What's the Difference Between Canine Arthritis and Degenerative Myelopathy?
So, what is the difference between canine arthritis and degenerative myelopathy? Well, they're very, very different conditions, with very, very different prognosis. They can actually start off looking very similar.
Many dogs, especially big dogs, they tend to get arthritis worse in their backend. That's when owners really notice it. And that's where degenerative myelopathy starts to show it's evil signs. They start to have weak back legs. So, those conditions can look very similar in the beginning, but they work on different areas.
Pain Level
Arthritis, as we know, is a disease of the joints, and it's very, very painful. Whereas degenerative myelopathy is actually a degeneration of the spinal cord. So it's a neurological disease and it's not actually painful. So they're very different conditions.
Prognosis
Arthritis can be managed very, very well for a very, very long time. Unfortunately, degenerative myelopathy has its own progression rates. And unfortunately, that might be quite short.
For additional information about canine arthritis, check out Dr. Capon's work at Canine Arthritis Management.
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