Hiya its me again.

I'm just curious about what the best joint supplements are for GSD's, I hear cortaflex is good but we can't afford it, my dog is currently on one tablet of glucosamine sulphate a day from holland and barrats, is this effective or are there others out there that are more so?

Thanks

Laura

we are on the dear stuff on line Cosequin DS but on it Jake (BC) does not limp (OCD in the shoulder) so were on that but it aint cheap.

Glaucosamine with marine chondrotin (sp) is very good - specialist advised the chondrotin must be marine tho. Holland & Barratt or healthspan are pretty good, especially when they have offers on.

Not being breed specific but I really like green-lipped mussel extract for joints.

Mine are on yumove,£45 for 300 tabs. Have found it really does help my lot as two have quite bad HD and their movement has definately improved.

I use Dorwest Herbs Glucosamine and Chondroitin and it's very effective.  Much better than the tablets from Boots and H & B.  My old elkhound girl was going lame in the front leg becuase of arthritis, but this stopped the swelling coming up.  You give a double dose for the first month, and then a maintenance dose thereafter.

Glucosamine and chondroitin are effective but have to be given for about 6 weeks before you will notice any improvement.  Devils claw is also a good natural pain relief/anti inflammatory. 

If you're giving glucosamine meant for humans, I believe you need to also make sure they get vitamin C to be able to absorb the nutrients, mind you, you need vit C to be able to process most things.  I have a girl with slight arthritis due to an old injury, she gets human glucosamine/chondroitin tablets twice a week, and as she's raw fed, she gets plenty of vit C in her blended veggies. 

Other things good for joints are turmeric, and apple cider vinegar, as well as the devil's claw and green lipped mussel extract already mentioned.  I use turmeric and apple cider vinegar as part of the veggie mix, and I haven't had a problem with Indie for a good 8 months now.  Another product worth giving a go is a bioflo collar, although they're not cheap; I had one for Indie, but I think because her problems stem from a soft tissue injury I didn't see much effect, where as I know others who've tried them have seen very positive results.  Indie's a Labrador by the way, but I'm sure it's pretty much the same as for GSD's.

I would think that you need 2 tablets for GSDs as I give my Goldens 2 of the max strength. I agree that Yumove seems good but is not as cheap as the H.& B. ones. If you have a mobility problem ( as opposed to giving a maintainence preventative) I'd go for the best you can afford for a month or two. Cartrophen can work spectacularly well on some problems and yet do nothing for others. Good luck.

not got gsds but joint aid is excellent.