Strengthening your dog's joints: effective measures and tips

Your dog is with you every step of the way and you want to make sure that he has everything he needs. The health of his joints is particularly important to ensure an active and pain-free life from puppyhood to old age. In this blog, we will show you various ways and measures you can take to strengthen your dog's joints.

Content

• Why is it important to strengthen your dog's joints?
• How can dogs' joints be strengthened?
• How can dogs' joints be protected?
• Conclusion

Strengthening your dog's joints - why is this so important?

Your dog's joints play a crucial role in his mobility and general well-being. They enable movements such as running, jumping and playing. Strengthening the joints can also help reduce the risk of joint diseases such as osteoarthritis and joint pain. Therefore, pay attention to your dog's joint health and take steps to strengthen them.

Measures to strengthen the joints in dogs

Important: The following measures can strengthen the dog's joints and thus possibly slow down or even stop the progression of joint destruction. However, damaged joint cartilage can no longer be restored and completely healed.

It is therefore particularly important to take preventative measures from the time your dog is a puppy. Even before symptoms occur.
The following measures can create the basis for general joint health:

• Movement and utilization
• Nutrition and food

Regular, controlled exercise for healthy dog joints

Regular exercise is essential for the health of your dog's joints. Loading and unloading is necessary to ensure that the joint cartilage is supplied with sufficient nutrients. It also strengthens the muscles surrounding the joints and increases their flexibility at the same time.

However, the emphasis is on regular and controlled exercise. Exercising too much or too intensively can put a strain on the joints. Tight changes of direction or abrupt stops are also not conducive to healthy joints.

Everyday movements

Daily walks can not only strengthen the dog-human relationship, but also promote joint health. Make sure that your dog can move in all types of movement (walking, trotting, running) during the walk. Also incorporate games with different movements. Soft and not too smooth surfaces are ideal, as these cushion movements better.

Incidentally, the rule of thumb for puppies is "walk for about 5 minutes at a time per month of life".

Play sessions are also suitable for strengthening the dog's joints. However, the popular ball games are often associated with tight changes of direction or abrupt stops. Our tip on how to prevent overloading: Simply roll the ball in a controlled manner instead of throwing it. This will prevent the ball from bouncing around uncontrollably. And don't worry, the fun factor remains the same.

Greater everyday stress and dog sports

Swimming, at the right pace and with the right technique, is an excellent exercise to build up fitness, muscles and flexibility. Thanks to the buoyancy of the water, there is no strain on the joints.

Agility or other dog sports promote physical and mental fitness. However, this type of exercise is only possible in adulthood. The joints, bones and muscles must first be fully developed. This is the case from the first year of life. For large dogs, it can also take two years. During this time, the club trains the basics that improve or build up the bond with the owner in the form of muscle, joint, fitness, coordination and concentration exercises.

The rest period in the first or second year of life should also be taken into account for other major stresses. In everyday life, this includes climbing stairs or getting in and out of the car. However, hiking tours with steep ascents and descents or long bike rides should also be avoided until the end of the growth period.

As a general rule, the type and intensity of exercise should always be tailored to the individual' s age, breed and health. If you are unsure, it is best to ask your vet.

The right diet to strengthen the joints

The choice of food is important for a healthy dog's life. A deficiency or excess of nutrients and minerals also has an impact on joint health. Therefore, the food should always be adapted to the age, size and energy requirements of your dog.

Food that is too high in energy also has a negative impact on the joints. In puppies, for example, this can greatly accelerate bone growth. This is a real problem, especially in very large breeds such as Great Danes, Irish Wolfhounds and others. Among other things, joint and cartilage damage can be the long-term result.

Supplementary feed for strong joints in dogs

The right diet can promote your dog's joint health by providing them with nutrients that are important for their joints. This is best done as a preventative measure before symptoms occur. You should therefore support the joint metabolism of puppies and young dogs in particular at an early stage. This is because the foundation for the dog's general joint health is already laid in puppyhood.

To support joint metabolism, you can give your dog high-quality dietary supplements such as the joint tablets from Canoseptto feed your dog. Feeding joint-supporting nutrients is particularly advisable if the risk of osteoarthritis is increased. This may be the case, for example, due to the following conditions:

• Body weight in large and heavy breeds (but small breeds can also be affected!)
• Sporting activities (e.g. agility dogs, canicross, etc.)
• Incorrect diet a tendency to be overweight (Studies today assume that every second dog in Germany is overweight)
• Age-related joint changes
• Hereditary joint deformities or cartilage damage (e.g. hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia)
• Racial tendencies
• As soon as the joy of movement decreases noticeably

Which nutrients and active ingredients should I look out for?

The nutrients and active ingredients in feed supplements should follow two principles in order to provide important support for well-being by promoting joint health and thus improving quality of life:

• Anti-inflammatory effect
• Consideration of important components of joint metabolism

Interaction of the individual components:

The focus with feed supplements should not be on individual ingredients. The composition and interaction of the individual components are important for successful use. Pay attention to ingredients that are particularly beneficial.

Omega-3 fatty acids
The unsaturated fatty acids omega-3 and omega-6 play a role in inflammatory processes. While omega-3 fatty acids have an anti-inflammatory effect, omega-6 fatty acids tend to promote inflammation. Supplements should therefore change the ratio in favor of omega-3 fatty acids.

It is often stated that the components eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are particularly important. A high concentration is contained in fish oil from cold-water fish. However, the right ratio is also important here.

Studies have shown a positive effect for dietary feed containing omega-3. The effect was shown in the reduction of pain and joint dysfunction. (Source: Loef, et al., (2019). Fatty acids and osteoarthritis: different types, different effects,)

To protect the fatty acids from spoilage and oxidative stress, it makes sense to combine them with antioxidants, e.g. vitamin E.

Green-lipped mussel
Preparations containing green-lipped mussel extract are available to support the joints. This contains various nutrients and active ingredients that are beneficial for joint health.
These include

• Glycosaminoglycans (GAG)
• Omega-3 fatty acids
• Vitamins
• Amino acids
• Minerals (e.g. copper, zinc, selenium)

Undenatured collagen type II (Undenatured collagen II)
Collagen-containing cartilage components enter the synovial fluid after heavy joint strain or during an arthritis flare-up. As these cartilage components are not found in healthy synovial fluid, the body reacts with an immune response.

A vicious circle begins, as this inflammatory reaction leads to further damage to the joint cartilage. This leads to another inflammatory reaction.

The administration of the cartilage building material undenatured collagen type II (UC II) can prevent or dampen the joint-destroying immune reaction. This is because it is similar to the CDAs (=cartilage derived antigens) that are responsible for the breakdown of cartilage components. In this way, the body becomes accustomed to its presence, breaking the vicious circle and reducing the inflammatory response.

Boswellia serrata (frankincense)
Boswellia serrata (frankincense) has an anti-inflammatory effect and has shown an additive effect and a faster onset of action in scientific studies in combination with undenatured collagen type II (source: Martínez-Puig, D. et al (2023). Collagen Supplementation for Joint Health: The Link between Composition and Scientific Knowledge)

Glycosaminoglycans (GAG)
Glycosaminoglycans (GAG) are cartilage protectors and indispensable components of articular cartilage. They can bind large amounts of water and thus ensure the strength of the cartilage and the necessary elasticity.

The GAGs most frequently used in veterinary medicine include glucosamine and chondroitin (contained in green-lipped mussel powder, for example). They are used for regeneration and, especially in combination, they can inhibit the inflammatory reaction.

Studies have shown an improvement with glucosamine after long-term administration (over 2 months) (source: Barbeau-Grégoire et al. (2022). A 2022 Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Enriched Therapeutic Diets and Nutraceuticals in Canine and Feline Osteoarthritis).

Home remedies for strong joints in dogs

One home remedy that can help your dog with joint pain is warmth. Joint problems and pain increase, especially in the cold season. Red light, hot water bottles and cherry stone cushions can alleviate the pain. But be careful: hot water bottles and cherry stone cushions must never be too hot.

There is also a lot of information on the internet about home remedies to strengthen and support dogs' joints. And yes, turmeric, ginger, brewer's yeast and vitamin C can have a positive effect on joint health. But this requires the right dosage and a composition with other active ingredients. Specially developed dietary supplements such as the Canosept joint tablets have been developed with veterinarians and support your dog's joint metabolism on the basis of an optimal composition of ingredients.

Protect your dog's joints

Strengthening your dog's joints is an important part of joint health. However, as a dog parent, you should always keep an eye on your dog's health so that, among other things, the joints are protected.

Warm Up and Cool Down 

Unleash and off you go to romp and play: Meeting up with other dog parents so that the dogs can play together is part of everyday life for many. However, dogs are often not warmed up beforehand and the strain on their joints, tendons, ligaments and muscles is therefore enormous.

If this strain is repeated constantly, it can lead to joint problems. That's why you should warm up your dog's joints before any strenuous exercise. For example, incorporate changes of pace and direction on the way to the meadow.

Acute injuries

Even if a bruise, strain or sprain seems harmless at first, you should always take musculoskeletal injuries seriously. This is because the result is always an inflammatory reaction. Under optimal conditions, this is essential for the healing process.

However, consequential damage can also occur, which can lead to permanent movement restrictions. The problem is also that dogs have a higher pain tolerance. They do not always clearly signal that they are in pain. Injuries to the musculoskeletal system should therefore always be presented to the vet.

Reduce excess weight

Overweight in dogs is a widespread problem. Too much weight puts too much strain on the joints. To protect your dog's joints, you should therefore pay attention to your dog's ideal weight. What you need to bear in mind when losing weight.

Conclusion

• Regular and controlled exercise promotes healthy and strong joints. The type and intensity should be individually tailored to each dog in order to avoid overloading.
• Activities that are easy on the joints, such as swimming, are ideal. Avoid hard impacts and jumping, especially with puppies and older dogs.
• A balanced diet is important for joint health.
• Special dietary supplements such as the Canosept joint tablets support the joint metabolism and promote mobility. The right composition of the individual components is important here. Green-lipped mussel powder, glucosamine, undenatured collagen type II, vitamin E, omega-3 and Boswellia serrata (frankincense) are particularly recommended.
• Injuries to the musculoskeletal system should always be presented to the vet.
• Weight control is important for maintaining healthy dog joints.

Relevant products in the blog post

Popular blog articles

Matching video with application tips

Do you have any questions?