The Benefits of Fatty Acids

image courtesy of vcahospitals.com

Many of us have heard of the benefits of fatty acids for some time now.  In fact, there is a great deal of good research into these products and their uses.  I will attempt to write a synopsis to help you as a possible consumer of fatty acid supplements - either for yourself or for your pet(s).  This information is largely based on a recent lecture I attended by Dr. Kenneth Kwochka.
Fatty acids are important sources of energy, but I will focus on their benefits to cells and management of inflammation.  Neither Omega 3 or 6 fatty acids can be synthesized in the body.  We (and our pets) get fatty acids from our diets.

Arthritis in pets

Arthritis is a common problem in our pet dogs and cats.  In fact, many of our senior pets suffer from arthritis pain to some degree, whether they indicate it to us, or not.  Degenerative joint disease is the number one cause of chronic pain in dogs and cats.  I will give a brief review of some of the medications available to us to help ease our pet's pain.  Remember that a "multi-modal" approach works best - that is, use several pain medications and they will work better than one single medication.  I often prefer to diagnose arthritis pain though a trial treatment period.  It works like this, we may suspect arthritis pain, so we can prescribe a short course of medications and assess our pet's response to that treatment.

Slow-acting medications can take weeks to months to exert their effect.  I like to use these in early-onset of stiffness.  Some are even added to the dog food these days.  These meds are nutritional supplements.  They work well when combined with anti-inflammatory medications.  They include glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, omega three fatty acids, MSM, as well as anti-oxidants and free radical scavengers.  I use a lot of glucosamine and fatty acids in my practice and have found them to be very helpful.

Fast-acting medications include Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatories (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, analgesics that are not anti-inflammatory, and Adequan injections (though this is in a category all its own).  Some common names of  medications are carprofen (rimadyl, novox), deracoxib (deramaxx), meloxicam (metacam), prednisone, and tramadol to name a few.  You may have heard of some of these and also used them in the past.  These work great in cases of fast-onset or injury.  They are also nice additives to the supplements when more relief is needed.

Remember to consult with your vet about any and all medications that your pet is taking so the most effective plan for pain management can be implemented.  Some of these medications also require blood monitoring, but this should be discussed on a case-by-case basis.   

Dr. Amy Hellard
West Chester Veterinary Care (WCVC)
www.westchesterveterinarycare.com

Extreme disease

Yesterday I saw the worst mouth in a dog that I have ever seen.  I have truly seen some rotten teeth in my practice.  I won't describe how nasty some dog and cat mouths can get and I will attempt to provide an adequate description here without completely grossing you out...  This dog had it all - loose teeth, recessed gums, inflamed gums, tartar galore, halitosis to beat the band, obvious abscessed tooth roots, food stuck in places it shouldn't be due to pocket formation in the gums, and caked on plaque.  When I looked at the upper canine tooth (the fang) - I knew I had seen it all.  There was a HOLE in the dog's gum.  This hole was above the gum line and exposed the side of the tooth root (if it hadn't been packed full of food, pus, hair, and whatever else you can imagine).  You see, this dog had an untreated tooth root abscess that had progressed so far that the only outlet for the abscess was through the side of the gum.  Painful does not describe it.  My heart went out to this dog.
Why am I telling you this?  Sometimes we all need to be reminded of consequences.  More than anything, I wish this dog had never had to experience the pain and discomfort that I know must have been excruciating.  Dogs do not complain about daily pain.  They live very much in the moment.  They do not think to themselves... "hmmm... I never used to hurt this bad, I think I'll cry about it..."  We do not know what our dogs and cats experience in the realm of pain, but we do know that they exhibit the same behaviors as we would if we were trying to hide our pain from others.  I realize we often don't watch our dogs so closely when they eat that we know when they stop chewing on one side of the mouth, but please keep this in mind the next time your dog opts not to chew that bone, hesitates to climb the stairs, shakes his head a lot, or is slow to get up.  There could be pain and we need to be paying attention.