Glucosamine for dogs has been prescribed by veterinarians for the management or prevention of arthritis for many years with very good results. But what you may not know is that plain old glucosamine is not the best choice for your dog. It is generally believed that glucosamine is more effective when it is combined with synergistic ingredients to help support the joints and facilitate the body’s utilization of the glucosamine. Let’s take a look at the different ingredients that manufacturers combine with glucosamine and their effects on the joints. Everything we will be reviewing is a safe and natural supplement.
Chondroitin for dogs – this is a substance that just like glucosamine, is naturally occurring in the joints. Where glucosamine’s primary function is to build cartilage, chondroitin is primarily responsible for combating enzymes that destroy cartilage. These enzymes function at an abnormally high level when arthritis or injury is present. So you can see that with glucosamine and chondroitin together you have a double whammy on arthritis – the foundation for building cartilage and also slowing degradation of existing cartilage.
MSM for dogs – considered a potentiator, it improves the cellular uptake of nutrients so the body can better utilize them. It has anti-inflammatory effects which may slow the progression of arthritis and relieve pain.
Hyaluronic Acid for dogs- this is a primary component of the synovial fluid – the lubricant found in all bendable joints.
Perna or Green-lipped mussels for dogs – a source of high levels of glycosaminoglycans, the compounds that lubricate the joints. Also has natural anti-inflammatory properties.
Vitamin C for dogs – dogs can produce their own vitamin C internally however, during stressful times like injury, pain or joint cartilage damage, the levels produced are suboptimal. This powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory is helpful in protecting cartilage and needed for the production of collagen.
Vitamn E for dogs – Another powerful antioxidant for dogs. It can decrease the production of prostaglandins and leukotreines which offers anti-inflammatory benefits to your dog’s joint pain.
Antioxidants protect against free radicals that cause cellular damage.
Essential Fatty Acids for dogs – known as omega-3 or DHA and EPA are very effective as anti-inflammatory agents in the body. This is helpful to relieve the inflammation in the joints associated with arthritis thereby reducing pain. As an added benefit, fatty acids are extrememly beneficial for the hair coat, cardiovascular health and brain function in the older dog.
Boswellia for dogs – is an herb which offers natural anti-inflammatory properties to help stop joint pain.
Zinc, Selenium, Manganese – helps the body utilize antioxidants.
As you can see, there are many options available for providing your dog with more than the basic glucosamine supplement. You may need to try a few different products to find the right one that works for your dog. Just as with humans, not everything works for everybody. But isn’t it nice to see that you have so many natural and safe choices?
For our product recommendations go to Glucosamine For Dogs.
Best of luck to you and your pooch.
I learned a lot from your article. Knew some of the basic ingredients but not all of them.
We also use heated beds, elevated ramps, and steps to help our pets with arthritis. Dog slings that help pick up the hind quarters are also effective.
Totally agree with the supplements and our dogs especially like the fatty acids. They love our salmon.
Hi Ray,
Thanks for sharing all of those great ideas to help out our pets with arthritis. All excellent ideas – heated beds, ramps, even slings.
I’m glad to hear the fatty acids are working well for your dogs!
Very nice information. Thanks for this. You really have a very informative site, thank you for sharing!
hi,
Dogs are the most reliable pet in the world so that you should have to take care about its health. Here you have posted very nice and informative article about the dog’s health. So i think it will be really very beneficial for the people. I am really very impressed to know about it. Anyways keep it up and keep continue with your valuable thoughts.
I had NO idea that there were so many products in addition to glucosamine for a dog’s joint health! I’m wondering if all of these products at once is a good idea? Would it be better to try one supplement at a time to see which works the best? I suppose that’s why vets are in business…to straighten all of this out for us and our pet.
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One product with multiple ingredients is designed to be more effective and safe. I don’t think you are likely to see the same results with just a single ingredient.
Wow..such indepth information about dogs joint health. I’ve never really thought about dogs having arthritis or joint problems. But I guess it would seem logical, after all they are build the same way we are. This is really good information to reference the next time I see problems with my dog.
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These are all good suggestions. My dog has had a luxating patella in one leg since she was a year old. It’s not arthritis, is glucosamine good for that? I have given her supplements but so far nothing has helped. It mostly acts up in colder weather.
Hi Gingi,
As far as I know, that luxating patella is an unstable joint and that will potentially lead to arthritis because of the stress on that joint. Check out my other site http://arthritismedicineforodogs.net for much more detailed info about the causes of arthritis. The fact that it acts up in cold weather makes me think that there is already some arthritis going on (but of course, I am not a vet, check with your vet to confirm). I worked as a Veterinary Nurse for 15 years so that is my educated opinion.
I would start a glucosamine supplement as soon as possible to help prevent any further damage.
Good story, thank you so much for sharing.
There are preliminary reports that suggest the use of glucosamine with vitamin C.
Hi. I like dogs, but I don’t have one of my own (it wouldn’t be fair on the dog because I’m away from home too much of the time) but my family always had dogs when I was a child. Several of our dogs suffered from arthritis when they got old and it would have been good to have helped them but we didn’t know about Glucosamine then.
My dad was crippled by arthritic hips and I’m showing signs of going the same way, so I take a Glucosamine Sulphate supplement twice a day and I think it helps. The progress of the arthritis has certainly been slow, considering that I first felt it 15 years ago (confirmed by x-ray). My sister also takes it and swears that it helps relieve pain in her knees.
If I had dogs, I’d certainly feed them such supplements. If I deserve it, then they certainly would!
Sounds like I should give my dog a dose of Vit C as he has been under a lot of stress lately (she recently gave birth). Thanks for the info!
Glucosamine in the right form and quality, combined with other synergistic ingredients promotes maximum joint health for your animal.
As with human’s any deficiencies should be administered following specialist advice. If I felt my dog required supplements then a visit to the vet or animal clinic would be advisable.
Are any of these ingredients active in store bought dog foods? I need to look into getting my boxer some of this. He is getting older and is having trouble walking.
You can buy dog food that has glucosamine added. There is not a lot of info out there as to how effective it is and it is quite expensive.
I personally think it would be more effective and easier to control the dose of glucosamine by giving a separate supplement. Especially considering that you should give a loading dose of glucosamine followed by a lower maintenance dose. Perhaps that doesn’t apply if you start the dog food at an early enough stage before any visible problems arise.
If anyone has any experience with glucosamine supplemented dog food please share your experiences with us.