There is a flavored form of Glucosamine called Cosequin for Cats that
comes in a capsule and is easily mixed with food. Since your cat's
arthritis sounds more advanced Cosequin may not be enough and you might
want to consider finding a vet that does Adequan therapy and consult
with them. I have personally seen several severely arthritic cats
receive dramatic benefits fom this therapy. It is a little expensive in
the beginnng as the therapy starts out as several injections close
together, but they are eventually spaced further apart and you may
eventually only need  to do them once every six weeks or longer.
You can read a litle bit about Adequan here:
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_degenerative_arthritis.html

Megan

                                   

Hi. My 14-year-old cat has arthritis in his lumbar spine and a
meniscal knee tear or chip. The vet gave me some glucosamine, a large
tablet size, to mash up in his food. However, he won't eat his food
with it in there, doesn't like the taste. Remidyl (sp?) is not
available for cats or I would try it (it has helped my in-laws' dog
tremendously). He is on a temporary course of prednisone for his
inflammatory bowel problems but it doesn't seem to help his arthritis.
Are there any other forms of glucosamine that I could try, smaller
tablets maybe that I could mash up in his food? If you have a brand
you could recommend or any other solutions, please let me know. I
don't know how much pain he is in, if it warrants putting him out of
his misery (he has the IBD and early kidney disease too, poor thing).
It breaks my heart to watch him walking around so stiff-legged. I wish
Remidyl was made for cats, too.

My 16 yo Tigger also has arthritis. She is on Cosequin, Shark Cartilage and
Arnica Montana. I don't bother opening the Cosequin and sprinkling it on her
food. I just give her the pill. The Shark Cartilage gets mixed with her
food. The Arnica Montana is a liquid that I just squirt in her mouth with a
dropper.

It takes a while before you will start seeing results from the Cosequin. The
Arnica Montana is for pain and should help right away.

Tigger was so bad before Christmas I thought we might be losing her. She was
losing weight, wasn't able to get around and was hardly eating. The
combination she is on isn't any silver bullet but her weight has stabilized,
she's getting around much better and is actually grooming herself again.

If none of this works you could look into acupuncture. I have heard of good
results from that but it is expensive.

W

There is a shot called adequin (sp?) that is reported to do well. There is
another glucosimine supplement called Cosequin that you open and sprinkle on
the food that is chicken and tuna flavored. My cat really likes it. Those
are some options to check out. Hope you find a resolution.

Karen

Although the manufacturer doesn't approve it for cats, some vets are
prescribing Rimadyl.  My 16-year-old Maine coon is doing very well on one
25mg Rimadyl tablet every 6 or 7 days (he's a 15 pound cat.  A small cat
might do fine on half a tablet).  Before the Rimadyl, he was starting
to walk so badly, lurching like a zombie cat, I was afraid that I'd
have to think about putting him down.  On the Rimadyl, he's downright
frisky and behaves like a middle-aged cat instead of an elderly one.

I think the largest concern is that it takes a lot longer to clear a
cat's system (3 or 4 days) than a dog's, but as he gets six or seven
days relief from one pill, it's a miracle for him.   And it's not too
expensive, even marked up at my vet rather than ordering from the net,
it's only $1 a pill.  They are also a pretty small, so it's not hard to
get him to swallow it.

He also has a tendency to have IBS flare-ups once or twice a year,
and the Rimadyl has not bothered him in that way at all.  I was worried
about that at first.

I have two suggestions.

1.There is a product called Pill Pockets, (pillpockets.com). They are
very moist
and apparently very tasty. One of my cats gets  2 B12 pills 2X's a day.
I split them in half and place them in the center of the pill pockets.
Patches, who is impossible to pill, inhales her "treats".

2. There is a product called "Sea Flex" for feline flexibility
(www.seacucumber.com). Five morsels contain 270mg sea chondroitin and 70
mg of glucosamine. My holistic vet recommended this product for one of
my other cats who is not quite as agile as he used to be.

Try Cosequin.  It is a capsule that you can open and sprinkle the contents
onto your cats' food.

Sue

I can recommend two kinds.

Hartz Joint Maintencance - it comes in a bottle. The tablets are
chewable and they are tuna flavored. If Maynard doesn't eat it right
away, I lick my finger and wipe it on the pill. It seems to smell more
enticing when it is wet. He usally scarfs them right up. One of two a
day. Sold in the pet stores as well as some grocery stores. 60 tablets
for $10 or $12.

Kittyvite senior vitamin supplement - kind of like tender vittles,
tuna flavor, up to 4 a day. Comes in a reasealble pouch. $5 for 3oz at
the pet store. More spendy, but Maynard chows them down. I just
started these a couple weeks ago. It says it is 8 vitamins with
glucosamine and taurine being the most prominent. It states that it is
intended to "maintain a healthy and active lifestyle". I;m not sure,
but Maynard does seem more active since I started it. Even caught him
running after and swatting at my nephew's remote control car.

My cat prefers the semi soft treats. I will definitely be buying them
again.

I wish

It works well for some dogs, but has also caused deaths in others. My
mom used it well with her dog, but I wouldn't try it myself.
Meghan & the Zoo Crew  
Equine and Pet Photography
http://www.zoocrewphoto.com