I was recommended Librela for my 6yo mildly arthritic dog
Hello! I'd like some peoples' opinion in seeing if I'm being silly or not!
The vet I've been going to has recently come under new ownership and our beloved previous vet has retired. They were very good to us, the clinic offered many treatments and products at-cost, and the vet would be honest in his recommendations when something wasn't always necessary in your care plan (didn't push extra costs). We decided to stick with the clinic through the ownership change and rotations of new vets.
Recently, my 6 YO GSD mix has been having some stiffness in her backlegs after long periods of rest. When mentioning this at the vet during her annual this week, and after the vet gave her a quick physical exam, they determined that she was in the preliminary stages of developing arthritis in her hips. All the vet did was then tell me librela was an option and told me to let them know if I wanted to give my dog that shot at another appointment (didn't explain anything about the injection otherwise).
The Pamphlet says this shot is for dogs that can walk like 5 mins on a leash max. My dog runs and plays very well still and her usual walks go about 30-40 mins per walk (can walk multiple times a fay) without discomfort. This vet asked no questions, recommended me a severe medication and then also told me they couldn't stay much longer because they were running out of time even though they were 20 minutes late to see us (the time thing isn't that deep - maybe it was an emergency idk).
It was my first time meeting them so I didn't want to mention it, but I do have an actual background in biochemical research and am capable of understanding the technical lingo and reading the actual research. I don't think we should jump to Librela and I'm considering asking for adequan and temporarily trying an oral pain medication like Galliprant to see if it alleviates my dogs symptoms of stiffness. I'm not a big fan of the side effects and my dogs condition has not yet reached that level. I'm not sceptical of the function of the medication, I am just sceptical of the application here (but I'm not a vet so what do I know). The vet didn't even ask me to make another appointment for any other tests to confirm my dog's condition or to discuss other therapeutics; Librela is all they were pushing. They didn't ask about her level of activity!!! I was just given the pamphlet when I paid and then left to go do my own research 😞
I just wanted to post this here and see what others think. I never thought I'd be the type to question medical advice, but as someone who can understand the advice, this kind of doesn't sound like the first choice to be making?
P.S. She has been taking glucosamine and chondroitin supplements (and Omegas less occasionally) as preventative care for over a year or so. I love her very much, I just want to make sure I'm not being crazy. If you guys think I'm being silly and should try Librela, I'll consider it again.