Can I Give My Dog Aspirin to Help with His Arthritis?

Your dog can get arthritis just as you can, but your dog likely gets it for a different reason. Large, older dogs are the most prone to arthritis because this ailment comes from injury to a joint. A large dog puts more weight on the joints, so the pain from arthritis is likely to be greater with a large dog than it would be with a small one. No dog owners want to see their pets in pain, so the answer is to manage the condition. Weight management is one way to help alleviate the pain. Drug therapy is another, but any drug therapy needs to be OK'd by your vet.

Aspirin a Go-to Drug

People have been giving aspirin to dogs for at least a century. Some supermarkets even sold aspirin to dogs marketed as "doggie aspirin." It's no surprise then that many dog owners have been lulled into thinking that giving their pup aspirin to help with arthritis is proper treatment. But Steven C. Budsberg, DVM, of the University of Georgia, discussed in 2010 that aspirin might not be safe for dogs.

Aspirin Once Recommended for Short-Term Use

In 1998, Dr. Theresa A. Fuess said that if a dog experiences joint inflammation, a short-term treatment could consist of buffered aspirin. Even back then, however, the recommendation was that once the inflammation went down, pet owners should use other treatment methods such as exercise and weight control.

New Info Causes Vets to Say "No"

Dr. Marty Becker, veterinary contributor on "Good Morning America," says people should stop giving aspirin to dogs. In 2011, Becker read peer-reviewed studies that linked gastric ulcers to dogs who took aspirin. Although aspirin is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, better NSAID options are available for dogs that don't cause the stomach trouble. Your vet can let you know if your dog is a candidate for any of them.

Other Options

Your vet can discuss with you alternative products to aspirin called nutraceuticals, a word that combines the words "nutrition" and "pharmaceutical." Nutraceuticals can be polysulfated glycosaminoglycans, or GAGS; glucosamine and chondroitin products; and essential fatty acids. Your vet can tell you how much of these products you can give your dog, and then you can buy the products at a retail store. Some treats and foods contain nutraceuticals.