dog would hopefully get rid of arthritis forever!