What is bothering your dog and what can you do to help?

As dogs get older, they are plagued with a variety of problems that cause them pain. A common occurrence for dogs are also injuries, that’s when relief is urgently needed. When you know your dog well, you can quickly see that something is bothering him/her and you would like to help however you can.

In this article, we describe various conditions that can cause your dog discomfort. How do you identify them, when do you visit a vet and how can you help your dog at home?

How do we determine that something is bothering our dog?

First of all, recognizing pain is key to successfully prevent and relieve it, because your dog cannot describe it the way humans can.

Chronic pain in a dog is harder to diagnose compared to a sudden pain, where the dog immediately shows us that he/she is in pain with a squeal. We determine if the dog has an acute pain by his/her behavior: the dog develops eating disorder, becomes aggressive and does not allow us to touch the painful spot.

When a dog suffers from a chronic pain, it should not be overlooked.

Dogs have their nervous system developed similarly as humans do, so we can assume that a dog would feel pain the same way a person feels pain in a similar situation or having the same disease. Observe your dog and you will notice deviations from the normal behavioral patterns in:

• feeding (eating disorder, while eating they don’t let you touch their bowl…),
• grooming (the dog does not allow you to touch his ears, or clip claws, or combing),
• behavior towards you and other dogs,
• general posture of the dog and posture during an activity.

Dog owners often overlook their pet’s chronic pain because they confuse it with age related problems:

Laura explains: “My Labrador Lord gradually started to  fall behind while we were taking a walk and slowly dragged his feet to follow me. Since he had also gained weight, I thought he just became  an old fat Labrador, so I made the walks shorter. His appetite was fine and I thought there was nothing wrong. But he suffered severe joint pain. The vet diagnosed osteoarthritis.”

OSTEOARTHRITIS IN DOGS

Osteoarthritis is a rheumatic disease, due to wear and tear the joint become inflamed. Dogs with chronic osteoarthritis have difficulty getting up, difficulty walking, refuse to walk the stairs, and refuse to jump into a car. These disease is more common in dogs that are taller.

When dogs feel pain in the back part of their body, they tend to hunch their back, trying to carry their weight with the front limbs.

Osteortritis is accompanied with severe joint pains and it is necessary for you to seek help for your dog with a veterinarian.

WHAT ARE THE SIGNS THAT YOUR DOG HAS JOINT INFLAMMATION?

A sign of joint inflammation in dogs is definitely pain in the joints of their limbs. It occurs more commonly in dogs that are older. The first sign that your dog is in pain, is definitely lack of agility and acting lethargic. If you also notice swelling in your dogs joints, it could be inflammation. If your dog suffers hip inflammation, you can’t even see  it. The area is painful to the touch and it hinders your dog during basic daily activities.

Inflammation of joints can be the reason your dog has a fever, lack of appetite and feels weak and lethargic in general.

The following signs could mean your dog has inflamed joints:

• Noticeable stiffness, especially after rest (showing signs of difficulty to get up)
• The dog hesitates walking the stairs
• When going for a walk the dog falls behind or gets tired quickly
• The dog prefers to lie down to standing or sitting
• The dog squeals, growls, or even snorts at you when you touch the affected area

WHAT CAN YOU DO IF YOUR DOG HAS JOINTS INFLAMMATION?

Take your dog to the vet. With only a few tests, they can determine if your dog has arthritis or not. The blood work results will also show if inflammation is present. It is very important to detect arthritis in its early stages, which is difficult to do for your dog, because he/she will not show signs of pain immediately.

 

If your dog does not have arthritis and it is not an inflammation, the reason for the signs could be osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is the wear and tear of cartilage in a joint and it causes pain. The same as with arthritis, the sign is joint pain, the difference is that with osteoarthritis the pain is not accompanied by inflammation.

Your veterinarian will prescribe anti-inflammatory and analgesic medicines for your dog. A veterinarian will often prescribes a diet as well, especially if your dog has gained weight and because the type of diet also affects inflammation in the body. Physical therapy and magnetic therapy are highly recommended.

 

MAGNETIC THERAPY AGAINST PAIN (what is it and how does it work?)

Magnetic therapy is a suitable therapy for dogs that have problems with their joints, ligament damage or back pain. Magus magnetic therapy comes in a form of a matt and can be a solution to help relieve your dog’s pain.

The basis for magnetotherapy is a magnetic field with low frequencies and has been used in veterinary medicine for many years.

It affects deep tissue, the cells in humans and animals. It is used by veterinarians after surgeries. If the dog has physical therapy, the magnetic therapy is indispensable.

In 2016 research, the veterinarian Bognato proved that in case of osteoarthritis of the knee in dogs, their condition significantly improves and their pain is also significantly reduced. You can see it in their activeness and general mood.

 

MAGUS MAGNETIC THERAPY MATT (how to use it for a dog?)

The matt has foam-coated coils inside, so the matt is a soft pad for your dog’s comfort. The Magus magnetic therapy matt kit contains two matts made out of durable fabric that does not absorb moisture:

• Large matt 180cm x 70cm (for the whole body of your dog)
• Small matt (for smaller breeds or for local use in larger breeds – eg. To be placed on the hips only or on the spine)
• Control unit where you can choose between 14 different settings (for muscles, for bone regeneration, for joints – osteoarthritis, for relieving pain…)
• Power adapter
• Everything is stored in a convenient bag

The magnetic therapy is a completely non-invasive and safe method where magnetic field penetrates deep into the muscles and bones, so your pet will rest during this therapy.

The therapy does not produce sound or vibrations, so your dog will be completely stress-free. The main advantage of the therapy is that it can be performed at home, in your dog’s home environment (on a couch, in a bed …).

All the programs last 30 minutes. One therapy per day is usually sufficient. The owner usually sits down somewhere in the apartment, puts a Magus magnetic therapy matt on the floor and invites the dog to lie down. During the therapy a vast majority of dogs calm down completely or even fall asleep. Soon the dog gets used to the therapy matt and as soon as your dog sees the matt, he/she already knows what to do.
Some Magus magnetic therapy matt owners place the matt under their dog’s bed and start the therapy while their dog is asleep. And because this is a quiet and unobtrusive therapy, it will not disturb your dog in any way.

SPINAL PAIN IN A DOG

One of the most common reasons your dog is in pain is also spinal pain. This is not a strange occurrence, because the spine is a really complicated part of the musculoskeletal system. The spine, as being a very important part of the musculoskeletal system, is susceptible to various injuries and a lot of strain, causing back pain in the dog.

 

 

HOW DO I RECOGNIZE THAT MY DOG HAS SPINAL PAIN?

Usually the dog owners notice that something is wrong with their dog when the condition is already seriously progressed. We all know our dogs well, but they still don’t show signs of pain quickly enough so that we could recognize the problem early on.

EACH DOG EXPRESSES PAIN IS DIFFERENTLY

Expressing pain or showing that something is bothering your dog it varies form dog to dog. It depends on various factors such as:

• Gender
• Breed
• Age
• Previous experience
• Social status
• Living situation
• Environmental impact

All dog owners probably know that their dog behaves completely differently in a different environment than at home. It’s no surprise that the dog will limp all day at home, but when we take him to the vet, he walks normally. External influence affects the expression of problems, and it happens due to various factors.

KNEE LIGAMENT INJURY

A knee ligament injury in dogs is very common. Knee ligaments in dogs are short and when over-strained, they rupture quickly or even get torn. In most cases surgery is needed to repair the damage, and soon after the surgery, a quality physical therapy follows. We cannot imagine that today, in modern times, rehabilitation would not include a magnetic therapy. In case of knee ligament injury, a magnetic therapy accelerates soft tissue regeneration, relieves pain, and affects the overall well-being of your dog.

What dogs should use magnetic therapy and what for?

Magnetic therapy for dogs is intended for dogs:

• with muscle, ligament or tendon injury,
• after orthopedic or neurological surgery,
• with chronic degenerative joint disease,
• in case of loss of general fitness due to illness or age and
• sport dogs, for whom you want to improve physical performance and reduce the possibility of injuries.

We recommend magnetic therapy for dogs whose owners would like to offer their pets a better quality of life. The advantage of this therapy is that you can use it for yourself as well.