I work over at a dog daycare part time. Dogs of all shapes, sizes, and ages are brought in as their owners go to work or go on vacation and their dogs get to play together all day and sleep all night. It’s a very rewarding job, but sometimes my job can be a little heartbreaking. Even though the majority of the dogs that come in are between 5 months and five years old and have a lot of energy, we do receive a good amount of mature older dogs and sometimes these mature dogs can have health problems while their owners are away on vacation.

For example, over the holidays there was a large Wolfhound mix named Wilkie staying with us. Wilkie was just the sweetest dog you can imagine. He was slow moving, but very loving. One morning when I came into work to begin letting the dogs out of their “cabins” as we call them, Wilkie couldn’t stand up. It was obvious he wanted to, but his back legs had just given out. We called the owners, who were in Spain at the time, and they said to take Wilkie to the vet. I drove Wilkie to the vet myself and the vet informed me that Wilkie was suffering from hip dysplasia, a common problem in large older dogs.

The vet gave Wilkie some pain medication and some supplements and informed me that one of the primary reasons the dog was suffering from this, even in old age, is because of obesity, too much protein and calcium in the diet and either a lack of exercise or too much vigorous exercise (in this case, most probably the former).  Not only was Wilkie’s hip dysplasia avoidable, it could have been treated much earlier because the signs were obvious from the beginning.

Too often we as dog owners disregard our pet’s stiff joints, flaky skin, or lethargy as nothing more than old age and, as our dog becomes older we pay less attention. However, we must continue to give just as much attention to our dog’s behavior as we did when it was younger and more active.

Just as with humans, mature dog health problems begin in the following areas:

- The skin and coat change, becoming dryer and more flaky, wounds heal slower, and small malignant tumors begin appearing.
- Hearing loss and a steady loss of sight become apparent
- Sensitivities to weather become more common. Cold weather tends to make the dog’s joints stiffer, for example.
- The dog begins limping and favoring its hind legs

The best way to take care of your mature dog’s health problems is to pay attention and regulate diet and exercise. For example, because your dog’s joints are becoming stiffer and more sensitive, you should bring your pet in when it’s cold and make sure to take your dog on frequent, non-vigorous walks in order to loosen your pet’s joints.

However, the BEST thing you can ever do for your aging dog is provide it with a good diet. Using generic dog foods is a no-no and feeding it too many table scraps is also a detrimental practice. Make sure to feed your dog the right kind of formula for it’s age from a trusted dog food brand. Make sure your dog has plenty of water and not too much protein.

One of the supplements I’ve found to be most effective when it comes to treating and preventing mature dog health problems is Proud Dog Health Complete Wellness. This supplement is easy to administer. You just sprinkle the supplement onto your dog’s food once a day according to its weight and size.

Proud Dog Health Complete Wellness is great for many mature dog health problems. For example, this all-in-one dog supplement promotes extra support for joint health because it contains glucosamine. It also boosts the immune system (which is incredibly important for older mature dogs), enhances skin and coat (so your mature dog won’t have as much flakiness and dryness of skin), boosts your dog’s digestive system, and provides essential fatty acids and 24 other essential vitamins and minerals.

Mature dogs that are treated in this way will live a very long happy life like Penny, the 23-year-old border collie mix that often shows up at our daycare. It’s incredibly uncommon for dogs to live past 15 years, yet Penny has lived much longer and is still alive and well as I write this. It’s because her owners took special care all throughout her life to make sure she eats right, exercises right and receives plenty of love.