Osteoarthritis (OA) in dogs and cats is a chronic degenerative process that affects all joint compartments, which is also recognized as having “low-grade” inflammation. In dogs, the typical signs are usually more evident than in felines:
- joint pain
- extra
This disease affects approximately 90% of dogs over five years of age and approximately 20% of those over one year of age. In cats, the disease is underestimated, but present.
Unfortunately, there is currently no definitive therapy for osteoarthritis in dogs and cats. However, once the diagnosis of OA has been made, your veterinarian will be able to indicate the most appropriate combination of treatment for your pet, in order to ensure a good quality of life, also taking into account its general condition.
If you want to learn more about the disease and find out how to prevent it, we recommend reading the blog ondog and cat arthrosis by Confiset.it where you can find many interesting articles and useful tips.
What happens if I neglect my pet's arthritis?
The functional and structural alterations of the joints are associated with pain, inflammation and reduced mobility. There may also be deterioration of the musculature, as a result of the reduction in movement due to pain. From a clinical point of view, the main response will be lameness, which is less evident in cats.
But if the articular cartilage has no nerve endings, why does your pet feel pain?
Arthritis in dogs and cats is a complex pain, both central and peripheral; a “neuropathic” component, moreover, could sometimes justify a lack of response to conventionally used drugs. Overall, a neglected OA will end up affecting the level of comfort, the animal’s daily actions (even just standing up, or walking!), exercise tolerance, “normal” activities such as playing or climbing stairs, urinary and fecal habits, but also normal behavior and social life, which will veer towards isolation or aggression. In the case of cats, jumping will decrease and, in the case of “hunting” felines, even this beloved practice will be reduced to a minimum.
How to intervene?
Time is important: the sooner the better. Trusting your veterinarian and starting an appropriate long-term care plan is the only opportunity to break the vicious cycle of deterioration due to OA. Neglecting it, however, means leading your pet to a marked reduction in quality of life. The desire to improve the significant physical discomfort of animals with arthritic conditions has led to the creation of tools useful for early and specific diagnosis at every stage of the disease, as well as its monitoring.
What can you do?
You will be of great help by reporting symptoms and spontaneous changes due to pain, also by filling out specific questionnaires if they are proposed to you. The recent 07(COAST), for example, takes into account in 4 degrees both the clinical evaluation and your observation as an owner. The already known Helsinki Chronic Pain Index (HCPI) instead includes 11 questions on mood, lameness and desire to move.
There are also “clinical metrologists” such as the BPI Pain Inventory, which was developed to measure the severity and impact of chronic pain in dogs on their daily activities. You know your pet well!
So your perception, even if subjective, will be useful to monitor the progress of OA: if asked by the veterinarian, answering the questionnaires will be another way to not neglect it.
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