My Golden walks stiffly after swimming

[seeana]

Hi my darling Shane gets all stiff when he goes in our dam it is lovely weather in Aus now and being a Retriever he just has to go for a dip.
                                   He suffers from arthritis which I thought had under control ,sometimes he just sits in the water and still the same outcome,cant throw his ball anymore..... now does he have to give up his second fav pastime.He is only nine yrs old.

I dry him thoroughly and make him stay indoors to rest but its even hard for him to get up then.I hate to see him like this .....love him so.My  own Vet on holiday till next week so how can I resolve this   ??? as he keeps sneaking off to the dam .....silly old fool he understands everything else I tell him but  goes deaf when I say no swimming.

Any idea's would be welcome.

PS I am now going to put the blow dryer on him hope the heat might help.

[seeana]

I have got him on Cosequin used to use Rimadyl but useless....will try that fish oil and talk to vet about Deramaxx.

I blame myself for his problem as he loves playing with the ball and I think he put too much stress on his joints when younger it is now taking its toll..

I dont think he is much overweight I know he would do better if he was a bit thin but whats the point I.... want him to be happy and he is fussy anyway and never overeats.

Poor Shane he is so gentle that the Clumbers love to cuddle in to him and Maybelle sometimes sits on him as she cant get close enough, trouble is Clumbers are a fair lump of a dog so Shane just puts up with it until I come to the rescue.Silly old fool he is the leader of the pack but always lets the two Clumbers get away things a happier trio I have never seen.Two entire dogs and a spayed female...... love the Gundogs.

Being they are inside dogs they are never left to the elements so no problems there.

Shane wont spend all night on the bed as he gets all hot and will not lie on the thick foam mattress I got him to take the stress off his joints.

Thanks for your help guys... just want him with me for as long as he is happy.

[Jaybay]

I agree with the others that he's probably overdoing it in the water because he doesn't hurt as long as he's in it.  With so much gravity resistance gone, swimming is a great way to keep his muscles in shape without the impact of exercising on dry land.

Goldens are known for having bad hips so I'm not surprised the poor guy is having problems.  He's also at the age that arthritis and/or hip dysplasia makes its presence known.  Ask your vet about putting him on an anti-inflammatory like rimadyl or deramaxx.  Our dogs with hip trouble did great on deramaxx for many years.  Deramaxx is more expensive than rimadyl, but it also gave better results.  

Treating arthritis is dogs is the same as in humans.  Overweight dogs need to lose weight; they need DAILY low-impact exercise; warm up and cool down times before and after exercise; no jumping activities like playing with a frisbee; daily anti-inflammatories and any recommended supplements like chondroitin and glucosamine; a warm place to sleep; and even massage therapy.  Old Travis LOVED getting a massage - actually, they all do!  I just had to go really easy and shallow around the hip joints.

I'll never forget the first dose our old dog Travis got.  An hour later he was up and playing snout-soccer with his ball again, and he hadn't done that in ages.  Of course, he overdid it and had to take it easy for a couple days but it was wonderful to see him able to run around and jump on the furniture again.  LOL!

[Sally_rocks]

Omega 3 fish oil is supposed to be good for dealing with stiffness of dogs with arthritus, i found an article on ehow, giving tips on dosage. http://www.ehow.com/about_5165190_much-fish-oil-safe-dogs.html

[Sally_rocks]

Aww, say hi to shane from me, haha. Aw i love golden retievers, they are my favourite dogs.

I think maybe a nice hot bath and grooming massage will do the trick. It could even have something to do with his nutrition? have you recently changed his diet, maybe given him something you wouldn't normally give him?

anyway, aww, i hope shane gets better soon :)!

[deadgamegrrl]

I know that water therapy is often recommended for dogs with arthritis (as well as humans) because it is non-impact and weight is supported by water.  As carol411 said, he may be instinctively doing this, and then over-doing it because it doesn't cause him the pain that impact like running on dry land does.
You might try a gentle massage for him when he's back from swimming.  Other than that, I don't have much to offer!

[seeana]

Thanks so much for your support , No.... Shane is not one lucky dog I am the lucky one ! as I have never seen so much love and devotion wrapped up in one living being.

[carol411]

I don't have a bit of advice to offer you.  But since Shane is being so stubborn about this, I wonder if he feels better while he is in the water?  Dogs usually don't like to do things that make them uncomfortable.  The only thing I'm sure of is that Shane is one lucky dog to have you for a mom and if there is any help for him you will find it.