Pet dogs very quickly become an important part of a family and keep everyone active with the amount of walking they need.
But like humans, dogs can be stopped from leading an active life by developing arthritis which limits their mobility.
The degenerative and painful condition in dogs is common and can affect as many as one in three.
Older dogs tend to be more susceptible to arthritis as wear and tear can damage the joints over time.
Arthritis is younger dogs is not as common and is often caused by accidents, infections and other underlying health conditions.
Osteoarthritis, the degenerative joint disease, is the form that affects most dogs. Wear and tear damages the ligaments and cartilage in a joint and reduces the amount of fluid produced to lubricate and protect the bones.
This arthritis is caused by the dog being overweight, jumping over obstacles too frequently, the stretching of ligaments during vigorous exercise or malformations of the joints.
A less common form is inflammatory joint disease which can be caused by a bacterial infection. It can also be caused by rheumatoid arthritis, but this is extremely rare in dogs.
Dogs suffering from inflammatory joint disease often have other symptoms including fever, loss of appetite and overall stiffness. Unlike osteoarthritis where damage is slow and gradual, inflammatory joint disease is sudden.
Because dogs don’t tend to have any signs of pain from arthritis until it becomes a significant condition, it can be very difficult to diagnose in the early stages.
Dogs suffering with arthritis will often walk slower, particularly if more than one joint is affected, drop their hip or nod their head when they walk, limp, be reluctant to participate in usual activities, be slow to get up when lying down, become lethargic and nervous or even aggressive and may yelp, whimper or cry when touched of it moves in a certain way.
It is important to take your dog for regular check-ups at the vets and report any unusual behaviour in your dog when they move or exercise.