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dog does NOT show the same degree of pain as people do. The
reason is instinct. Survival of the fittest. A dog does not
openly show pain out of instinctive fear of seeming weak so
as not to become prey. This means that when your dog DOES
show pain it is real and intense, more so then the dog lets
on.
A common misconception about Arthritis is that it only
occurs in old age. This is not true, it can occur at any
age and there is no vaccine against it. A total of 1 in
7 dogs over the age of 7 will contract a for of arthritis.
What are the symptoms?
The main signal is any change in your dogs tempermant and
level of activity. It can effect the dogs joints, hips,
shoulders, neck and back. It is also known as degenerative
disease.
Arthritis in dogs is a wearing down if the cartilage that
protects the ends of the dogs bones. Similar to arthritis
in humans. There are two types of arthritis:
1. Degenerative Joint Disease (osteoarthritis) Just plain
normal stress on a joint can be the cause. The stress reduces
the cartilage that protects the bone ends while movement
occurs. If your dog is very hyper and does not "mellow
out" as years go by (like a schnauzer), this can cause
it. Surgery is possible to treat this.
2.
Inflammatory Joint Disease This is normally caused by an
infection and is less common then DJD above. Symptoms often
include fever and anorexia. Fungus, ticks and bacteria are
common causes.
There is several treatments available for arthritis in dogs.
Check with your Veterinarian if you suspect your friend
has arthritis. Only your Veterinarian
can determine and prescribe the best medicine for treatment.
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