Hi,

A ten year old Golden is certainly a senior citizen and it is likely that he has arthritis. Glucosamine/Chondroitin combinations can certainly help with mobility and they are ususally very well tolerated (I have seen some dogs get upset stomachs, however). There are many over-the-counter products which you can try for humans, but I recommend chosing the ones designed for animals, such as Cosequin.

Glucosamine products do very little to help with pain but I do not recommend giving ASA, as this can cause stomach ulcers in dogs. Currently, there are some great choices that we have to give pain relief. Rimadyl and Meloxicam are the products that I use most often. I have seen a lot of dogs "come back to life" after using these medications. For many big dogs, I use these non-steroidal anti-inflammatories along with the glucosamine products.

However, the biggest recommendation that I have for you is to take a trip to your veterinarian. If your Golden is "in bad shape", then he may be suffering from more problems than just arthritic pain. A veterinarian should be able to help you improve his quality of life. A simple physical examination can tell us a lot of information. For example, many of these older dogs are overweight and losing the pounds can dramatically affect how well they get around.

I hope this helps. Good luck,

drphilvegasvet

Just a word of advice when giving any of these med's to an older dog...always investigate the possible side-effects. My last German Shepherd began taking med's (Met-Cam) for his arthritis and it (literally) blew his stomach out. He'd always had a very sensitive tummy and I was aware of the risks, so it's not my Vet's fault. We got 2 good weeks out of him in the end, which was better than watching him try and climb the stairs. I miss you Kody...

With any pain medication (especially the NSAIDS or non-steroidal anti-inflammatories), there can be side-effects and some of them can be quite serious. If you read the insert on Rimadyl, it says that the medication can cause death.

HOWEVER, I still consider most of these NSAIDS, especially Rimadyl, to be quite safe and very effective. To minimize the chance of side effects, we recommend a full blood panel prior to starting the medication. We repeat the bloodwork every six months if the pet is still taking it.

drphilvegasvet