Lurcher getting cramp

[mattydski 560]

My lurcher has started getting muscle cramp after working.

 

The dog is always warmed up and warmed down, and they dont last long....but is there something missing or could be added to her diet?

 

She is fed Raw mince and tripe for breakfast or Sardines/brown bread eggs or raw rabbit/venison dependent on what's been shot that week.

 

For evening meal she normally has propriety dog food such as chappie. She has plenty of bones etc.

 

You can feel the muscle cramps and she is obviously in a lot of short term pain, 20-30 secs......but any thoughts would be appreaciated.

 

If it were a human, I'd say hydration and salts were the problem...but I'm no sure about the dug....

 

Cheers

[marky b 309]

i had the same problem pal a mate of mine works at dog track and he puts 2 table spoons of cider vinegar on his grayhound's food everyday iv been doing this for about 2 weeks now and i aint had a problem give it a go pal i hope it works for ya

[kev2010 8]

  On 19/09/2010 at 14:17, mattydski said:

My lurcher has started getting muscle cramp after working.

 

The dog is always warmed up and warmed down, and they dont last long....but is there something missing or could be added to her diet?

 

She is fed Raw mince and tripe for breakfast or Sardines/brown bread eggs or raw rabbit/venison dependent on what's been shot that week.

 

For evening meal she normally has propriety dog food such as chappie. She has plenty of bones etc.

 

You can feel the muscle cramps and she is obviously in a lot of short term pain, 20-30 secs......but any thoughts would be appreaciated.

 

If it were a human, I'd say hydration and salts were the problem...but I'm no sure about the dug....

 

Cheers

Does sound like the dog is dehydrated.Mite be worth trying an electrolite drink.

Atb Kev.

[cornishtrapper 3]

i had this problem with my lurcher bitch ,venison and rabbits are very lean try adding more animal fat and veg oil to there diet works for my dogs

[sandymere 8,263]

I'd agree with Cornish trapper add a little more fat to the diet, cheapest way is a little lard or veg oil each day, about a table spoon or two. Also work on the fitness as cramping is a complex issue but often due to over exercising for there fitness stage. As dogs don't sweat like humans they don't lose the salt to anything like the same extent so electrolytes are more a crutch for the owner than needed by the dog. If you are worried about this then a top greyhound vet recommends bananas in the diet as a source of potassium. See link below but remenber hes an orthopeadic specialist and his ideas on lactic acid may be a little out of date..

http://www.greyhound-club.de/documents/Greyhound_Vet_On_A_Mission.pdf

[k94v 12]

  On 19/09/2010 at 14:17, mattydski said:

My lurcher has started getting muscle cramp after working.

 

The dog is always warmed up and warmed down, and they dont last long....but is there something missing or could be added to her diet?

 

She is fed Raw mince and tripe for breakfast or Sardines/brown bread eggs or raw rabbit/venison dependent on what's been shot that week.

 

For evening meal she normally has propriety dog food such as chappie. She has plenty of bones etc.

 

You can feel the muscle cramps and she is obviously in a lot of short term pain, 20-30 secs......but any thoughts would be appreaciated.

 

If it were a human, I'd say hydration and salts were the problem...but I'm no sure about the dug....

 

Cheers

add vit C or 1/2 a tin of tomatoes from italy :thumbs:

[Wild Whippies 11]

Owning a bully whippet makes you an expert on cramp!!

Like's been said fats help because they help the body retain salts which is why they are useful. Tomatoes help prevent cramp to a certain degree but if neither works then the use of electrolytes can be helpful.

Betacel is an electrolyte powder sprinkled onto feed which is high in ascorbic acid.

Re-charge is a drink supplement you add to water which I use routinely between races on the racers.

 

None of these worked with the bully whippet but we found relief with horses Tye-Gard which she has 0.5ml per day with her feed.

Some may suggest Bi-Carbonate of soda, the big warning I would give is that you can kill a dog if the doseage is wrong.

As well as it being painful it's important to put a stop to it because in severe situations muscle tissue death can occur.(rhabdomyolysis) Always ensure your dog is fit when working them hard and be on the look out for dark coloured urine in severe situations.

Hope this helps

[Wild Whippies 11]

  On 20/09/2010 at 13:43, sandymere said:

See link below but remenber hes an orthopeadic specialist and his ideas on lactic acid may be a little out of date..

http://www.greyhound-club.de/documents/Greyhound_Vet_On_A_Mission.pdf

 

He's certainly a person I ''rate'' and to my knowledge he's still a speaker at the world greyhound racing injury congress

[mattydski 560]

Some fair advice there. thanks all