lameness in a 14 year old lab?
My 14 year old black lab is lame in her hind legs. It started about 1 year ago very mildly and it has gotten progressively worse in the last two days (of course, a holiday weekend and today seems to be the worst I have seen). I have been helping her outside to urinate and poop, but she doesn’t understand that’s why I’m there, even when standing in the middle of the pooping section of the yard. She just starts to sniff around and then looks at me like, excuse me, I need to go so please leave. I’ve been elevating her back legs (very slightly) with a towel wrapped around her mid-section and she pulls along with her front legs. She has incredible front end/body strength. She seems happy, eating and drinking well. She even stretches and crawls across the living room floor to get to her toys and plays with them. She is on glucosamine and an aspirin 325mg twice a day. My only issue and problem is the cost of a vet visit for pain medications. Our guinea pig had a health problem and exhausted our funding for just about everything. I don’t want her to hurt and/or suffer. She hasn’t given me the "sign" that she’s done with this and ready to leave us yet. Do you have any advice for OTC medications I might be able to give her to ease her pain and keep her from hurting?
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Tagged with: aspirin • body strength • glucosamine • guinea pig • health problem • hind legs • holiday weekend • living room • mid section • otc • pain medications • toys • vet visit
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My Chihuahua is on it and hes only 8. That breed has luxating patella issues and, since taking it, he has not had a problem with his knee slipping out. There are no side-effects as far as I can tell and millions of people take it as well.
That’s very old for a Lab, a breed with a lot of leg issues.There is nothing OTC that can help. A heating pad made for humans is too hot but one made for dogs may be beneficial, as may massage be. However, you need to realize that even if she had no symptoms of anything yet, at 14, she is on borrowed time. Most old dogs don’t just peacefully die in their sleep. Either they are euthanized or they have prolonged suffering as they die slowly over days or weeks.
She’s really old and in pain. It won’t get any better, only worse. My dog went through this, a big GSD. Towards the end, the got very testy and uncomfortable.
My husband took him to be put down on my birthday. It was really sad but was the best thing for him. He couldn’t get around or go outside or anything.
You can’t be serious!
You’ve got a dog who’s in so much pain she can’t go to the bathroom without your help and you think you can give her OTC meds?
This dog needs the vet and she needs one now! If you choose not to spend the money on this poor old dog, please have her euthanized instead of letting her suffer any longer!