Natural options for arthritis?

[jeni]

Hi. So I’ve posted a couple times about my rabbit Jefri.. he is old and has arthritis in his back which was causing hind leg weakness.

 

This is what we are currently doing: we give him metacam which helped and i decided (with the okay of a vet) to  give him glucosamine with chondroitin and msm which helped even more. After upping the metacam and giving the glucosamine he went from falling over and not being able to pick himself up or hop to being able to hop (somewhat wobbly but pretty good) and pick himself when he falls over.. which has been less often. He still has some difficult days when he seems more stiff but a lot better than last month. We gave those Obxow joint supplements too before the glucosamine but not sure how effective they were.. we might try them again though. I’ve also been giving him Epsom salt soaks and light physical therapy sessions.

 

I have been searching for other natural options to try. I read a few places that turmeric is good (noticed it is also an ingredient in the oxbow joint supplements). And I saw a post on here about fish oil. I just wanted to know if anyone had any positive experiences with turmeric and/or fish oil and what form (like from a capsule or other source), brand, and how much? I also read that turmeric works better when given with black pepper… but I’m not sure what the ratio would be or how much to give.

 

I’m so overwhelmed. His mobility has been improving for the most part but he is getting lazy..  when he lays down he usually doesn’t get up to go to the litter box so he pees and poops on himself. usually at night so in the morning I wake up to crusty legs and have to give him butt baths. And I don’t like doing that because he also started making chest noises and the vet thought it was pneumonia but the medication didn’t really work.. he still makes some noises. Not sure what to do about that yet.. might make a post with questions specific to what the vets said about that but its even more overwhelming so I’m focusing on the arthritis for now.

 

Thank you

[MK]

I would highly recommend Myristol. It is also used for horses, but perfectly safe for bunnies. it can make a world of difference. They use it at the shelter where I help out. You can just Google it, and it should be fine. You should give about a three-finger pinch a day ( I believe)

[Sarita]

Try accupuncture and laser treatments.

[jeni]

Unfortunately I don’t have money for those things. Trying to find supplements to add to the metacam and glucosamine. Maybe in the future we can try those things. Does anyone has experience with turmeric or fish oil? Or other natural supplements?

[LongEaredLions]

Really, I don’t know if I would give fish oil to a bunny, as I feel like it might upset the delicate workings of the GI tract. I think turmeric would be ok if it is included in the oxbow tabs. You may want to just use the tabs to provide turmeric as I don’t think it would good for him to eat it plain. I would definitely discuss anything you want to use as a supplement with your vet.
(((((Vibes for Jefri))))))

[jeni]

sorry MK I didn’t see your post! I have heard of myristol pellets but hadn’t tried them. Thank you for the recommendation we will try them soon

LongEaredLions – yeah I was thinking that about the fish oil too.. seems like a strange thing to give a rabbit haha but I saw it on another post here and wondered about it. I may give him the oxbow tablets with turmeric again like you suggested.. Although before I received any replies I was putting a little turmeric and pepper in about 1 – 2 tablespoons of carrot baby food… he loved it. I have no idea if it helped or not since I only tried it 3 times.

Hopefully I can find a vet soon.. I’ve taken him to 3.. 1 who admittedly knew nothing about rabbits – but he was free so I had to try. The other was expensive and misdiagnosed him with a bunch of things he didn’t have and was so rude. and the last one was nice but expensive and the staff kept trying to guilt us into doing a bunch of tests or making things sound urgent when it turned out they weren’t. she also said to email if I had questions so I did but its been 2 weeks and no reply… i called a week ago and the receptionist said she got the email but was busy.. so we’re still trying to find a vet who can help… thanks for the vibes!

[Sarita]

I agree then to try those Myristol pellets.

I will say that I do not believe your rabbit is being lazy – arthritis is very painful. Did the vet do an x-ray to determine the arthritis?

[jerseygirl]

I think this thread might interest you if you havent read it already.

https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/128505/Default.aspx

The only member that i can point you to that has used tumeric is cocobear
https://binkybunny.com/MyProfile/tabid/175/asuid/1378/Default.aspx

Perhaps PM some of these members treating their rabbits for some feedback?

You could look into rosehip oil as alternative to fish oil. Maybe you could email some vets that also work with natural therapies or look into publications featuring these vets and the common remedies they use..

[bunnnnnnie!]

This thread is very interesting – Myristol is just a kind of equine joint supplement. A very expensive one, at that! I wonder if any pelleted equine joint supplement with similar active ingredients would serve the same purpose?

Zeus gives a big thumbs down to the Oxbow supplement treats. Stinker.

[jerseygirl]

Made a few discoveries regarding bunny safe foods.
Celery, parsley and coriander (cilantro) can assist with reducing inflammation of arthritis.

Also the bromelian enzyme in pineapple. Oxbow papaya tablets contain 23mg of bromelian.

I also came across the use of aloe Vera gel/juice. I have heard of its use in rabbits for the GI tract but wasnt aware about benefits for arthritis.

I’m cautious here because its confusing what one reads is safe for rabbits with the aloe Vera plant. It’s often on the toxic plant lists. However, there are also claims that while some parts should be avoided, the gel/juice from the centre fillet of the leaves is okay…
Best to gain the vets support if trying it I suppose.

[jeni]

Thank you the replies

 Sarita – Yes the last vet did an x-ray and it showed he had arthritis in his back which was causing his hind leg weakness. Lazy wasn’t quite the word I was looking for.. I guess just more tired than usual. He just flops and falls asleep snoring loudly or so soundly (he scares me every time) which is normal but its been more often… My husband did suggest maybe its the heat. He’s indoor and the AC runs most of the time and he has a fan and frozen water bottles but sometimes it does get a little hotter than usual.  He also likes to stay close to his cage.. although today he was very curious and snooping around down the hall  .. Since we started giving him more metacam and the gluc he hasn’t really shown any signs of pain. I think when he was in pain he would sit in a very awkward hunched position and grind his teeth and glare at me for not knowing what was wrong. haha.

Bunnnnnie! – (haha cute name) I found 2oz on the colorado hourse rabbit society website for $8 (with shipping) seems like an okay price to try out but I’m not sure how long 2 oz will last. Does anyone know??? I called a feed store close by and they said they carry other pellets for joint support like Grand Flex, Grand HA Synergy, and Equerry’s. Would those work?? Jefri wouldn’t touch the oxbow treats at first but the first 2 times I rubbed banana all over them and he loved it.. after that he just ate them plain i have no idea why but I’m so happy because I hate banana gunk meh

JerseyGirl – thanks so much for the links I skimmed through the first one so far and its great to see that the glucosamine liquid worked for her bun so I might try to find it in liquid form. For now I got some big glucosamine pills (but they are the generic kind and might not be as effective as other brands) and cut them up into 4 pieces and he just eats them like treats. I’ll try PMing some of those members too. The food suggestion was great because he loves all those. I’ll probably get some of those obxow papaya tablets too since he absolutely hates pineapple and papaya on their own. Interesting about the aloe vera juice.. I’ll look into it more!

 

 Thank you all for all the information! We have a lot of things to try. I might call a new vet tomorrow and ask him his advice.  I hate thinking about how much metacam he consumes.

 

[MK]

Honestly, it would probably be cheaper to but Myristol in bulk. Sometimes rabbit shelters overcharge. Try Myristol.com

[jeni]

MK – myristol.com was the first place I looked but there is no way we can afford even their smallest amount right now.. the smallest amount is 5 pounds for over $100! I’m sure $5 for 2oz is a lot in comparison since its always cheaper to buy bulk I just wish they had smaller quantities. Besides the colorado hrs website I haven’t been able to find it anywhere else.

Would the other horse pellets work? Like Grand Flex and Equerry’s?

[jerseygirl]

What about myristol’s feline powder? I can’t find the full ingredients, just the “active ones”.

[jeni]

Jerseygirl – I saw the powder but I wasn’t sure about it either… I was worried it wouldn’t be the same since bunnies and horses are herbivores so the cat stuff might be somewhat different… but maybe not. I’ll try looking into it. My last vet is just too busy to email me back and I haven’t been able to find a new one.

[jerseygirl]

If you’re in Facebook, they have a page you could ask about specifics.

Linking this thread here in case you hadn’t seen it.
https://binkybunny.com/FORUM/tabid/54/aft/131895/afnp/385688/Default.aspx
(Another supplement that bunnnnnnie! is trialing).

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