Humans are not alone in suffering from diseases that are brought about by old age. Animals especially the ones that have become common pets like dogs and cats are vulnerable as well. Degenerative arthritis in dogs are quite common, especially today with pets reaching ages that were uncommon in the past because of better food and care. Dogs have a little disadvantage over humans since degenerative arthritis in dogs might not be detected until it is in the advanced stage. With humans, arthritis is usually discovered at an early stage where treatment for prevention or correction is still possible.
Here are the things that you need to look for in your dog if you think that they might be suffering from arthritis. Your dog won’t be able to tell you directly what ails him so your eyes have to be very sharp for the visual signs that you could check on your pet’s body and movements.
1. Favoring One Limb- This is one of the surest signs that your dog has arthritis. When one leg is too painful because of the degeneration of the joint you would notice that your dog is always putting his weight on one side of his body.
2. Having a Hard Time Sitting- When arthritis strikes a small movement like standing or sitting can become an excruciating torture. You should be able to notice the difference in their movements right away.
3. Becoming More Sleepy- Although with old age your dog might like to sleep more than before it can also be taken as a sign that something is wrong with him. He might be sleeping more because he is finding that moving around is becoming more and more difficult.
4. Stiff and Sore Joints- This is actually a direct sign of arthritis. As the joints become more damaged pain sets in and so movement becomes restricted.
5. Decreased Activity- If your dog used to love playing and moving around then you should be suspicious if they become lazy and uninterested in horseplay all of a sudden. While there are other diseases that could cause lack of interest in playing, arthritis is one of the more common. They might also show hesitation in doing things that have become routine to them in the past, things like climbing stairs or jumping.
6. Gaining Weight- If you notice your senior dogs gaining weight then you should suspect that they are having less activity which might be caused by arthritis which causes pain.
7. Changes in Behavior- If your dog was very friendly before and all of a sudden it starts showing some startling changes in behavior then the pain that they are feeling might be the one causing it. You’ve seen sick people who have become grumpy, well dogs are the same.
There are a lot of treatments available to help out your dog but if the arthritis is really in the more advanced stage then there might be little that can be done for them except to relieve the pain that they are feeling.