- This publish accommodates affiliate hyperlinks. Read extra right here.
- Not an alternative choice to skilled veterinary assist.
Cosequin is in every single place as of late. It’s the complement of alternative for canine and cats with joint issues, and it seems like each mature pup and kitty you run into is taking it. But what’s it? How does it work? And does it actually get outcomes? Here’s what’s identified—and unknown—in regards to the complement, plus our personal pets’ tackle the well-known capsule.
What Is Cosequin?
No pet mum or dad likes to confess that their canine are getting older, and I’m no exception. Unfortunately, that reality is getting more durable for me to disclaim. My canine Miss Bennet and Logan are 12 and 10 years outdated now, respectively.
As seniors, my canine are as loud and goofy and sassy as they ever had been—age has introduced no knowledge and little calm to our house—and but they’re more and more discovering themselves on the mercy of their ageing our bodies. Some days, the discomfort of osteoarthritis and different age-related points visibly dampens that spunk.
Early final 12 months, my native veterinarian really helpful that we strive Cosequin, a joint complement that goals to maintain pets like mine transferring, restoring the standard of life that fades when mobility is restricted.
So I did some digging into the product and spoke with Dr. Rebecca Greenstein, a Veterinary Medical Advisor for Rover, to study extra.
Cosequin is a branded suite of dietary dietary supplements—additionally referred to as “nutraceuticals”—produced by Nutramax Laboratories, a producer of supplemental well being merchandise for each people and pets. Cosequin is meant to deal with arthritis and stiffness of the joints and ligaments in canine and cats.
As with people, a canine’s or cat’s musculoskeletal system provides their physique construction and motion. In this method, bones and muscle tissues are tied along with tendons and ligaments.
Miss Bennet and Logan mannequin musculoskeletal methods.
Joints are the factors within the physique the place two bones meet. Cartilage covers the ends of the bones at these junctures to cushion and shield them as they transfer towards one another.
But as our canine and cats age, this cartilage typically breaks down, making it harder to maneuver and inflicting painful friction between the bones on the joints. This degradation, which is known as osteoarthritis, can develop as a result of damage, an infection, and autoimmune issues in addition to age.
But arthritis isn’t simply an “outdated canine illness,” in accordance with Dr. Greenstein. She advised me that as many as 20% of canine one 12 months or older have osteoarthritis, and younger cats aren’t immune both.
The major substances in Cosequin are Glucosamine Hydrochloride and Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate. Some merchandise offered throughout the Cosequin model additionally include MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane) or different additions like Omega-3s.
Dr. Greenstein defined that, in a simplified sense, glucosamine helps construct wholesome cartilage within the joints, whereas chondroitin protects towards irritation and harm. MSM, she stated, does a little bit little bit of each.
Is Cosequin Safe?
Cosequin claims to be the number-one joint-health complement model really helpful by veterinarians and utilized by pet mother and father. According to Dr. Greenstein, Cosequin’s reputation is essentially as a result of Nutramax Laboratories’ good popularity for high quality and analysis.
The query of security round dietary supplements—together with Cosequin for canine and cats—is an advanced one. There’s medical security and anecdotal security, they usually’re not essentially the identical.
Because dietary supplements and nutraceuticals are usually not regulated in the identical methods as prescription drugs, the standard and effectiveness of those merchandise can differ broadly. For veterinarians, peer evaluations are what Dr. Greenstein referred to as the gold commonplace for understanding a nutraceutical’s security and efficacy. Practical, widespread expertise also can play a tentative position, and Cosequin has benefitted from each.
Oscar takes Cosequin so he can go on extra hikes.
“Based on our collective veterinary expertise with Cosequin, it appears to be very well-tolerated,” she stated. “The fee of significant adversarial reactions appears to be fairly low based mostly on what we find out about it.”
Alternatives to Cosequin for Dogs and Cats: Are All Joint Supplements Created Equal?
When it involves joint dietary supplements on the whole, Dr. Greenstein’s warning was clear: not all dietary supplements are the identical. Though Cosequin has earned a stable popularity, not all dietary supplements have been so broadly examined. This warning doesn’t come from loyalty to Cosequin or every other specific product, she clarifies, however from the overall lack of analysis and regulation associated to pet dietary supplements.
“It’s not only a query of glucosamine dietary supplements on the whole,” she stated. “It’s a bigger query of high quality management, and is what’s within the bottle correct? And whether it is, are all merchandise created equal? And it seems they’re not.”
Because of this, she says that the particular merchandise you select to your pets do matter. Pet mother and father shouldn’t seize the primary joint complement they see, even when the producer markets it for pets. While these merchandise is likely to be protected and efficient, there’s no method to make certain.
Just as vital, you don’t wish to give your pets joint dietary supplements made for people.
“Not all glucosamine dietary supplements are acceptable. They don’t all work the identical,” Dr. Greenstein advised me. “Human merchandise don’t essentially translate to canine and cats.”
Who Benefits From Cosequin?
Mature canine and cats experiencing joint stiffness are each prone to profit from Cosequin—although it’s vital to examine together with your vet first.
The information would possibly shock many cat mother and father, since canine are extra typically identified to undergo from joint points. Dr. Greenstein, nevertheless, suspects that osteoarthritis impacts extra cats than we all know.
Matilda, being affected by osteoarthritic points.
“We’re not pretty much as good at choosing out the indicators as a result of cats are extra stoic,” she advised me. She pointed to stiffness when getting up or problem leaping up as indicators that cats could also be experiencing some joint discomfort.
I requested Dr. Greenstein if youthful pets would profit from beginning Cosequin early, notably given the excessive prevalence of osteoarthritis. She advised me that it’s attainable; preventative dosing would possibly assist youthful canine in preserving their joint well being over time, however the analysis isn’t definitive sufficient to know for certain.
“We are nonetheless in an early stage of understanding who would profit and why and which merchandise are those that may work,” she advised me.
Most of the present analysis, she stated, was performed on canine with identified joint points like osteoarthritis. For now, suggestions of Cosequin for canine and cats are largely made when there’s a identified difficulty.
How Cosequin for Dogs Has Helped My Senior Pups
Miss Bennet, a scruffy mixture of Terrier and Schnauzer and who-knows-what-else, is twelve. Most days she barely appears to be slowing down, however she woke me up one morning final 12 months in apparent misery. A visit to the emergency vet and a set of x-rays revealed arthritis in her again leg.
Logan is a black Labrador Retriever. At ten, his ageing is much extra apparent. Over the final a number of years, white hairs have grown in round his eyes and snout, a function which may counsel a specific amount of knowledge in the event you didn’t know him. In actuality, he’s a goofball, however he has arthritis and again points in addition.
At 60 kilos, Logan will get a complete pill of Cosequin day by day, whereas Miss Bennet will get half. We put the drugs of their bowls with their breakfast, and it’s normally the very first thing they eat. (It’s a good suggestion to have your pet take Cosequin with meals, since some say it may be a little bit tough on an empty abdomen.)
Miss Bennet and Logan, trying dapper and cell, if we do say so ourselves.
Within weeks, we noticed a distinction; each canine had been transferring extra freely and extra typically—the truth is, we discovered ourselves having to observe Logan, as his enchancment confirmed most in his reckless enthusiasm for all times.
My canine aren’t the one ones who appear to have benefited from the product both; a number of weeks after my husband really helpful Cosequin to a colleague, his coworker reported that his canine had greeted him on the door after work for the primary time in a very long time.
Oscar the Rover take a look at pup takes Cosequin at his vet’s course and will get round remarkably speedily on his tiny outdated legs (and into every kind of mischief).
So does Matilda, a mature kitty who continues to check Rover merchandise with enthusiasm (or, effectively, what counts as enthusiasm for a cat). She was prescribed Cosequin by her vet to assist with joint points attributable to arthritis.
Cosequin isn’t, nevertheless, a treatment. While it appears to have made a giant distinction in Logan’s and Miss Bennet’s consolation and mobility, it hasn’t turned again the clock or made their joint issues vanish. In the final a number of months, we seen that Logan’s exercise and stability had been starting to regress once more; now we’re persevering with his every day routine of dietary supplements and dealing on different remedies as effectively, together with common journeys to a specialised canine health club.
But for us, the distinction has been outstanding, and we’ve really helpful the product to household, mates, and colleagues alike.
Logan and Miss Bennet play on the seashore.
How To Buy Cosequin
Cosequin is available in quite a lot of types, together with tablets and chews and distinctive formulation for canine, cats, and even horses. We’ve included a few of the commonest choices under, however pet mother and father could discover different merchandise higher suited to their pet’s wants.
As a complement, all Cosequin merchandise can be found and not using a prescription. However, pet mother and father ought to at all times talk about these choices with their veterinarian earlier than beginning any supplemental remedies with their canine or cat. If you’re shopping for on a third-party web site like Amazon, it’s additionally vital to double-check that the product’s vendor and producer is Nutramax—that method you’ll keep away from any counterfeit merchandise.
Nutramax Cosequin Maximum Strength Chewable Tablets for Dogs
Shop at Chewy Shop on Amazon
Nutramax Cosequin Standard Strength Chewable Tablets for Dogs
Shop at Chewy Shop on Amazon
Nutramax Cosequin Max Strength with MSM Plus Omega 3’s Soft Chews for Dogs
Shop at Chewy Shop on Amazon
Nutramax Cosequin Maximum Strength Capsules for Cats
Shop at Chewy Shop on Amazon
