In a clinical study conducted by University of Pennsylvania, owners reported that the Big Barker bed reduced joint pain & stiffness, improved joint function & gait, and led to improved nighttime restfulness in large dogs with arthritis.
Dr. Dycus is a board-certified surgeon through the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, specializing in orthopedics, sports medicine and rehabilitation. He recently sat down with Dr. Sarah Wooten to discuss his thoughts on the clinical study data.
The full 28 minute interview is in the video above. See the attached infographic for an overview on the study. Interview highlights below.
| If you don't yet have a Big Barker bed, is now the time to make the switch? Click here to learn more. |
Interview Highlights
[2:53]
Dr. Wooten:
"So let's talk about the Big Barker study. So in reading through it, what were the things that stood out to you from the study or the most important results to you from this study?"
Dr. Dycus:
"I think first off I would congratulate the author or authors for looking at this specifically. First off osteoarthritis research is extremely difficult because of the ups and downs and a lot of the biases that can be introduced. Then the other thing that I think is exceedingly important is when it comes to management of OA in dogs, very little to if any attention is put into activity modifications, lifestyle modifications, in home modifications as they are in people. It's one of the things that we just don't talk about. So having studies that come out that are starting to look at how do we make at home living modifications and ultimately hopefully improve the quality of life and discomfort in patients that suffer from arthritis, I think is an excellent aspect of things."
"Looking through the initial findings of this study, I think it's good that they have strived to not just rely on strictly subjective information. Utilization of an activity monitor I think is helpful. It's one of those things where we can gather data when a patient's not directly in the hospital, they're in their home environment. But then also using owner questionnaires that have been validated. Utilizing both the Canine Orthopedic Index and the CBPI, or the Canine Brief Pain Inventory Index, is wise decisions in terms of trying to make sure our data isn't completely subjective and the findings do have some weight in terms of looking further into things."
[11:51]
Dr. Wooten:
"When you are counseling pet parents who have a dog that does have clinical evidence of osteoarthritis, but is not in a pain flare up, and you're looking for things to do to modify the home environment as far as a modification, would you include a recommendation of like a Big Barker bed as part of that conversation?"
Dr. Dycus:
"Yeah, so I think as part of that conversation having a good quality or orthopedic bed that's going to allow them to sleep and not create undue pressure sources. The problem with a lot of orthopedic dog beds is over time they start to narrow down. And so before long, it's not much more than just a little piece of foam on top of a hardwood floor and so there's a lot of pressure points on them when they're doing that versus having something that is going to maintain its thickness. I've had a Big Barker bed for probably three or four years now maybe, and it's still just as tall as it was, and I've had three different dogs go through laying on it. Something that holds its weight and isn't going to collapse down is vitally important."
| If you don't yet have a Big Barker bed, is now the time to make the switch? Click here to learn more. |
[19:51]
Dr. Wooten:
"I do know that Big Barker, the aim with all of this is they want to be a standard part of the multimodal approach to management of canine osteoarthritis. That is the goal with not only the studies, but also the product. It seems like it's headed that way, correct?"
Dr. Dycus:
"Yes, and I think that's an excellent strategy because we were inundated with joint supplements, we're inundated with anti-inflammatories, we're inundated with joint injections, we're inundated with physical therapy and weight control and weight loss and diets. There's nothing on making lifestyle changes and entering into the area of osteoarthritis is a big avenue to go down, but then they've created a smaller little avenue for themselves because there's nothing else there."
"So I think that's an excellent idea to try to broach it where we're not just a dog bed, but we want to be part of the multimodal management of osteoarthritis. Now you've gone from, okay, it's just a dog bed to now we have something else in our arsenal that we can recommend to owners with everything else that we already do. So yeah, kudos there because I think that's a great idea."
| If you don't yet have a Big Barker bed, is now the time to make the switch? Click here to learn more. |
