Aging Lab Question

Nothing beats quality dog food, warm place to sleep, plenty of exercise in the off season. Heck I get wore out and limp a little after 3 days of hunting in a row too and dogs do alot more work while hunting than I do.

labs are bad about athritus....i had a chocolate that was 11....st joesph baby asprin.....one every three days is what the vet told me....plus high protein and fiber food.....she was same way....had the heart just not the legs

Gotta love'em...I have 2 eleven year old labs....my female thinks shes still 1 and could retrieve every day of the year at full speed if I let her.....my male acts like hes 96, couldn't give 2 rats about a duck, and prefers to just lay in your lap if you let him. Both raised the same way, same food, etc, extreme opposites when it comes to drive.

don't give your dog any of the following: "Ibuprofen, Motrin, Advil, Nuprin, naproxen (Aleve) and acetaminophen (Tylenol) all belong to the same family of drugs. They are NSAID, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and although they cause pain relief in humans, the dog's body is not able to handle them. Although some pain relievers, such as coated asprin will have the same pain-relieving effects for dogs without harming them, ibuprofen is a drug that a dog's body cannot process."

If in doubt ask a vet first.

Yep. Im in the same exact boat. My lab is 8.5 right now and after a good cold morning if you watch her walk out of her dog house she will limp for the first 5-6 steps. I figure she just gets stove up. If you go let her out of the pen she tears off like a wild banshee. It just takes a few steps to loosen up. She acts like its more in her front foot rather than the sholder. I was wondering about ibuprophen. Good to know not to give it to her.

glucecosemene will work wonders its expensive but worth it, i retired mattie at 12.5, she passed this passed summer wld have been 16 in a week

can of sardines

Boys my old man is in his 11th season and still has all the go he wants. He does get slower quicker and gets a little sore but he still has his drive and I will hunt him untill he shows me he dont.

I do give him a "rebound pill" that my vet has prescribed for those days where we work him extra hard or he just shows his signs of tiredness or soreness. It seems to really bounce him back and hes ready the next day.

They also make joint and arthritis medicine for dogs that will work wonders on them. But plenty of exercising everyday and even walking your dog around in the afternoon before you put it up will do alot of good. It will loosen everything up in the dog instead of all the muscles and such being tight from running. We do this everyday after we train and it seems to help alot.

My lab is going on 7 and gets sore after a tough hunt. I have him on glucosomine and I also give him a Rimadyl after a tough hunt. I don't give it to him unless he needs it. Any thoughts?

Glucosamine and Chondroitin is your two things a sporting dog needs daily if it's a workin dog . A performance food will usually contain this . These two will help with your dogs recovery time along with a 30/22 diet I recommend Enhance Pro Athlete found at your local farm stores .

I had to retire my ol man in about his 10 season. The cold just made him hurt! And after all he gave me I figured I would not push him to hard. I have a new pup coming up now that is showing to be very promising!

Go get some Rimadyl from your vet. You will see results overnight it seems. Its for arthritus and old bones and what not. It's not that expensive and works for my old beagle. I used to give it to a Lab also.

Go to your vet and get some Rimadyl.

When our golden got olden and got where she had a hard time getting up from the floor, we started her on Glucosamine and the difference was impressive. It made her last three years worth living, and she was getting around fine right up to the end of her 13 1/2 year life.

The stuff is kinda pricey but it worked well for our four-legged family member.