Is it OK to give a large breed dog human glucosamine/chondroitin >tablets<?
Chuckles is almost 12 and has slowed down in his senior years, but still active, and I know he would benefit some from getting Glucosamine/Chondroitin tablets.
A few people on here told me they use human glucosamine, (they didn’t say whether tablets or powder) and I found a good deal on the tablets at a local health food store. If I did use them, would I have to cut them in half? There are 900mg in a tablet, and the highest I’ve seen for dogs is 500mg. Thanks for any answers.
And if this is a question for a vet, I’ll ask him, but I wouldn’t get an answer ’till after the sale is gone.
He’s 85 pounds.
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Tagged with: chondroitin • dogs • glucosamine • health food store • local health food store • vet
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Oh for crying out loud! Some of you people have your face in your butt. Geezus. If you do not know what the hell you are talking about shut the freak up.
I order Glucosamine Chondroitin & MSM capsules off the internet and have a automatic shipment of 2
360 capsules bottles sent every other month.
ALL of my dogs take them every day. My Lab, APBT, Golden and Shepherd mix get 4 a day and the small dogs get 2 a day.
I also take them. The *human* tablets/capsules are the same darn thing the vet sells in under a product name and is more expensive.
You don’t need to ‘cut them in half’. What the body does not use is flushed out and it will not hurt the dog.
The ones I use are 1500 mg.
http://www.glucosamine-osteoarthritis.org/glucosamine/glucosamine-for-dogs.html
i wouldn’t without consulting a vet
No your dog can die. Unless you want it to die painfully!
It depends what size of dog chuckles is but I would think half to a whole of the human version tab would be better for him. The dog versions tend not to be up to much. You may want to alternate a whole tab with a Omega 3 capsule in his evening feeds, so he is getting each one every other day. Dont forget the benefit of the most easily used and digested form – from a real raw meaty bone that has the joints still on.
even if it was safe, which it is not! i would not advise giving your dog any oral g-c meds. that can cause seizures bc the gluco has glutamic acid, and it interferes with the liver and kidneys, and then the dog could die from rena failure! consult a vet, they could give ur dog a iv therapy, its expensive, but then there is always baby aspirin.
Yes,and you can give him two a day for a month and then go to one a day. Salmon oil helps as well. The brand of Glucosamine and chondriotin proven to work the best is Cosequin – it is made for dogs.The human equivalent is Cosamin DS and you can get it at Walmart for less than half of what the dog formula costs,even though they are the same and made by the same company.My vet told me this. I give them to my dogs to try and prevent any joint issues.
http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/Vet/Products/Cosequin-DS.aspx
http://www.nutramaxlabs.com/Consumer/Products/CosaminDS.aspx
Edit: One and a half capsules/tablets a day would be the right dose,along with 2000 mg salmon oil and a senior dog vitamin.
My vet has said yes to 1/2 a human tablet. However, I would call and ask YOUR vet to make sure. I am not familiar with your dogs health and history, but your vet will be. My dog also takes human fish oil capsules as well. He is a VERY large breed though.
To be safe, I’d check with the vet before giving them. You can always buy them and then taken them yourself if your vet doesn’t advise it.
ADD: This is only for vitamin supplements. As I am sure you know, many OTC meds are lethal to pets. Your question is not can I give my dog ANY OTC med, just if you can give him the human form of a medication approved for use in dogs. There is a difference. Your dog isn’t going to "die a horrible death" from a vitamin supplement used regularly in dogs.
ADD #2: I was mistaken. My dog takes a full human tablet. I’m not sure where my brain was a minute ago. He is an over 100lb mastiff, and I think he can take more than one tablet actually now (He’s not quite fully grown yet).
I do-
Titus has bad hips and our vet recommended those pills….I cannot remember what strength I give Titus.. I’ll have to get back to you
I do! But my vet had to give me the dosage information. We use this brand and it was much cheaper than buying it through their pharmacy. One more reason I love my vet, I never feel like they are ripping me off!
http://www.movefreeadvanced.com/products.asp
We use the red one. This is the brand my vet suggested, but the one "Dances" recommended is also very popular.
You can use horse or human or canine..It is all the same stuff. The horse formulas are usually the cheapest.
Dances is correct about the dosage.
I check this page for recommended dosages. It suggests 500 mg for dogs 40-80 pounds of Glucosamine, and 350 of Chondroitin.
http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/94/2
That page also stated:
*Daily dose may be doubled or tripled if faster, more dramatic benefits are desired. Larger doses are recommended for older dogs or dogs with infirmities."
So, the human tablet dosage would be fine.
That is fine to give your dog but you can find them online much cheaper..I shop Swansons and they have different mg..
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/
There is no recommended dosage for that particular supplement, so your guess is as good as anyone elses.
The human ones are identical (other than the added flavors in the dog chews).
I bought tablets at Walmart, and I give a whole tablet to my big dog, and I crush a tablet for my small dog.
Glucosamine/chondroitin supplements for dogs don’t really follow any strict rules. That is, there’s no fixed amount that a dog of a certain size should have.. Someone I greatly respect has recommended 1200-1500 mg of glucosamine and 500-600 mg of chondroitin for giant breeds like Mastiffs, so I think that 900 mg would be fine for a large breed.. Though, 900 mg of what? 900 mg of glucosamine and 900 mg of chondroitin? If it’s the latter, the ratio isn’t ideal, so I’d probably hold off on buying them in favor of something more balanced.
You can absolutely use human supplements, but not all of them work properly. If you choose to buy them, before you give one to your dog, try dropping it in a glass of warm water.. If it starts to noticeably break up within twenty minutes, it’s good enough for Chuckles. (As dogs have much shorter digestive tracts than us humans, you need to make sure that the pill will dissolve quickly enough. If it doesn’t start to break up within twenty minutes, chances are that most of the pill will pass right through the dog’s system because he won’t have time to digest it properly.)
By the way, so you know, shellfish-based glucosamine supplements are generally higher quality than plant-based ones, so check the label for that.
Glucosamine and chondroitin are the same compounds, whether made for dogs or humans. The only difference is the dosage, and the pet versions are generally made with additional additives as well as liver flavoring to make them more palatable. These are not drugs – they are non-prescription nutriceuticals.
Both compounds are very safe, with the very rare exception of allergic reaction.
The "human" versions are generally less expensive than the formulas prepared for pets. The same applies to salmon oil.
Go ahead and ask your vet, but I’m sure they’ll tell you that it’s fine.
Keep in mind that the pet formulas often contain additional vitamins, minerals and nutriceuticals, like MSM, perna mussell, vitamins C & E, manganese, and bromelain – an enzyme from pineapples. They are also made at the "correct" dosage.
As far as dosage is concerned, a dog that is 50-100lbs can be given a total of 1200-1500 mg of Glucosamine, 300-1200mg of Chondroitin, and 300mg of MSM each day, but split between the morning and evening.
Pet versions range from 400-500mg of Glucosamine per tablet/granulated scoop, but the recommended dosage for large dogs (50-100lb) is 3 tablets/scoops per day.
Just buy them, they’re fine.
I take glucosamine, and give Tobo the same as the ones I take.. mine are 1500mg. He hasn’t died a painful death yet
Yes, it is fine. The only real problem is if you have a pain in the neck dog that doesn’t like the caplets and will spit them out at you. (then you need to be a little more creative)
For a medium to large dog, I would give 1000+ milligrams/ day if he is having symptoms. I’ve seen cases of 2000, but I really question how much good that does.
I’ve been using Osteo Bi-Flex lately b/c I got it on a buy one get one free deal. I use and really like Joint Strong (which is actually made for dogs) as well. For my 12 year old, I also give Boswelia and Devils Claw (both natural anti-inflammatory supplements)
I do use human grade for my own dogs (except the working, he gets the VERY expensive vet brand because the department pays for it).
I have been advised by my vet that it is fine and safe.
I believe the forumla is 500mgs/25lbs of body weight, but not 100% certain on that. My lab is about 65 lbs (so he gets 1000) and the GSD is 70, he gets the same. I would rather give under than over.
I do know that there is no regulation on these types of medications. There is no guarantee that a brand claiming 900mgs acutally has 900mgs.
We were using one particular brand and it was working well. When another brand went on sale, we tried those and giving the same dosage, soon started seeing signs of stiffness in Kaper (he has a bit of arthritis). So keep that in mind.
My vet even said that here in Canada, the expensive vet brand falls under the same thing, which means the stuff that costs 3-4 times more, is still not guaranteed.
Add-
Just read the other responses, interesting that there is not dosage. Good to know.
@Lioness – yes, we are now running into that problem. It has been over 2 years and its starts now.