Just like humans, as our dogs get older, the signs of age-related stiffness start to show. Often the signs and symptoms of hip and joint pain are subtle and barely noticeable. Your dog may sleep a little more, become less interested in playing with toys, slower on walks, unable to keep up with their younger playmates.

While any joint in your dog’s body can be affected by age-related stiffness and pain, a dog’s hip joints are a common area of discomfort for your dog. The hip joint is one of the largest joints in your dog’s body. This joint is a large round ball at the top of the femur, sitting within a cup-shaped space within the pelvis. As a quadruped, (moving on four legs), rather than a biped like humans, (moving on two legs), a dog uses their hindlegs to propel themselves forwards, the energy created by their hindlegs pushing off the ground creates movement within the hip joint as the ball glides in four planes of movement, (forwards backwards, left and right).

Can you imagine how many times in your dog’s life this large joint moves? Over time the smooth cartilage that covers the ball of the femur can become abraded, wearing thin. Your dog is so clever that his body will try and heal and recover from any sort of disrepair, and so the hip joint begins to try and restore itself, unfortunately, this process is never highly successful, and pain and inflammation in the hip joint are found.

What I have experienced working as a Veterinary Chiropractor, specialising in treating dogs with hip and joint pain, is that the sooner we can start to support your dog to cope with age-related stiffness, the less likely it is that joint pain will become a bigger problem. Within my mobile canine rehabilitation practice, based in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, I have supported 1000’s of dogs who have begun to slow down due to stiff joints, hip pain and soreness. My treatment plans for dogs are affordable, safe, and effective. Not only do I support your dog to live a long and pain-free life, I also help you, empowering you to make the right choices for your dog, so you can enjoy a happy, healthy life together.