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You could ask your vet about monthly Synovan injections, my old boy did ok on them, check the 'What is Synovan' heading here I give my 12y/o Dandie, Zara, 1tsp Cen Oil daily (I use the horse one as it was given to me) as well as 3/4 tsp of Glucosimine/Chondroitin powder. I have found the most economical is from here I have really noticed an good improvement in Zara's mobility since she has been on the Cen Oil. It has also helped with new hair growth on my 'skin' Westie

No issue with the spinal nerves? Ziggy is 15 now and that causes him to need to toilet more frequently. He's treated with fortnightly acupuncture and laser therapy, monthly Synovan injection, twice daily gabapentin and nightly Galliprant.

This is pretty much my nearly 15 year old Dally’s treatment. Zig has some osteoarthritis and nerve issues so receives a monthly Synovan injection plus Gabapentin thrice daily and Galliprant daily. He also has acupuncture/massage fortnightly and probiotics, omega-3 oils and 4-cyte each day. Hydrotherapy is awesome but I can’t access it at the moment. Gabapentin is very safe and difficult to overdose. Galliprant is better for osteoarthritis and puts much less strain on the kidneys than other NSAIDs. I do annual bloods for my seniors if only for my own peace of mind and medication selection.

Hi all, thanks for the replies! We went to the vet for his Synovan today and our vet was sick so had a different one. He highly recommended a referral for CT scan, however it would be $1500 spent purely on diagnostics. He also agreed that we should try acupuncture and physio/rehab and hydrotherapy. So we're going to try those first before considering CT because it's probable those would be the treatments regardless of the actual diagnosis. So the plan is: - river swimming when it's hot - acupuncture - a physio/rehab appointment (such as primal paws maybe!) - daily meloxicam for pain - monthly synovan - twice daily gabapentin (need to do some reading on this one) - Rosehip Vital or Pernease/Sashas

i needed to take Henry to his vet this morning for his Synovan injection and asked the nurse if they could get the DD; she had a look at her suppliers and said she could so that's why i checked on-line. I'm glad you could get some

Hi everyone been a while since I've been around just hoping to get some outside opinions re lameness in my old boy. Sorry it's a bit of a long story! He has generally been sound although had some intermittent back problems causing weakness in the hind legs, always resolved quickly and probably only an issue a few times over his life. He has been declining the past 6 Months or so, he developed lupus a few years back and it wasn't affecting him much so he wasn't medicated until a few months ago as he had developed persistent inflammation in his gums causing his teeth to deteriorate more quickly than normal. So he is taking imuran (immune suppressant) for that. He had been on loxicom (meloxicam) for a couple of years or so prior to this for arthritis and the vet said there was an issue with the loxicom being given at the same time as the imuran, so he was weaned off of that a few months ago, didn't seem to be a drama the first few weeks he was off it and his appetite improved. He then had an incident where it appears he has slipped a disc and lost the hind end for a few weeks, needed help getting up and generally unhappy. At the same time he had an anal gland abscess so not sure if he threw the back out from trying to lick or scoot, or if reduced mobility contributed to the anal gland issue. At any rate it was obvious he needed anti-inflammatories again so he has been on carprofen for about a month which has helped a lot however he hasn't really bounced back well and is still struggling although his general demeanour is good and he is still happy to go for his little walks, we don't go far just to the end of our little road and back as he gets worn out pretty quick. He has been getting synovan injections monthly for i think about 18 months and responded very well to them much more than he did to the meloxicam. He also gets neurontin pain relief at night, sometimes in the morning too if I can get them into him but he gets annoyed when I poke too many tablets down his neck. I've tried adding some oral supplements to his food (turmeric, rosehip vital etc) but he is not really food motivated so will leave his food if he isn't keen on the taste. I realise there aren't a lot of options left but while he's still happy enough in himself I'm trying to keep him as comfortable as possible so just wondering if anyone out there has any ideas we haven't thought of. I will link a couple of videos from our walks he finds the uneven ground tricky and sometimes loses his footing even with the front legs but I am just wondering if I have missed anything here. TL,DR: lameness in husky, history of back problems, just looking for opinions/ideas, current meds: carprofen, imuran (for lupus), neurontin and synovan.

I can't believe it's been more than a year since I started this thread and the old boy is still ticking along! So happy with him, just a short clip since my internet is taking ages to upload anything. He is about the same gait-wise but he is still pretty happy and keen to go for walks so that is the main thing. I tried to convince him to let me pull him along in a cart but that was not happening. Likewise my attempt to convince him to wear boots was a battle that I am sad to say I did not win, you would think I was trying to cut his feet off the way he carried on and they came straight off so that was a write off. He had an acupuncture session a while ago which seemed to help so hoping to line that up again. He is still on the neurontin and synovan but we have changed the anti-inflammatory to previcox which seems to agree with him. So all in all I am pretty happy with how he is going, I never would have thought he would still be relatively mobile at this age so will take each day as it comes and if he makes it to 15 (early Sept) I will be stoked. As long as he is still waiting at the door ready for a walk every morning and evening and happy to go I will take that as a sign that he is still happy in himself.

They don't always show they are sore. Did your vet look at the reflexes on her back paws? Synovan is the next development of Carprofen.

When we were at the Vet he gave her spine a good going over but he couldn’t find any sore spots.. that’s not to say that it’s a possibility... Just had a read about Synovan as I hadn’t heard of it before... we normally give her Carprofen but will file info that away in case we need It down the track.

What you are describing may be the beginning of some degeneration of the spine and nerve impingement. My Dalmatian is 13 and is now on Synovan monthly (for the spine), 300mg Gabapentin 4 times a day as required for nerve pain and acupuncture from a qualified human/dog Chiro. Huge improvement after a very acute onset.

Sadly no vet acupuncturist here (I’m in Armidale NSW) I have a human massage pad here I might see if he will lay on it he might get some benefit, helps me sometimes. Great idea about using a bag I might even try some horse gear and see if it would do the trick, I would love one of those help em up harnesses they look perfect but none of the suppliers seem to do Afterpay so I’m stuck till I can scrape up enough dough for that. I should be able to get some booties on payday though and the vet is coming out to the horses and give him his synovan so I’ll ask her about tramadol for him.

Just wanted to drop in here and thank @Boronia for this bit of advice, I’d been trawling the forum looking for things to help my husky as he has slowed down a lot with age and arthritis, he hadn’t been getting much relief from pain meds and anti-inflammatories. Started him on the Synovan a few months ago and he is doing much better! Not perfect but he’s much happier and much more comfortable

My old dogs get Synovan and it helps enormously, an injection once a week for three (it may be four weeks) then a follow-up monthly. Normally costs around $24 so check with your vet how much for each injection, I didn't have to pay a consult each time either so also ask about the follow-up costs. At least the vet can examine your dog and set you on the best course. I did a search on Dogz and here are some posts (mostly from me ) https://www.dolforums.com.au/search/?type=all&q=synovan

Synovan is an improved version of Pentosan (which Henry used to get) Synovan is a combination of Pentosan and chondroitin. It seems to be working as he is much more limber and now runs up and down the driveway after his ball, he also does zoomies after a poo

Is Synovan a more recent treatment than the Cartrophen (spelling?) injections our Sheltie used to get some years ago?

Henry gets a Synovan injection each month as well as 1/2 tsp Pernease each day. The Synovan is once a week for 4 weeks then monthly (or 3 monthly depending on the dog) it works quite well though I did find that the Pernease helped after I began giving it to him. Strangely he has become more flexible since it has become cooler, so go figure I pay around $23 each month for the injection https://www.ceva.com.au/Products/Products-list/SYNOVAN-Injection-for-Dogs

I give mine Canine MSM Chondroitin Glucosamine Powder (they used to supply it in 500g bags) http://stores.ebay.com.au/Health-Within?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 and Pernease powder because I bought some cheap-as from Gumtree and.. Henry gets monthly injections of Synovan (http://www.ceva.com.au/Products/Products-list/SYNOVAN-Injection-for-Dogs) I don't know which one of those three is working but he is a happy little boy and much more supple from when I first bought him in October last year He also gets Golden paste, I make it myself because it's easy peasy. I buy the turmeric from here https://countrypark.com.au/product/turmeric-powder-1kg/ here is the Golden paste recipe How to make Golden Paste: ½ cup turmeric powder 1 cup spring water (+ ½ extra if necessary) 1.5 tsp ground black pepper 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil Directions: Mix water (1 cup) with turmeric powder in a pan and slowly heat it up and stir for 6-10 minutes until you get a thick paste (add the additional ½ cup water if it is too thick). Add black pepper and oil and continue stirring until all the ingredients are fully mixed in together. Allow the paste to cool. Store in the refrigerator in a jar for up to 1-2 weeks. This recipe was developed by Doug English, a veterinarian who has utilized the ancient healing spice in all manner of animals ranging from dogs to cats to the most exotic types like alpacas and even crocodiles. edited to add that if he is on other medications it would pay to join and ask in this group to check if turmeric is compatible, there are a couple of antibiotics that the turmeric inhibits https://www.facebook.com/groups/415313751866609/

My vet put my 11 year old Westie, Henry (I have only had him 8 months) on monthly Synovan injections, the first few months didn't seem to make much difference but he seems to be happier when going on his walks now. I also give him glucosamine and Pernaease and have started on the golden paste. After hunting about I found this http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Canine-MSM-Chondroitin-Glucosamine-Powder-400gm-Dog-Joint-Arthritis-Dysplasia-/152388783221?hash=item237b144c75 and here's the info on th Synovan http://www.ceva.com.au/Products/Products-list/SYNOVAN-Injection-for-Dogs I had also changed his meals from minced turkey necks (I just didn't feel like poking 14kg of necks through the mincer!) to roo mince + a little bit of Taste of the Wild kibble and raw vegie slops, he seems to be doing extra well on that

Thanks WM and Tassie. I had previously phoned the vet and asked the reception to tell Henry's vet that he was walking much better but I'm unsure if the message got to her as when I phoned (on the next day)to ask about the knee support the call-taker asked the vet and the vet said it wouldn't help. I am wondering if the first message didn't get through and that Henry's vet was still under the impression that Henry was still not using his leg; therefore a support would not be useful. I hope that the above paragraph makes sense. Henry is booked in for surgery on Friday but I phoned yesterday and made an appointment first so that the vet has more time and can really check him out rather than the short er pre-surgery appointment. I am having trouble keeping him from running around, the cortisone (Previcox 57mg) is obviously doing its job and he is acting like a five-year-old, he is a different dog, poor little bugger must have been in some pain for quite some time. I know the vet said that if he doesn't need surgery she would treat him long-term (I don't know what with yet; maybe low dosage cortisone?) Henry has also been getting monthly injections of Synovan since December

We started my sister's going on 13 year old husky/shep cross on the tumeric paste a week or so ago. Her mobility really deteriorated quickly the last couple of weeks (just no strength in her back legs - pain doesn't seem to be an issue) and we continue to struggle to get her weight back down since she had the emergency desex just over a year ago so I know the added weight is not helping. How long does it take to see changes/improvements? Did anyone notice it doing anything adverse before it did something good? We've just had to take her in for a Synovan shot today because everything was so up and down with her so we are not sure if the tumeric is assisting or if things are just further deteriorating. Also I jinxed us by joking she was going to be one of the few who started smelling like pee and she has! I've come into the thread to find out what we need to add to get rid of her new scent!

It may have been Synovan - it contains pentosan polysulphate (same ingredient as Cartophen and Pentosan) and acetylene glucosamine. in my experience of using it, we often see results a bit more quickly but the long term effects are much the same as the other products.

Hey everyone long time no post Unfortunately my return is not on a positive note but I know I can always count on you trusty DOLers! A couple of days ago Boss was diagnosed with arthritis, he has had his synovan shot and is due to go back every week for the next month. He's also on Carprofen tablets everyday. Luckily we discovered it at an early stage so hopefully we can prevent it or delay it getting worse. So I have done some research on supplements to give him and want to hear your thoughts and experiences on NAS Omega 3, 6 & 9 Oil and NAS Joint and Ligament Support? Or any recommendations you have? Also any suggestions on a mat or bed for him? Nothing outrageously expensive as its just for him to sit on whilst I'm in the lounge room otherwise he sleeps on the bed. Thanks everyone :)

Here is the info on the oil blend - http://www.naturalanimalsolutions.com.au/omega36&9-oil-for-dogs-horses.html I changed to using this because it is balanced for 3, 6 and 9 and also includes natural vitamin E so I don't have to work out correct dosage. You could email Jacqueline and ask where you can buy it in WA. She's very helpful. When you go for the cartrophen injection, ask your vet about Synovan - I found results showed within a day or two of the injection.

There is a new injection for arthritis - cartrophen and glucosamine - it's called Synovan. Just slightly more expensive, but it's more effective. I used to give Swisse salmon oil capsules - 4 per day to a 43 kg dog, but I now use Natural Animal Solutions oil blend, which also contains vitamin E. She also gets the N.A.S. Joint Support. I sometimes give a couple of salmon oil tablets with breakfast, as well. I also feed sardines and mackerel once or twice a week. And calcium ascorbate/ester C daily. Here is an article about its effectiveness in dogs with HD and associated arthritis - http://workingdogs.com/doc0039.htm#chitika_close_button. A rescue Newfoundland who had to be helped to get up has made amazing progress since being given Rosehip Vital Canine. He now gets up without help and is running around.

glad your lad is doing well.. should have added before that two of my old guys( Hairy Beary 14yo and Dennys Dog 12yo) have had a 4 week course of synovan.. it has worked miracles for them Honey young dog with hip problems has just started.... one week on and she is looking more comfortable. these guys are keeping me in the poor house. Cheers helen