Arthritis is a cruel and common disease in dogs. Recent estimates have suggested that in the region of 20% of all of the dogs in the U.S suffer from the condition. Fortunately vets and doctors have been treating the condition for some time there are a lot of effective treatments that are available from your vets prescriptions and over the counter to treat dog arthritis.

Arthritis in dogs is caused by the breakdown of cartilage on the ends of the bones in a dogs joints. This in many cases leaves bone rubbing on bone if all of the cartilage has worn away. This makes the joint a lot less lubricated an free moving, which is what causes the great pain and inflammation that comes with arthritis. So the majority of the supplements that are on the market are targeted at solving the problem of cartilage breakdown, and are aimed at aiding it's regeneration.

So in this article I will talk about the supplement's that have been clinically proven to slow down and reverse arthritis in dogs, to answer effectively the question of what you should a give dog with arthritis.

Chondroitin - Chondroitin has an important function within cartilage. It provides the stability within the cartilage, stopping it from being squashed and compressed. Its function is to act as a biological scaffolding for all of the other parts to be built around. So if there is a lack of chondroitin available, the cartilage becomes a lot easier to squash and breakdown, and it breaksdown a lot easier.

Glucosamine - Glucosamine is one of the major building blocks of cartilage within a joint. A very good proportion of the cartilage is made up from substances that are made up from glucosamine. So if there is a lack of glucosamine this can often lead to a thinning of the cartilage and a slowing down in the speed of regeneration of the cartilage when it is damaged.

Cetyl Myristoleate - This substance was discovered by a chemist testing mice for their immunity to arthritis at the National Institute of Health in the 1960's. It roles include acting as a natural pain reliever, regulating the immune system response and stopping inflammation of joints that is thought to be caused by an immune system response around the joint with arthritis.

So in the long term to help regenerate and reverse the cartilage breakdown a good supplement is advised with the substances discussed above included. It has been clinically proven many times that using a mixture of the substances above will be more effective at treating arthritis, as a pose to using just one substance such as glucosamine.This makes sense as all of the vital substances have different functions within the cartilage, and the joint's of your dog.

It is also wise to only use supplements that are currently been used by vets and have been clinically proven to work because arthritis supplement's are not regulated by the FDA, so it is as much about finding a good manufacturer, as it is about finding a good supplement.