Results with Dasuquin & Duralactin - Page 1

My 7 1/2 year old GSD is starting to get a little stiff in her hips after a lot of exercise (some changes confirmed on X-ray) and the vet suggested Dasuquin & Duralactin as well as having me up her fish oil consumption.  About 20 years ago I had a GSD that was on Cosequin.  I never thought it made a difference.  

Anyone have a dog(s) on these supplements?  Improvements or a waste of money?

Thanks for any input.

My friend has used Dasuguin on her sammy boy now 10 1/2 years old trying to help heal and maintain a torn ACL, however, is now showing some kidney issues after a while on this stuff sooooooo, I would just be cautious.  Why not try one the formulated glaucosamine/controintin(sorry sp);  Am having really good luck with Arthreplex by Thorne for my 8 1/2 year old sammy boy.  He is about 68 lbs and have recently increased him to 2 each meal, or  4 per day with food.  2 AM & 2 PM.  Just a thought, good luck.  Nan

PS:  Also had great luck with VetionX the arthritis formula, liquid stuff just squirt on food.  My almost 15 year old sammy girl did great on it.  Also all natural,  BOL  Nan

Would find it surprising that Dasuquin, which is just glucosamine/chondroitin and avocado/soybean-derivitives, was playing any role in compromise of kidney function, Nans...would expect that more of Deramaxx, which is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Think you might be mixing the two up.

I've had dogs which showed definite benefit from both glucosamine/chondroitin supplementation and from microlactin, which is the generic name for the active ingredient in the basic Duralactin product.  I initially was using the brand name products for both supplements--Cosequin and Duralactin--but later switched over to human-grade glucosamine/chondroitin combination supplements and human-grade microlactin in powdered form, and did not see any loss of efficacy in the animals I'd been using the veterinary-formulated versions, so I continued with the generic forms since there's a lower cost involved.

Microlactin/Duralactin has an added benefit of having some degree of an inhibiting effect on autoimmune response, which is why I've been using it over the past three years as an aid in suppressing flare-ups of my male GSD's discoid lupus condition. It has been effective, in combination with other parts of the protocol being used, in that he has not needed to be on prednisone to control the disorder in those three years. I ran out of the microlactin powder for a few months last year when the supplier I used stopped selling it in bulk, and during the time I was searching for a new source, the dog did have a mild breakthrough episode after about 2 months in, but it resolved quickly  as soon as I was able to add the microlactin back into the protocol.

It's worth giving one or both products a try, as there are few to no adverse effects involved with either [some owners have reported mild digestive upset from the products, usually limited to nausea or vomiting after ingestion of the product]. I would, however, only try one at a time at first, so you can better gauge whether and which product is having any beneficial effect for your dog.

I agree with hexe regarding the use of Microlactin/Duractin.  I found it to be effective for an old dog with arthritis, bad hips and a bad back.  It also seems to absorb into the system faster.  I would say that you will see results from giving Microlactin/Duractin in less than 1 week, but it will also leave their system quickly, so don't have periods where you have run out and need to order more.

As for Dasuquin and Cosequin DS, I saw no difference between the two, so don't bother paying the premium for Dasuquin.  Also beware about using "any old brand" of glucosamine/chondroitin, most are not good at all.  Nutramax makes good quality products, so if the cost of Cosequin DS is too high just give the human version Cosamin instead, using the same mg to weight ratio, as what is on the Cosequin DS label.

Another thing that my vet and I discovered is that a Type II Collegen and Hyaluronic Acid (HA) combo works better than the typical glucosamine/chondroitin combo.  One of the highest quality brands I found on the market with this combo is Olympia Labs.  Near the end of my dogs life we were giving her Adequan injections, Type II Collegen, Microlactin and MSM with far better effect than the usual glucosamine/chondroitin and NSAID regimen.  In fact she didn't need pain killers until the last month of her life (in restrospect, I would have done steroids earlier and skipped NSAID's all together, to keep muscle tone up).

The cheapest MSM, of high quality, in bulk powder, that I have found, is Grand Meadows Synergy HA.  You can buy it in 5+ pound buckets (its a horse product with a label that indicates a dosage for dogs).

But I would strongly recommend that you try Adequan intramuscular injections, especially if your dog is near 10 years or older.  In my experience it will be effective for up to 3 years, before its stops working and the dogs body gets too used to it.  I emphasize intramuscular injections because I found the effect of Adequan from subcutaneous injection doesn't appear to last as long, as it does, when it is given intramuscularly.

Also to further agree with hexe, I would try each of these supplements, one at a time, for 30-60 days each, to find out how effective each is individually.  Pending on the dogs height and weight during their prime, I'd keep any dog over 9 years old very lean for the remainder of their life, and also integrate a large amount of low impact exercises to keep muscle tone up.  Once they lose that muscle tone, the effects of arthritis, bad hips and bad back will be too much for them to deal with and you'll have to put them down.

thank you momo for sharing that info;  I am watching my now 8 1/2 year old for any deterioration and probably will have to put him on something other than just the cond/glaus. crap on the market.  Have had OK luck with the arthreplex by Thorne but probably is not going to hold him for the rest of his life.  Nan

momo, thanks for mentioning the Adequan--it's too often forgotten by practitioners, in part because it simply works and there isn't the concern about potential adverse effects that usually come with pharmaceuticals that work so well [and as you can see, I'm guilty of it as well when discussing supplementation for joint issues], is wonderfully effective for arthritic hips, elbows and stifles, though it doesn't have much effect on mitigating the effects of degenerative changes the the spine due to arthritis and/or spondylosis.  

Agree WRT needing to do the research on using generic glucosamine/chondroitin supplements, as the quality is most definitely NOT the same between various manufacturers. Thanks for the tip on the Olympia Labs for the Collagen/HA combo--am going to look into that.  Could even prove helpful for these old knees, in addition to the twice-yearly HA injections!

I've noticed a big improvement since putting my dog on Vertex supplement (on top of the Glucosamine/Chondrotin and MSM I was/am already giving her). It could be worth looking into. 

I had her on Adequan for awhile, but I wasn't seeing a whole lot of improvement (she would cry during the shot, whether it was me giving it or the vet), and would limp very badly for a few days afterwards so I took her off of it. Initially she did great on it, so I don't know if we got a bad batch or what, it was very odd. 

@Dawulf, I'll have to comment on your Adequan experience, with my counter experience. 

There are multiple ways to give the injection and every dog is different.  Some vets and techs are very good at giving intramuscular injections resulting in little pain and others are absolutely terrible at it.  I tried most of the typical injection areas and methods, so I can elaborate. 

My dog had spondylosis and hip dysplasia, but according to my vet, my dogs high pain tolerance and above average muscle tone, for her age, from low impact exercise, was holding everything together. 

The most successful injections were done intramuscularly on the inner thigh, rotating each leg, every 4 weeks (6 week initial loading period with 1 shot per week).  On the days when my vet was not in the office, his younger nephew (also a vet) would give the injection in what appeared to be the same area, BUT, would result in her being in pain for the first couple of nights  The intramuscular injections that put her in the largest amount of visible pain, were done in the lumbar area of the back.  The injections that had the shortest time of effectiveness were given subcutaneously in chest region and also in the thigh region.  I have surmised that the large MSM dosage I was giving, helped with the pain associated with intramuscular injections.

I would also make her go for a short walk after every injection and massage the area afterward.  On the days that I skipped the walk, right after, she would be stiff and sore for longer.

Note, there is the brand name Adequan and also the Generic.  My dogs did fine on the generic, but some dogs need the brand name stuff. 

If someone has any doubts or needs more detailed advice, I always tell them to ask an equine vet for initial guidence.  They use it more and have a far better understanding of the benefits and limitations, than a typical small animal vet.