Older dog

[Ericb]

I've got a 9yr old GSP that will hunt all day if you let her, but is laid up for days afterwards. Usually give her a rymidal as soon as we get back. Curious if any one has any routines for older dogs to get over the sorness? She shows no signs of slowing down while we're out, but almost makes me feel bad afterwards.

 

[Allen]

Rimadyl and Rest have always been my dog's routine.

Tell her Reckless says "Hi".

 

[snow2]

I've got a 9yr old GSP that will hunt all day if you let her, but is laid up for days afterwards. Usually give her a rymidal as soon as we get back. Curious if any one has any routines for older dogs to get over the sorness? She shows no signs of slowing down while we're out, but almost makes me feel bad afterwards.

Tough watching our pups age,baby asprin helps after a long day in the field

 

[riverview]

there is no Miracal cure for a 9 year old dog besides a puppy to take over the work. I have a 9 year old male lab that will hunt hard all day but can hardly walk for the next week. he gets a a 20 minute hunt every now and then.

 

[Kurtr]

Off season conditioning is huge for the older dogs. Adequan is an injection that has shown big improvement in older dogs. A supplement like hunt dog hunt from zoom is a good daily one. The gun dog doc dr Joe spo has a lot of good info on how to keep you older dogs hunting.

 

[KDM]

I found that a good rubdown (deep muscle doggy massage) while looking for burrs did wonders for my dog after a hunt to get him ready for the next one. It was also a great way to find those little cuts and wire wounds his hair was so good at hiding. I also did small quick ones after each walk to make sure he was ok for the next walk. I found lots of little things during those times that could have become big things if not dealt with. Besides, it gave us some real great bonding time together. Damn I miss that dog.

 

[snow2]

Have youse guyz had pups get so wired up they won't eat supper?,had one boi that was skin and bones after several days bird hunting,he wouldn't eat,milk bones a little extra raw meat in his food bowl helped but it took several days to rebuild his bulk.
My first retriever, nothing special in his blood lines just a good farm dog pupper,hunted him until 13yrs,easy stuff towards the end,little strips of cover etc,road hunt retrieves was his favorite then a new pup,old boi would tag along on road trips but gave me the stink eye and guilted me when i wouldn't hunt him regardless his old bones would lock up at night.

Last few pups i had barely made it past 10yrs old,cancer,lyme.

Pretty sure im on my last pup as my life journey is coming to a close,i can make it out in the field but making it back is questionable most days.

 

[49994]

I believe the biggest thing is keep them active year round. I ran my GSP 3-4days/week hard. 3-4miles out in the country or along side my bike and on the slow days walks/runs with me of 30-40minutes or fetch with a ball for 20min. He hunted last fall/winter at 12 and showed minimal soreness after a days hunt. Enjoy the time you have left....I miss my dog a ton, you never know when their last season will be.

 

[SDMF]

Keep the dog slim/trim and well exercised year 'round.

In fact, I need someone to portion my daily meals, make me work out, and put a shock collar on me for those reasons too.

 

[Lycanthrope]

If you know you are hurting your dog, isnt abusive to put them in that situation? Its not like dogs have good judgement to decide for themselves..

 

[Kurtr]

If you know you are hurting your dog, isnt abusive to put them in that situation? Its not like dogs have good judgement to decide for themselves..

Could it be more abusive to make them lay around and waste away the rest of their life vs going and doing what they live for. Being sore and stiff isn’t abuse.

 

[cooter00]

I use glucosamine on my older dogs it helps with the stiffness I also use Bayer low dose aspirin the night after the hunt keep them hydrated and they will be fine. Old dogs still love to hunt just need to keep walks shorter and rests between longer but it's worth every minute.

 

[NDSportsman]

I think you can tell when it's time to maybe stop hunting them. A little soreness after hunting is pretty normal for an 8-10 year old dog. Just need to limit the hunting as they age and give them rest to recuperate. When they start taking more then a day or 2 to recover or seem lamer then just muscle soreness it's probably time to retire from hunting. Just my 2 cents

 

[Lycanthrope]

Could it be more abusive to make them lay around and waste away the rest of their life vs going and doing what they live for. Being sore and stiff isn’t abuse.

I think there is a middle ground one could find, where they could hunt for an hour or two, but quit before they end up suffering for days afterward? Seems like a reasonable solution.

 

[Kurtr]

I think there is a middle ground one could find, where they could hunt for an hour or two, but quit before they end up suffering for days afterward? Seems like a reasonable solution.

Ya common sense has to be used but there is no reason not to take the old guys out.

 

[ndrivrrat]

When a guy was younger you would drink til midnight, get up a 330 am, set 1500 snow goose decoys, hunt pheasants all afternoon and walk 10 miles in an afternoon and do the same the next day. Now that a guy is older you are in bed by 10 after taking a couple aspirins and some icy hot on the sore joints, make a choice on either setting two dozen canadian decoys at 730 or walking a couple draws for pheasants but not both, and only one day of the weekend. Age catches up to a guy whether we want it to or not. No different with an older dog. Sometimes you dont use common sense and try to do everything in one weekend and pay for it for a couple days.

 

[Maddog]

When a guy was younger you would drink til midnight, get up a 330 am, set 1500 snow goose decoys, hunt pheasants all afternoon and walk 10 miles in an afternoon and do the same the next day. Now that a guy is older you are in bed by 10 after taking a couple aspirins and some icy hot on the sore joints, make a choice on either setting two dozen canadian decoys at 730 or walking a couple draws for pheasants but not both, and only one day of the weekend. Age catches up to a guy whether we want it to or not. No different with an older dog. Sometimes you dont use common sense and try to do everything in one weekend and pay for it for a couple WEEKS.

fixed it for ya
or maybe you are a bit younger : )

and most times, weeks becomes months LOL