- Excessive grooming – dogs frequently groom themselves. However, if you see your pet focusing on one localized area it could be a sign of discomfort.
- More vocal – if your dog is more vocal than normal, it could be an indicator.
- Loss of appetite – this is one we see frequently in our practice. Dogs that are in a pretty good amount of pain might refuse to eat.
- Increased aggressiveness – if you have a friendly dog that is all of a sudden nipping and showing signs of aggression, it could be a sign of pain. This can even be focused toward owners in addition to strangers and other dogs.
- Panting – this is fairly common for a lot of the cases we work with.
- Issues with movement – if your active dog all of a sudden won’t do stairs or jump on/off furniture anymore, there may be an issue.
- Hiding – a lot of dogs will hide when they aren’t feeling well.
- Shaking – a great indicator, we see this in acute back and neck pain.
Your dog is a master at hiding pain. They often won’t show signs until the pain is fairly advanced. However, if you see some of these signs there’s a good chance something is bothering your dog.
What Can We Do As Dog Owners?
Are There Any Additional Ways To Help?
There are a number of different ways to help with discomfort for your dog even without a prescription. This includes:
- CBD oil – we have numerous clients that use CBD oil and claim that it is effective. It is often retailed in holistic pet shops like The Pet Beastro.
- Golden paste – if you have an older dog and joint issues are a problem, you can utilize golden paste to see if it helps. It is a combination of turmeric, coconut oil, and a little black pepper. This is a great anti-inflammatory. Make your own by following this recipe or you can purchase made options from your pet store if they retail it. Fish oil can also be a great complement.
- Joint supplements – these can help with joint issues as well. Glucosamine on its own is great. However, we recommend a supplement such as Connectin Hip and Joint which contains anti-inflammatory herbs in addition to cartilage protecting nutrients.
- Essential oils – while we aren’t the foremost experts on essential oils, many of our clients use them and claim they are effective.
We recommend visiting your veterinarian first to determine the cause of pain. During your visit, you can ask about natural remedies such as these.
It would be great if we could talk with our dogs, for a number of reasons. However, a huge benefit would be to know when they are in pain and could use some help. Unfortunately, they are excellent at hiding pain due to their evolution. However, there are subtle signs as we mentioned previously that can indicate discomfort. If there is discomfort, a visit to your vet will help in addition to numerous other natural remedies. Dogs are an integral part of our family. If you see any of these signs it could be an indicator of pain, and your dog will appreciate you for noticing and helping them!
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