Taking The Pain Away – Treatment for Arthritis and Chronic Pain.

It can be hard to hear that your pet has a chronic illness, but caring for an animal with arthritis does not have to be stressful. With lots of treatment options available it can be overwhelming, but we are here to help you make an individually tailored treatment plan to make life more comfortable for your friend.

Sadly Arthritis is not curable and is a progressive disease. It is also a lead to stress and anxiety in your pet which can not only reduce quality of life but fasten the onset of cognative disease similar to Alzheimers disease in humans. Please click here for more informaiton. The use of appropriate treatment options is likely to slow this progression and manage your pet’s symptoms. The level of management and the types of treatment required will change over time, but with close monitoring we will be able to, together, maintain a good quality of life for your pet.

The Management Plan

For pets with arthritis, a multimodal management plan is more effective than any single management step, this includes using a combination of treatments to target different aspects of pain and joint degeneration. Here are the main areas of treatment to work on to formulate the best plan to keep your pet active and pain free.

Weight Management

Excess weight increases the mechanical forces that joints are subjected to which will exacerbate pain and the degenerative disease. Fat cellsd have also been shown to release inflammatory mediators that will aggrevate the disease and can casuse inflamation in other areas of the body. Studies have shown that losing 6% of excess fat will significantly reduce lameness allowing a reduction in drug therapy.

Our nurses would be very happy to assess your pet’s weight and guide you in weight loss management. It can be a daunting and difficult task to get the weight off your pet but we are here to help. To book a consultation with one of our nurses please call 01202 624140.

Home Environment Adaptions

Our pets are vunerable to harm from obstacles of daily living that were once easy to navigate, but with physical impairment become a risky challenge.

Simple, inexpensive modifications are hugely beneficial to assist our companions comfort at home.

Please click on the relevant link below for more information:-

Dog Home Adaptions
Feline Home Adaptions

Modifying Exercise Routines

Dog

Managing your dog’s exercise level is essential to the management of arthritis. Dogs generally run through discomfort and tollerate pain without showing any signs. During exercise endorphines and other pain relieving chemicals are released from their brain which allow them to do too much. They then can suffer with pain later in the day.

Every dog has different exercise requirements. We are very happy to guide you in creating a suitable exercise plan for your dog. Here are some main points to consider.

  • Lots of dogs love ball games but sadly just because they can stilo chase balls doesn’t mean they should do it as much as they used to. It can still be fun – lower intensity ball games such as hide-and-seek the ball may reduce the forces that agrivate their joints.
  • Dogs are loyal and in their older years even more so. They will walk where you go as long as they can which may be too far for their joints. Watch them on a walk; look for signs they are tiring, tagging behind, becoming a little wobbly or trip/scuff their feet, being more easily distracted by smells. If observed then it is time to head back!
  • Consider the terrain, sand, stones, or hills can increase the forces being placed through the joints causing aggravation of the joints and supportive muscle.
  • Consider the route; your dog will have less stregnth, power, endurance and coordination. Negotiating steps, drops and leaps could be tricky and lead to injuries on top of their arthritis, but they wont tell you it hurts! Link to getting back to their norm for dogs *** (to follow)

Cats

Cats with pain of any sort, but especially joint and muscle pain, will often become very sederitary, sleep a lot and sometimes hide away or reduce interaction with their owners. This not only reduces their quality of life but contributes to the sadly rapid muscle loss that lots of older and especially arthritic cats suffer with. Regular, short and gentle play sessions can be highly beneficial for cats with mobility issues to keep joints flexible and stregnthen muscles. Play can also help maintain a healthy body weight by providing regular gentle exercise. The provision of mental stimulation through play can also be beneficial in slowing the onset of Feline Cognative Dysfunction, ( a disease similar to Alztimers disease in humans), please follow the link for mor information on this. Link to Feline Cognative disease blog ***

The increased owner interaction has also been shown to stregnthen the bond you have with your pet which increases feeling of well being for both of you.

While many cats actively enjoy playing, others do not and it is important to keep trying, but also to start slowly and follow your cats lead. Some cats will require a pain relief plan before being able to attempt play.

General tips for fun play times:

  • Play regularly and keep sessions short.
  • Avoid slippery floors, play on rugs, carpet or put down mats, e.g yoga mats.
  • Keep play low impact – aim to reduce jumping.
  • Try a wand toy with a long handle.
  • Please feel free to discuss play activities with us if you are unsure of your cat’s capabilities.

Please see our “Get your Cat back to their normal” activity sheet to guide you on what potential exercises your cat could be doing.

Diet & Supplements 

This area is a bit of a mind boggling mine field! There are many diets and joint supplements on the market but few have been proven to work. There have been scientific studies to show that high levels of Omega 3 with reduced levels of Omega 6 reduce clinical signs of arthritis and reduce the dose of anti-inflammatory drugs needed.

It is likely to be a trial and error process for your dog to find the best diet, supplement combination.

We recommend Virbac Joint & Mobility diet (J1) as it has an excellent source of protein to support the muscles and high levels of Omega 3 among other joint protective ingredients. It is low energy dense to prevent weight gain and high in fibre to promote fullness. Pre and pro biotics are added to aid digestive function which can also reduce in old age. If sadly your dog suffers with kidney disease, it would not be appropriate and we could discuss other options. For joint supplements we would recommend Movoflex chews or Synoquin chews. They are tasty chewable treats which dogs and cats seem to love. They have high levels of Omega 3 as well as other joint supporting ingredients. Some pet owners report improvement in as little as 4 days, while others have noticed changes within 3-4 weeks of constent use.

Medications

The good news is that there are many medications which will help your pet maintain their quality of life:

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID’s) eg Metacam.

These drugs reduce the production of infammatory medications and therefore alleiiate pain, reduce swelling and improve mobility. Many scientific studies over the years have proven their efficacy. They should be used for 3-4 weeks at least before assessing their effficiency and then can be used life long if not causing any problems.

As with any drug there are side effects. Some pets cannot tolerate them and will have gastrointestinal upsets. If your pet has any kidney problems it may be that they will not be as appropriate. We recommend blood tests to ensure they are safe to give. There are many different NSAIDs on the market and we may needto trial a few to find the most suitable one for your pet. If NSAIDs are not suitable for your pet, don’t worry, there are many other options for pain relief. 

Anti nerve growth factor monoclonal antibody – Librela and Solensia

Nerve growth factor is a key driver of arthritic pain. Librela & Solensia targets this protein to reduce pain signals. They offer long-lasting pain relief with a once a month injection. They can be given alongside other medications, are less likely to cause gastrointestinal issues and are safer than NSAIDs fo patients with renal disease. There has been a lot of interest on social media in Librela especially regarding side effects. Please contact us with any questions and together we can decide it is appropriate for your pet.

Paracetamol (only for dogs, toxic to cats)

Pardale-V is the licences form of Paracetamol for dogs. It has moderate analgesic properties and minimal anti-inflammatory effects. When used alongside other medications, for example Metacam or/and Librela it can significantly inrease the overall pain-killing effects.

Cartrophen 

This is an injectable treatment that has anti-inflammatory and disease modifying capabilities. As with paracetamol, it is more effective when used alongside other medications unless the arthritis is mild. It is a course of 4 weekly injections given every 6-12 months. Side effects are very minimal.

Gabapentin

Animals with arthritis suffer with chronic pain. Over timethis results in nerve damage and possibly nerve dysfunction which amplifies the pain sensations that your pet experiences. This is known as neuropathic pain. Gabapentin is an excellent drug to help reduce this process.

Side effects include sleepiness and muscle weakness in some pets but dose alterations often relieve these symptoms.

Amantadine

This drug also reduces neuropathic pain. It has been found to work synergistically especially with NSAIDs to reduce overall pain perception. Side effects are rare but may include agitation and soft stools.

Further Veterinary intervention

Accupuncture 

This is a traditional Chinese medicine techniquethat involves inserting thin needles into specific points on the body. The action of the needles stimulates the body’s repair mechanisms in the nervous system, immune system and hormonal and cellular systems. Endorphines are released which are the body’s natural pain relievers. They also promote feelings of well being and relaxation. A lot of animals with chronic pain suffer with anxiety and accupuncture can help relieve this as well as helping their pain which often allows a reduction in medication.

Hydrotherapy

Through its hydrostatic pressure, buoyancy, warmth and resistance, hydrotherapy helps control pain as well as aiding in rebuilding function of the joints and muscle.

Physiotherapy    

Physiotherapy helps dogs with arthritis by relieving pain, improving mobility and strenthening muscles around affected joints.

Treatments to the joints

Into the joint treatment such as the use of stem cell therapy, focuses on targeting the primary complaint with the intention of treating the disease and not just the clinical signs. This helps to slow the degenerative process as well as reduce the pain. This natural therapy has an extraordinary success rate, especially in dogs. It is one of the most powerful treatments now available.

Surgery

In some cases a surgical approach may be beneficial or required, for example in dogs diagnosed with hip or elbow displacia. Surgical intervention can feel like a big step but can provide some incredible outcomes especially for younger dogs suffering with joint disease.

Summary

Arthritis is a fluctuating and progressive disease. Symptoms can wax and wane with pain levels varing day to day. Often you can think a treatment isn’t working, but it may just be an acute flare due to over exercise or it could be due to progression. It is important to monitor you pets behaviour and mobility closely to watch for signs of deterioration. We are here to help you formulate an appropriate and affordable treatment plan encorporating the required medication, have management and rehabilitation options your pet requires. Together we can maintain a high level of quality of life for you pet for as long as possible.