That is such a good idea - to keep her off meds as long as possible. My dog's arthritis is so bad now that it has affected the nerves in his hindquarters - he has lost almost all of his muscle mass back there and his hindquarters are very narrow - his back legs are touching when he stands (he is a 15 lb schnauzer - so you know they are not supposed to). We've given him supplements for years and he did really well. We only had to start meds about a year and a half ago. Now, I think he is in pain almost all of the time - it's very sad.
