5 Ways to Help Our Senior Dogs

By Dr. Albert Ahn, DVM

Our pets are living longer than they ever have before. Today, 50% of the approximately 80 million dogs in this country are over the age of 7, which amounts to over 40 million senior or geriatric dogs living in the United States.
Just like humans, our dogs overall health can decline as they age, if their pet parents do not stay on top of their general health and needs. For example, dogs can experience a reduction in muscle mass as they age, which promotes increased inactivity and additional health problems such as weight gain, diabetes and heart issues. Most often, muscle atrophy in dogs is apparent in large muscular areas, such as their hind legs. This can affect their mobility and quality of life.
While age-related muscle loss is common for aging pets, there are things pet owners can do to slow down the effects of aging.

Keep Senior Dogs Active
If your dog is suffering from muscle atrophy due to aging, you can help them by prioritizing exercise daily. Even older pets can still benefit from a daily walk. Just pay attention to your dog’s signals to ensure you don’t overdo it. Keeping your dog at a healthy weight as they age is one of the best things you can do.
Nutrition is Key
Additionally, the right age-appropriate diet is also important to help your dog maintain healthy muscles and joints. Good quality protein, for example, is vital to provide the right amino acids that are key for muscular structure and replenishment.
Protein is another of the most important components to include in your dog’s diet. It is made of a collection of amino acids, which are considered the building blocks for various tissues in the body. It is a vital dietary component for dogs to stay healthy and happy. Different proteins supply different levels of various amino acids. Some of these amino acids are essential, which means they cannot be synthesized by the dog. As a result, they must be supplied in the diet.
Essential amino acids include histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and valine. The egg boasts all nine.
Like humans, senior dogs cannot store extra amino acids to use for later. If an amino acid is insufficient, it may lead to muscular degradation. Lysine, for example plays a beneficial role in balancing many conditions facing aging animals.
An adequate protein level is crucial to sustain daily life functions and can help to save lean muscle mass and repair tissues. Plus, proteins are also a source of energy and a major component for healthy hair, skin, nails, ligaments, tendons and cartilage. It’s clear that a dietary source of high-quality protein is essential for your dog.
Consider All-Natural Supplements
Similar to humans, support from nutritional supplements can be helpful to aging dogs as well. A multi-vitamin can help dogs who are not eating a proper diet. One cutting-edge nutritional supplement that you can add to your dog’s diet to help boost muscle health is veterinarian-recommended Myos Canine Muscle Formula. The key component of the formula is Fortetropin®, an all-natural ingredient made from fertilized hen egg yolks. The supplement has been clinically proven to increase muscle mass and size. Numerous positive testimonials as well as scientific research show that the formula helps minimize muscle atrophy.

Keep Stress at Bay
Humans aren’t the only ones who can be affected by stress. Our aging canine friends can also experience mental health conditions like anxiety, depression and grief. With older dogs, stress tends to take a tougher toll. Stress may be from loud noises, new environments, being left alone or feeling their owner’s anxiety. A stressed out dog is more like us than you may think.
A 2013 study on the canine brain conducted by Emory University scientists concluded that a dog’s brain is surprisingly similar to a human’s brain when it comes to emotions. But unlike humans, our pets can’t tell us what’s wrong or how they’re feeling.
What are the signs of stress in senior dogs?
It can be tough to spot signs of stress in a senior dog. Just because they exhibit one symptom doesn’t mean they are experiencing a mental health condition. Signs of stress may include trembling, attempts to hide, compulsive behavior (ie. licking, scratching, etc.), loss of appetite and decreased social interaction.
Give lots of love
Even though they may not show it as much as younger pups, our aging pets still need plenty of attention and love from us as they get older. They need to know that we understand what pains and emotions they are going through, especially as they become older.
Dr. Ahn works as a respected veterinary advisor in the animal health industry. He is a spokesperson for MYOS RENS, the creators of Fortetropin®. It is a proprietary bioactive composition made from fertilized egg yolks and has been clinically proven to help build lean muscle. See clinical studies here.
1 Response
[…] Senior dogs […]