cracking sounds

[yorkiepuppie]

milu's joints make a cracking sound when I picked her up. she never yelps, or whines, or reacts at all, but the noise worries me.

she doesn't seem to mind it at all, and she runs around fine and everything. i'm just worried that cracking joints in such a young puppy (she is 13 months old) could be signs of problems in the future. does anybody have any experience with this?

is there anything I should be doing? like food, medication, or something I should be giving her?

thank you!

[Ellie May]

What joints specifically or all of them?

Ellie knees do that and she has LP.

Glucosamine would be my first thought.

[yorkiepuppie]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

What joints specifically or all of them?

Ellie knees do that and she has LP.

Glucosamine would be my first thought.

i am not sure which joints. i started giving milu treats that contain glucosamine and chondroitin. (zuke's hip action)

i don't give her the whole treat, i cut it up and feed her a smaller piece because each piece contains 300mg of glucosamine and 50mg if chondroitin. and it says to feed one piece a day to dogs 46lbs and under... so since milu is 3lbs, i give her 1/3 of a treat a day.

do you know if that's sufficient? is there something else i should be doing? where can i read more info about this?

the only thing the vet mentioned about milu's bones is to keep an eye on her is she ever start to walk funny, because he said yorkies are prone to hip problems, but other than that, vet says she looks very good, and nothing wrong with her hips.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

What joints specifically or all of them?

Ellie knees do that and she has LP.

Glucosamine would be my first thought.

Just what I was thinking. Wylie has LP (but never a symptom) and I give him Cosequin. I think it's the only studied med for joints. Poor Milu! Has the vet ever palpated her knees?

[yorkiepuppie]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

Just what I was thinking. Wylie has LP (but never a symptom) and I give him Cosequin. I think it's the only studied med for joints. Poor Milu! Has the vet ever palpated her knees?

i think the vet has, he checked milu's knees and hips by massaging them (that's what it looked like to me) he massaged them and said it was fine.

can i give milu cosequin too? or is it bad that i keep trying to give milu everything i hear about? (from trusted source only of course )

[TeresaM]

Yogi's, and to some extent Gracie Ruth, shoulders pop. I've had Dr D look at him and long story short, he said that his shoulder joint was a tad loose but thought that with some Cosequin and time to grow and strengthen, that he may out grow it. He said we'll just keep a close eye on it, but I'm not sure what really can be done. I guess there's some type of surgery but I'm most worried about arthritis developing at this point. I've ordered some Cosequin as like Wylie's Mom said, it's the only one that's had a medical study done on it's effectiveness.

It doesn't seem to bother him one bit...it sure makes me cringe when I hear it though.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by yorkiepuppie

i think the vet has, he checked milu's knees and hips by massaging them (that's what it looked like to me) he massaged them and said it was fine.

can i give milu cosequin too? or is it bad that i keep trying to give milu everything i hear about? (from trusted source only of course )

Lol, it's like when you read about medical conditions - and *boom* you have them all and need to be treated.

You could give Cosequin, esp. if you think she has any joint issues at all - it may help, it's backed by studies, and it supposed to help strengthen and repair. If she's clicking...I'd really consider it.

[yorkiepuppie]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

Lol, it's like when you read about medical conditions - and *boom* you have them all and need to be treated.

You could give Cosequin, esp. if you think she has any joint issues at all - it may help, it's backed by studies, and it supposed to help strengthen and repair. If she's clicking...I'd really consider it.

hehe, yup. i know what you mean.

is there a specific brand of Cosequin you recommend? there are many diff. brands out there.

also, the brand of fish oil with vit E you recommend isn't sold at petsmart. i will look around other stores to see if they have it (the Ark natural oil brand)
the clerk at the store was recommending to me the one they had, so i interrogated him and ask, is that the BEST stuff for dogs? i don't want to feed just anything, i want the BEST, and my friend recommended a different brand that you guys do not carry.

so he said, ok, then maybe you can get the one your friend suggests.

hehe

[Ellie May]

There are many brands of glucosamine.
Cosequin is my first choice.
Nutramax labs makes it and you can get it from entirelypets.com.
I would get the regular capsules for small dogs.

I like the capsules better than the tabs because they contain garlic, I think.
You can also sprinkle the capsule over her food. I would not have her swallow the whole thing.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by yorkiepuppie

is there a specific brand of Cosequin you recommend? there are many diff. brands out there.

also, the brand of fish oil with vit E you recommend isn't sold at petsmart. i will look around other stores to see if they have it (the Ark natural oil brand)
the clerk at the store was recommending to me the one they had, so i interrogated him and ask, is that the BEST stuff for dogs? i don't want to feed just anything, i want the BEST, and my friend recommended a different brand that you guys do not carry.

so he said, ok, then maybe you can get the one your friend suggests.

hehe

You're funny .

I'd get the Cosequin RS (reg. strength), not generic glucos. combos - I think I also get mine at entirely pets.

Ark Naturals Royal Coat can be found online (Only Natural Pet and a bunch of other places); also, Whole Foods carries it, which is really great! Some other health food stores might carry it, but I only know of Whole Foods - do you have one near you?

[yorkiepuppie]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

There are many brands of glucosamine.
Cosequin is my first choice.
Nutramax labs makes it and you can get it from entirelypets.com.
I would get the regular capsules for small dogs.

I like the capsules better than the tabs because they contain garlic, I think.
You can also sprinkle the capsule over her food. I would not have her swallow the whole thing.

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

You're funny .

I'd get the Cosequin RS (reg. strength), not generic glucos. combos - I think I also get mine at entirely pets.

Ark Naturals Royal Coat can be found online (Only Natural Pet and a bunch of other places); also, Whole Foods carries it, which is really great! Some other health food stores might carry it, but I only know of Whole Foods - do you have one near you?

thank you, i didn"t know cosequin WAS the brand name, lol. i thought it was an ingredient.

thank you for the brand suggestions and where i can get it.

i looked for whole foods, and i was really surprised that they didn't have one near where i live. i think they have a trader joes. i wonder if they carry it. in my mind trader joes and whole foods is the same type of stores, the good kind where i should be shopping at...

[yorkiepuppie]

milu had surgery recently, so she is on this medication.

clavamox (amoxicillin trihydrate/clavulanate potassium) drops

i am not sure if i can be giving her the Cosequin and the fish oil stuff starting now or later when she is finished with her medication in 7 days.

the vet told me that milu has LP, but she is not my regular vet. so i am going to ask my regular vet about it when he returns. at the last check up, he told me that milu doesn't have LP but we should keep an eye on it just because it is common with the small dogs.

i have also read a post before that said clavamox kill that person's dog. it's so frustrating, it's like the more information you have, the more frustrating the situation

the medication is supposed to prevent infections. and milu had been on it twice in the past, she was ok, so hopefully it's an ok medication to give to small dogs. please let me know if i should not be giving it to my baby.

[Wylie's Mom]

Clavamox is very common to give to dogs. My boys have been on it anytime an infection is suspected.

If she is not experiencing any symptoms from the clavamox, you could start the other things. It's probably most important to start the Cosequin - so maybe start that first?

[yorkiepuppie]

can someone please send me the link to the exact product i am supposed to be buying? i came home with 4 different bottles of cosequin supplements today because i wasn't sure which one to get.... but i think they are all not the right stuff, because they are all chewable tablets. so i don't think that is what i was supposed to buy.

sorry i am so dumb!!!

[PANAMA69]

Aww sorry about Milu I do hope with all my heart that is nothing serious, I'm sending positive vibes for her, we love you Milu