# heat and/or ice for sore elbow?



## emirae1091 (Sep 16, 2013)

The vet confirmed my suspicion yesterday that it is my dog's elbow that has been bothering her. I'll email the vet as well of course, but she is out of town the rest of the week. 

Would it do any harm to apply a gentle heating pad or wrapped ice pack to help with stiffness? The vet gave me Arthroplex but said it will take about a week for full effect. I was hoping to make her more comfortable in the mean time if possible!


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

It won't do any harm. It should work the same way that is does for humans. When Charlie seems especially stiff I do hot/cold presses on her joints as well.


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## emirae1091 (Sep 16, 2013)

That's what I was assuming.


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

emirae1091 said:


> The vet confirmed my suspicion yesterday that it is my dog's elbow that has been bothering her. I'll email the vet as well of course, but she is out of town the rest of the week.
> 
> Would it do any harm to apply a gentle heating pad or wrapped ice pack to help with stiffness? The vet gave me Arthroplex but said it will take about a week for full effect. I was hoping to make her more comfortable in the mean time if possible!


It really depends on the source of the stiffness. If it's inflammation (as in swelling like a sprain) then usually icing is recommended. Otherwise, it's heat.

Sorry if that's kind of vague... perhaps call the vet's office to find out what is in the dog's chart?


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## emirae1091 (Sep 16, 2013)

Haha well they didn't really know. That's half of the issue! If she doesn't respond to the Arthroplex in 2 weeks, we'll have to reevaluate and see if we try acupuncture or look into it being a soft tissue injury.


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## emirae1091 (Sep 16, 2013)

The Arthroplex is really helping! She still limps, but she is a lot happier and more active.

I've ordered her a Back on Track blanket as well. My horse friends have the blankets for their horses, and a couple girls that do agility have them for their dogs. They have good reviews, so I hope they work well because they're a little expensive.


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## Kassandra (Jun 6, 2012)

Acupuncture can work wonders for this type of thing. I would definitely recommend it if you can afford it (very pricey in some places I've noticed).
Joint supplements usually take around a month to fully kick in so if you are noticing results in 2 weeks that is great! I was thinking about doing Arthroplex for Charlie but it would have been way too expensive for her so I went with synovial-flex. Really hoping that you find something that works


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## emirae1091 (Sep 16, 2013)

Acupuncture was the next step if the Arthroplex didn't help. I know they have anti-inflammatories in them, so I think that's why she feels better even though she's still limping.

There is a vet clinic right near me that does acupuncture, but I don't know the pricing. Might be worth looking into if this doesn't help enough.


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