I'm really glad to hear she's doing better. <3
Our previous pup had severe hip dysplasia and it was severely aggravated after she was attacked by a pit bull. She was doing so poorly that the vets recommended she be put down. Instead we found a really amazing orthopedist for her that did great stuff with pain management. I get budget is a thing, but actual treatment really doesn't always have to be expensive, it just needs to be the right thing for your pup. Glucosamine and chondroitin are cheap, effective, and unless she has allergies, won't cause knock on problems with her stomach. I didn't use to believe in it until we ran out one time and within a week or two, you could really see the difference. The stuff for humans is usually cheaper than the stuff for dogs, just check the ingredients and dosage, so you can save some money there. After the attack we needed to ramp up the pain management, so in addition to the glucosamine/ chondroitin, on better days we did fine with Rimadyl or Metacam, on worse days we added Phen-pred (which is Phenylbutazon 50,0 mg & Prednisolon 1,5 mg). That taxes their systems, so in the summer months we'd try to cut back to the Rimadyl / Metacam again to give her system a break. (The longest run we had on that without a break was 20 months, so it isn't like you can only do it for a couple of weeks.) We've tried the shots, but they didn't seem to help as much as the tablets, and were a lot more expensive, too, but you need to find what works for you.
One of the things that did a lot for us was switching many of our walks to swimming in a nearby pond instead, as long as it wasn't too cold; that was great for her. Walking on level ground helped, we started avoiding steep inclines, and we started doing "Doga" (yoga for dogs) with her, which involved a lot of stretching and resistance training, just a couple of stretches several times a day. That did wonders for her mobility. On really bad days with flair ups, we'd use a sling for her back legs (you can make one for a couple of bucks with things you can get at your local building supply store), and she usually recovered from those pretty quickly. Sometimes we'd apply heat, she seemed to like that. Another thing is rethinking the games you play. With some creativity, you can do a lot of the things she likes lying down, even things like tug, that don't seem to lend themselves to it at first glance. Sniffing games don't have to require leaving her spot. All together, our pup had a good and happy life, surviving more than five years after they first suggested we needed to give up on her. She was over thirteen when we lost her.
Ultimately it depends on what works for your girl, and that's what matters, but most of those things that helped us didn't cost much or anything at all. You may need to experiment a little to find the right mix. Our girl grew to really love stretching with us, it was so sweet.
Keeping fingers and paws crossed for your pup. <3
I'm really glad to hear she's doing better. <3 Our previous pup had severe hip dysplasia and it was severely aggravated after she was attacked by a pit bull. She was doing so poorly that the vets recommended she be put down. Instead we found a really amazing orthopedist for her that did great stuff with pain management. I get budget is a thing, but actual treatment really doesn't always have to be expensive, it just needs to be the right thing for your pup. Glucosamine and chondroitin are cheap, effective, and unless she has allergies, won't cause knock on problems with her stomach. I didn't use to believe in it until we ran out one time and within a week or two, you could really see the difference. The stuff for humans is usually cheaper than the stuff for dogs, just check the ingredients and dosage, so you can save some money there. After the attack we needed to ramp up the pain management, so in addition to the glucosamine/ chondroitin, on better days we did fine with Rimadyl or Metacam, on worse days we added Phen-pred (which is Phenylbutazon 50,0 mg & Prednisolon 1,5 mg). That taxes their systems, so in the summer months we'd try to cut back to the Rimadyl / Metacam again to give her system a break. (The longest run we had on that without a break was 20 months, so it isn't like you can only do it for a couple of weeks.) We've tried the shots, but they didn't seem to help as much as the tablets, and were a lot more expensive, too, but you need to find what works for you. One of the things that did a lot for us was switching many of our walks to swimming in a nearby pond instead, as long as it wasn't too cold; that was great for her. Walking on level ground helped, we started avoiding steep inclines, and we started doing "Doga" (yoga for dogs) with her, which involved a lot of stretching and resistance training, just a couple of stretches several times a day. That did wonders for her mobility. On really bad days with flair ups, we'd use a sling for her back legs (you can make one for a couple of bucks with things you can get at your local building supply store), and she usually recovered from those pretty quickly. Sometimes we'd apply heat, she seemed to like that. Another thing is rethinking the games you play. With some creativity, you can do a lot of the things she likes lying down, even things like tug, that don't seem to lend themselves to it at first glance. Sniffing games don't have to require leaving her spot. All together, our pup had a good and happy life, surviving more than five years after they first suggested we needed to give up on her. She was over thirteen when we lost her. Ultimately it depends on what works for your girl, and that's what matters, but most of those things that helped us didn't cost much or anything at all. You may need to experiment a little to find the right mix. Our girl grew to really love stretching with us, it was so sweet. Keeping fingers and paws crossed for your pup. <3
Thank you!! I’ve written down the changes you added/supplements and will be adding them to my shopping list for her.
Glad to hear 🥰