All About Bichon Frise Dogs

  • HOME
  • Puppies
    • Bichon Frise Puppies
      • Selecting a Dog
      • Choosing a Breed
      • Adoptions
      • New Puppy
      • New Puppy Checklist
      • Crying at Night
      • Puppy Food Bowls
    • Puppy Care
      • Puppy Diet
      • Feeding Schedule
      • Teething
      • Puppy Vomiting
      • Puppy Worms
      • Neutering
      • Distemper
      • Vaccinations
    • Puppy Training
      • House Training
        • Crate Training a Puppy
        • Metal Dog Crates
        • Paper Training
      • Leash Training
      • Puppy Grooming
      • Socialization
      • Sit Command
      • Puppy Training Games
      • Stop Puppy Biting
      • Poop Eating
  • Adults
    • Holistic Dog Care
      • Healthy Diet
        • Best Quality Food
        • Gourmet Dog Treats
        • BARF Diet
    • Pregnancy
    • Dog Fun
      • Kong Dog Toys
      • Indestructible Dog Toys
      • Stuffed Dog Toys
      • Birthday Party
      • Halloween Party
      • Bichon Buzz
  • Seniors
    • Dog Age?
    • Aging Dogs
      • Dementia
      • Separation Anxiety
      • Hearing Loss
      • Blindness
        • Blind Dog Accessories
        • Blind Dog Care
        • Cataracts
    • Senior Dog Food
    • Senior Health
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis
      • Osteoarthritis
        • Arthritis Aids
        • Arthritis Treatment
        • Arthritis Symptoms
      • Dog Cancer
        • Skin Cancer
      • Incontinence
        • Incontinence Products
        • Urine Stains
  • Grooming
    • Tear Stains
    • Bath Time
      • Hypoallergenic Shampoo
    • Eye Care
    • Brushing Teeth
      • Dental Chews
    • Dog Nails
    • Dog Dandruff
    • Hair Cut
  • Health Issues
    • Common Health Problems
      • Conjunctivitis
      • Ear Infections
      • Dog Flu
      • Lameness
      • Luxating Patella
      • Pain Relief
      • Seasonal Allergies
      • Food Allergies
      • Skin Allergies
    • Digestive Disorders
      • Pancreatitis
      • Food Allergies
      • Constipation
      • Vomiting
    • Emergencies
      • Dog Ate Chocolate
      • Heat Stroke
      • Salmonella Poisoning
    • Hormone Disorders
      • Addison’s Disease
      • Cushing’s Disease
      • Diabetes
      • Hypothyroidism
    • Urinary Tract
      • Bladder Stones
      • Kidney Disease
      • Urinary Tract Infection
  • Training
    • Agility Training
    • Alpha Dog Training
    • Obedience Training
    • Best Dog Training Treat
    • Behavior Problems
      • Aggressive to Dogs
      • Aggressive to People
      • Eating Poop
      • Dog Barking
      • Separation Anxiety
      • Submissive Urination
  • Bichon Breed
    • Bichon Frise Dogs
    • Hyperallergenic
    • Temperament
    • Personalities
  • Shops
    • Dog Crate Furniture
    • Bicycle Dog Carriers
    • Small Dog Carriers
    • Mugs
    • Mousepads
    • Jewelry
You are here: Home / Aging Dogs: How to Help Your Bichon Through her Golden Years / Dog Arthritis Symptoms

Dog Arthritis Symptoms

Dog arthritis symptoms in Bichon Frises often mimic symptoms of other diseases. And to make it more confusing, arthritis in dogs is caused by more than one medical condition.

Keep in mind that, just like many other diseases, if arthritis is diagnosed early, you can help your dog be more comfortable and pain-free for a longer time.

Visiting your vet more often as your Bichon Frise dog ages, will help you stay on top of any senior dog issues that may arise.

dog diabetes symptoms
When your dog reaches his senior years, you should be careful to observe any changes in his behavior and movements.

How to Tell if Your Dog Has Arthritis

Most dogs develop symptoms of arthritis gradually.  You probably won’t wake up one morning and say to yourself, “Gee I think my dog just got arthritis”.  You will see symptoms develop over some period of time, perhaps months.

In fact, you will probably have to consciously think back over the last few months to decide when your dog started to have symptoms.

Here are some things to watch for:

Activity Level

  • Your dog may not show excitement or interest in physical activities that she used to love – things like taking walks, playing with toys or rough housing with family members.
  • She runs and jumps less frequently.
  • If your dog stands up on her hind legs to say “Please” or beg for a treat, she may not do this anymore.  Or she may try to do it, unsuccessfully.
  • If you take your dog for walks on a sandy beach, he may show signs of stiffness and pain afterward. Sand is difficult to walk on, if you have painful joints, and it can aggravate arthritic symptoms.
  • Hesitation to climb stairs
  • Sleeping more than usual or having trouble sleeping

Movement

  • Stiffness in your dog’s knees and elbows
  • Lameness in one or more legs.  You notice that your dog is favoring that leg or legs.
  • Difficulty getting up when sitting or lying down

Temperament Changes

  • Your dog may growl or show some aggression when you pick him up or handle him.  Especially if this is new behavior.
  • You notice personality changes in your Bichon Frise.
  • Depression symptoms
  • Your dog whimpers or whines when you touch her

Diet and Weight

  • Not eating all his food or eating it more slowly. This could be because reaching down to eat his food is putting stress on your dog’s neck.
  • Weight gain because your Bichon is not very active anymore

Who Gets Arthritis?

It’s pretty hard to predict which dogs will or will not get arthritis.  Stiffness and aching are part of growing old for dogs, just as they are for us.

However, veterinarians tell us that a whopping 20% of all dogs will develop osteoarthritis, the kind that most people get as they age.

Osteoarthritis is also known as degenerative joint disease, because it occurs when a dog’s joints wear out and break down.

Once in a while, a dog will have rheumatoid arthritis, but it is not nearly as common as osteoarthritis.

However, no matter which type your dog develops, it will surely slow him down.  Dogs love to be active, but they can’t do as much when they have pain, aching and stiffness in their joints.

When to Suspect Arthritis

A Bichon Frise who has reached 75% of his estimated life span, is ripe for getting arthritis, if he is going to develop it.  For a Bichon, that means that you should watch your dog and his activity level when he reaches 11 or 11.5 years old.

But age is not the only factor that you should consider.  If your dog has had trauma or an injury to one or more of her legs or joints, that increases her changes of developing arthritis.

In addition there are several diseases that make your dog more prone to arthritis.  For example, dogs with a history of hip dysplasia or osteochondrosis are likely to develop arthritic symptoms.

Most often the symptoms that you will notice are stiffness or lameness.  Your dog may have trouble getting up from a lying down or sitting position.  Often this happens after she has been sleeping for a while.

Sometimes a dog will seem OK when you talk a walk, but she gets stiff and sore afterward.  Perhaps you notice this an hour or more later.

In addition, your little Bichon Frise may grunt, whimper or make noises that sound like she is in pain, when she tries to move or get around.

Could Your Dog Be Faking Pain?

Think about Pavlov’s theory and the way dogs learn.  They do something, get a reward and then do whatever it takes to repeat the experience.

How does that work with pain?  If your dog has ever been hurt, I’m sure she got a lot of attention and perhaps a few extra treats.  Sounds like something pretty nice to me.

And Gary Landsberg, a veterinarian in Thornhill, Ontario agrees.  He says that dogs don’t start out faking an injury, but they do learn that there are rewards for pain behavior.  In humans, this is known as secondary gains.

Without knowing it, you may have created a monster.  A dog enjoys extra privileges like sleeping with you or being pampered in any number of ways.  As your dog recovers, she may find that faking pain once in a while is fun and rewarding.

It’s important to take care of your dog when she is hurting, but don’t be fooled if she wants the extra attention to continue!

On the other hand, if you suspect that your Bichon Frise has developed arthritis, it’s important to take her to the vet for a checkup.

Your vet will have suggestions to keep your dog comfortable if she has arthritis.

When you know what you are dealing with, you can take measures to help your dog and keep him comfortable.

Bichon Frise puppy lying on his back

If you found this article helpful,

please take a few seconds to share it with a friend…

 

 

Related Articles

Your Aging Bichon Frise

Treatment for Dog Arthritis

Pain Relief for Dogs

Dog Arthritis Products

Subscribe to Bichon Buzz for Free Updates

Thinking about Signing Up?

If you sign up for my newsletter, in addition to giving you updates about my website, I may notify you occasionally about special deals and bargains that I  think you’ll love.

You can be confident that I will never share your information with a third party.

If your circumstances change, I understand.  You can always unsubscribe and your information will be deleted.

Need Help with Bichon Training?

Act Now to Get Help…

Claim your FREE mini-course on Bichon Frises now…

WHAT’S NEW?

Bichon Frise Puppies

How can you tell if your puppy has distemper?

Is Dog Neutering Right for Your Dog?

How to Handle Puppy Teething

Why is Your Puppy Vomiting?

Old Bichon Frise Dogs

Canine Skin Cancer in Bichon Frises

Does your Bichon have pancreatitis?

Cataracts in Bichon Frise Dogs

Canine Kidney Disease or Kidney Failure - How it Affects You and Your Dog

Could Your Dog Have Dementia?

All Bichon Frise Dogs

Dog Flu Symptoms - Should You Worry?

Your Bichon Dog Ate Chocolate - What Should You Do?

Does your Bichon have a canine urinary tract infection?

Rid Your Bichon Frise dog of Unsightly Dandruff

Is Your Bichon Suffering from Canine Constipation?







HeartGard Plus is undeniably the most popular medication specifically meant for prevention of heartworms in dogs. It is very important that you do all you can to ensure that your dog is free of heartworm, shop now!

There may be links in this post that are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I may receive an affiliate commission, which does not affect the price you pay for the product. Regardless, I only recommend products or services that I use personally or believe to be the best value for my readers.

  • About Me
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertising Disclosure
  • Disclaimer
  • Contact Us

© 2008–2021 All-About Bichon-Frises.com All Rights Reserved