Dear Dr. Audrey,
My cat MAX has arthritis (back legs). What medication and other suggestions would you recommend to help ease his pain? He’s 12 years old.
The first thing to do is to have a good look at his waistline. If he is at all overweight, then a diet is in order.
He will be more comfortable if he doesn’t have to carry excess weight on those sore back legs.
There are two approaches to arthritis in cats – relieve pain, and improve the condition of the sore joints.
Cats are very different to dogs, and most of the commonly used pet anti-inflammatory tablets aren’t safe for them.
However, there are some drugs that work well for pain, mostly from the opioid group of drugs, and your veterinarian can prescribe these for him.
The second approach helps to restore the cartilage in the joints and making the joint fluid thicker and more cushioning, sort of like a shock absorber.
Adequan is an injectable product that does this, and it too is available from your vet.
There is a prescription diet known as Feline J/D, which has added ingredients to promote joint health; it contains fish oils as a natural anti-inflammatory and also carnitine, which is thought to help burn fat. — Dr. Audrey
What We Use in Our Home
I’ve written several times about the arthritis that 13-year-old Inca has in her back legs. She generally gets around very well but has some difficulty jumping up on the counter where we feed all of our cats. (Yes, they have a dedicated counter just for their feeding so the dogs can’t access their food!)
We use folding pet stairs to help Inca access the counter. She climbs the stairs, gets on the recycling bin then steps on the counter for meals.
You’ll also find shorter pet stairs for accessing beds and couches.
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