So my old Chocky Lab and best Pal who Is 9 Is now beginning to get slow and after a good walk or swim is noticeably slow and stiff . Is It time to get him on the Metacam and does It have any side affects .? I have heard that It does wonders for the joints but can upset his stomach and not sure what the best course off action Is .

Also If Metacam is the way forward can you buy it direct or do you have to go through a Vet. ?

I very occasionally use Metacam on my 10yr old Springer, but I don’t use it regularly.

Metacam is very good, but I would say that it only masks the problem rather than dealing with it.

I give my Springer Synoquin on a daily basis though and it seems to have made a difference.

Our Metacam has always been prescribed through the vet.

I use metacam on food when I’m working my seven year old springer, he’s also used tablets but my wife can’t feed them to him when I’m away so I’ve gone back to metacam.

Cool , thanks for the replies . I’ll look into the Synoquin as well as metacam . I’m really just hoping to get another 3 years out of him as will be distraught when he goes.

9yrs old? That’s nowt for a lab is it?
Metacam is quite heavy duty shit, man, only throough a Vet. I would have thought it may be possible to perk him up a bit with other supplements/ a change in diet.

We give our 7 year old lab synoquin, and she is noticeably less stiff….we get it from Amazon

^^^ Yup That’s what I had heard and worried that the Metacam will **** up his stomach . I’ll go see the vet and see what the options are.

I think its a case of reducing the exercise as well.

I don’t run my Springer as much as I used to, purely because of he gets sore back legs after a really long walk.

I’m really careful as he would just keep going and going unless I reign him in and its only hours later that he starts to suffer with stiffness.

When my old boy is struggling, I use

however, info on metacam here

or here if you like a bit more technical stuff

Drugs like it (NSAIDs) definitely can cause stomach/gut problems in humans, all the way up to ulceration with lots of bleeding. Yr vet ought to be able to advise on level of risk and possible ways to avoid it

Also can probably mess with kidney function so keep him well watered (I know dogs pretty much do this sensibly anyway, as long as they have access to a drink)

My Fell Terrier used to occasionally suffer from a stiff back. A visit to the vet and Metacam sorted it within half an hour.If that’s not heavy duty,what is? I wouldn’t use it regularly. A change of diet with more oily fish and he hasn’t had a problem for 2 years now. He’s nine, but still a puppy.

We use both Synoquin and Metacam for my 12 year old springer. Seen a change in her for the better but wasn’t aware of the affects on their stomach . I’ll speak to my vet about that.

My 14 year old Choccy Lab went on Metacam for her arthritis last year.
She seemed better for a while but recently I have stopped giving it to her now and she seems ok.
Struggles after long walks now but oddly still able to jump up and down for food.
Need a prescription £10 from vets if buying elsewhere. Vets charge £60 for 180ml but around £35 online.

My lab has been on metacam for 2 1/2 years (nearly 9) but has chronic hip dysplasia so its really needed. Also try glucasamine and cod liver oil supplements. Diet can affect them and also think about getting his weight down (this was singularly the biggest help in keeping mine in as little pain as possible)…. he’s now at a racing weight of 27.5kg

Labs will never let on that they hurt.. you need to learn to read the signals of when to rest him, how far to walk him.. does he get slow on the lead on the way home? etc etc. With metacam you dont have to give him a full daily dose and can skip days or give much lower doses which seem to still help. I pay £45 for 100ml from the vets.

Metacam is a very good and usually safe Non steroidal anti-inflammatory painkiller. It is prescription only and many vets use similar generic products like Loxicom or Meloxidyl.

The most common side effects are vomiting, diarrhoea and loss of appetite.

The debate is often when to start using it in older dogs and a visit to your vet for a clinical exam would help with deciding when medication is needed. If there is marked loss of range of motion and pain on manipulation it may well help to start sooner and preserve mobility and prevent muscle wastage etc.

Lots of people use Glucosamine/Chondroitin supplements like Synoquin or Seraquin as a starting point and add in NSAIDs when the lameness deteriorates. The clinical evidence for these is mixed but lots of owners report an improvement in mobility once they have been taken for long enough.

Difficult to say from the photo but weight loss is actually one of the very best ways of helping esp if the dog is overweight and many chocolate Labs are. Losing weight is free and will make a great difference in the long term.

Another option is a diet like Hills J/D which is again ideal to start before they get really bad.

Our old dog George, gone just over a year now, took metacam without any side effects. We got the vet to give us a prescription & then bought it online for a lot cheaper than the vets sold it for. The online place needed the prescription (scanned & emailed after placing the order) before they would send it out. Prescription had to be renewed by the vet for every order

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yumove-Supplement-Tablet-300-Tablets/dp/B003W5VDWO/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Great advice , I don’t over exercise him and now let him swim more than walk as It will be better for his joints. I’ll be chuffed to bits If he reaches 14 , I wont get another lab as he has been the perfect dog and I would only compare a new lab. Cocker or Springer for me next.

Maybe a new addition to the family now might not be a bad idea?
Bit of youth for company.

Maybe a new addition to the family now might not be a bad idea?
Bit of youth for company.

He’s about the right age. Works wonders!

Maybe a new addition to the family now might not be a bad idea?
Bit of youth for company.

I thought about this but Isn’t it unfair on the young dog to get close to a dying dog. ?

Glucosamine and Fish oil helped really really helped my Springer, guess that means she had some doggy form of rheumatoid arthritis. And by help I mean she went from being really stiff all the time at the age of 9 to a dog that still ran as much as a young dog at the age of 14. Twas nuts and thats coming from a skeptical biologist.

my black lab is 14 and she has been on metacm for 2+ yrs. she doesnt come for walks anymore but it still happy and pain free. no ill effects so far. i have run out currently and really notice the difference in her (is on order from an internet retailer as its much cheaper).
ive always fed her lots of fish oils (sardines etc) and glocosamine helped alot in the early stages of arthritis

I thought about this but Isn’t it unfair on the young dog to get close to a dying dog. ?

Not at all. Make sure the younger dog is about when the vet visits for the last time and it will be fine.

Your older dog will perk up due to competition so you will need to monitor his health closely as the urge to stay in bed when he’s not well will go if the youngster wants a walk. Likewise he won’t “go off his food” as he’ll finish it to ensure t’youth doesn’t get it.

I also thought you were referring to your penis.

Before heading down the drug route why not try him on green lipped mussel extract for a month see if he improves? We have treated H with this for 6 months now and he’s gone from slower and stiffer to playful and perky again. He still has the odd off day or after too much exercis,e but with his existing stomach troubles we’re over the moon that herbalism is doing the trick with no noticeable side effects. Dosage is based on weight. The vet gave it the green light also, in fact encouraged it, and we buy it online. Worth looking around at quality.

+10 for keeping weight at optimal or shade below. Any weight gain can seriously increase the pain and damage from arthritis, I know from personal experience.

Our vet started our 11yr old springer on Metacam. Within a couple of days he was like a puppy again. We had him for another 18 wonderful months before the inevitable.

Never had any problems with it affecting him, except making him think he was a puppy again!

Vioxx for dogs. With the same COX2 liabilities – GI mainly. Works on our cocker, but is used sparingly.

Can you source Recovery or the bulk Recovery EQ in the UK?
Too stuff and worth looking into!

Have you tried Cortaflex? It worked wonders for the Mule, and they do a canine version.

as others have said

metacam has side effects so I don’t ink long term use is very good

our chow has a dodgy leg (ligament damage) and rather than operate we had him on matacam for a while

then flexijoint tablets- they made a difference, and he was better on his leg, for 2 years

then someone recommended YUMOVE tablets, we but them off amazon, they are the best we have found, they make a great difference to his movement, he can now do a 4-5 mile walk and his leg is 95 % good as new

Have you tried hydrotherapy? Our dog didn’t fair to well on metacam, have you considered rimadyl