CAM Online Shop Blog

The truth about prescription medication and pain control I often hear people say they want to stay clear of medications and only use natural methods for arthritis management. I suspect this is based on a number of factors, but mainly a belief that natural means safe, and that prescription products may be bad. This idea […]

Heading into a new year, happy 2022! Every new year we often decide to take up a new year resolution – get fitter, happier, healthier or do something that improves our wellbeing. This year why not look to improve your dog’s welfare at the same time and make a resolution to learn more about osteoarthrosis […]

Planning ahead to help our pets over Christmas For many, Christmas is a time of joy and festivities and we often think that our dogs (and other pets) will feel equally as joyful. However, this isn’t always the case. Christmas can be a very worrying time for our pets and adding in a medical condition […]

Chronic pain and Noise Phobia Many dogs suffer firework or noise anxiety, but as they get older and especially our dogs suffering from arthritis, firework season can bring some challenges to our management regime! It may not be something you think about, but the Arthritis Foundation (for humans) suggests that the emotional component to pain […]

Hop, Skip and Jump or Limp, Stumble and Trip After a diagnosis of Osteoarthritis exercise can be a bit of a daunting prospect. Wondering if you are causing more damage, if they are in pain or discomfort, if they are enjoying their walk? Every case is individual, and every single dog will have different triggers […]

Let’s talk about safe walks! When we go on walks with arthritic dogs there can be numerous hazards. Hazards which we should endeavour to minimise to the best of our ability to avoid the following: Repetitive strain injury Further injury, inflammation and pain The possibility of further quick degeneration of the joint disease Trips & […]

Pain Control When looking at arthritis management we know that using a multi-modal approach will really optimise your pain management plan, but central to all this is pain control. What is likely to happen with your arthritis diagnosis? We may have identified an issue at home; our dog has been limping, stiff, quiet or struggling […]

Throughout lockdown I have witnessed lots of animals gain weight. I suspect that the reasons are complex, however, contributing factors could include people working from home more, and kids not in school, meaning that many pets have been receiving extra treats that they otherwise wouldn’t have received, and that begging behaviour is likely to influence […]

Exercise is an incredibly important part of a dog’s daily life and even more so for arthritic dogs. We should be encouraging regular periods of mobilisation regularly throughout the day, in a safe and controlled way. But exercising an arthritic dog can be a bit daunting! At CAM we recognise this and are here to […]

There’s a silent killer in the house…. and it can be anywhere… what is it? Slippery floors! OK, slightly dramatic. But with osteoarthritis in dogs being a huge factor in premature euthanasia, there is some truth behind the statement. In my last blog I mentioned that home adaptations are integral to a successful multimodal approach […]

Adapting your home environment Most dogs in the UK live in their owner’s home, and some may spend up to 90% of their life in that environment! I bet lockdown has opened your eyes to frustration and behavioural issues in bored dogs! When your dog has been diagnosed with arthritic changes, you may be aware […]

Support & Resources I thought I would bring to your attention some resources available to you with regards the emotional topic of end of life, euthanasia and losing your beloved pet. Someone who has written for CAM is the amazing Carrie. Carrie has over 16 years experience as a Pet Bereavement Counsellor and also works […]

Supplements breakdown! We have so many questions about supplements that I thought we would try to compile a few links to extremely useful stuff! Read, learn, educate. I know I have written about supplements before. But as we received so many questions about them, and we have so many resources available, I thought it would […]

On the 1st day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… Loads of things that are totally FREEEEEEEE! This is the end of our 12 days of Christmas Countdown, highlighting to you a range of products that are in our CAM Online shop. We are not sales people at heart; we literally have a […]

On the 2nd day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Some therapy for my dog to enjoy! Visit our Therapeutic section of the shop for ideas.   Canine Rehab Equipment Balance Pad With the added bonus of being the only Balance Pad at 8cm thick on the market, our 40cm x 30cm x […]

On the 3rd day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Some non slip tape for my doggy! Check out our Pet Safety & Healthcare section of the shop for Anti-Slip Tapes. The home adaptations, It’s My Home Too Tool shows us that slippy floors can be a disaster for our arthritic dogs.   […]

On the 4th Day of Christmas my true love gave to me… An item from the Help’Em Up range.     Here are two YouTube videos that explain how they work and the different applications that you can use, depending on how much support you dog needs. Help ‘Em Up Harness Overview Video Help ‘Em […]

On the 5th Day of Christmas, my true love gave to me… Some training tools for my doggy! Training can be a great way to engage and bond with your arthritic dog. This may also help you replace unsuitable games like ball throwing that can cause repetitive injury and help you bond in a safer […]

On the 6th Day of Christmas my true love gave to me… A bed that is comfyyyyyy! Beds and arthritis are something people may not consider, but is actually quite a hazard to an arthritic patient if we get it wrong. Of course, all animals are different, but in general we don’t want the bed […]

On the 7th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me.. Some educational literature for reading!     CAM likes to educate and use Evidence-based Medicine for management of Arthritis. So we developed these amazing booklets that guide you through a variety of canine arthritis management to help you overcome a range of issues. […]

On the 8th Day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Some CAM Clothing and a Beanieeeeeee! The best way to spread the word so we can continue our amazing work for arthritic dogs is to wear us load and proud. Check out our merchandise section or click on the products below for a […]

On the 9th day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Calming aids for the Christmas period! Who knows what Christmas will bring this year (2020)? What we do know is that there is likely to be some disruption to our dog’s routine. This can be a very difficult time for our arthritic dogs. […]

On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me… SAFETY DURING WALKIES! Let’s talk about safe walks! When we go on walks with arthritic dogs there can be numerous hazards. Hazards which we should endeavour to minimise to the best of our ability to avoid repetitive strain, further injury and the possibility […]

On the 11th day of Christmas my true love gave to me… Some AMAZING enrichment for my dog! LET’S TALK – CANINE MEALTIME ENRICHMENT I am on a mission! No more bowls needed at meal times. Many of our dogs love food, right? And I’m sure many of you own dogs who barely chew? Meaning […]

Over the course of the next 12 days we will be posting a blog per day, highlighting some of our favourite CAM Online Shop products with you that we think might make perfect gifts, or make their way on to your own Santa’s list. Along with the product suggestions, Robyn, one of our lovely CAM […]

Today’s Blog following our YouTube channel is on Rebuild, Rebuild is not just about rebuilding physically but also emotionally. Rebuild is about giving you, the owner, alternatives to what you used to do as bonding but that you can longer do due to an arthritis diagnosis. How can we help you the owner and your […]

Hannah and Gwen have been discussing ‘Complementary Therapies’: Complementary therapies part two; the resources! This blog is less about my writing and more about raising awareness of our different platforms where you will find resources and information. As well as the fantastic YouTube channel, you will find that CAM also has a huge amount of […]

Hannah and Gwen are back discussing ‘Complementary Therapies’   Some people call this integrative therapy; this suggests that this is really beneficial to multimodal management of osteoarthritis in our dogs. If you would like to read more about this, please see our booklet on therapies here: https://www.camonlineshop.com/all-those-other-therapies-what-when-why-booklet/ Check out the CAM website for further information […]

I have written about supplements before, it is such a hard topic because there is so much information out there, some good, some very bad. I can imagine how hard it is to work your way through the reams of information out there and to know who to trust? Check out my CAM Conversation on […]

Check out our AMAZING YouTube channel: This week I am following on from Hannah and Gwen who are looking into Weight Control! Obviously this is something that I have talked about before, but as promised I feel that it SO important that I am covering it again, this time with the help of Gwen and […]

Check out our fantastic YouTube channel; Preventing further injury is a really important topic, because by creating a safer environment and allowing less slips and falls we can hopefully prevent trauma and hopefully aid in slowing the deterioration of the arthritis in our pets. The home environment The home is where a lot of our […]

The importance of pain control: As suggested on our pyramid Pain Control is central, essential and in the middle of all other ideas, therapies and management options. Removing or alleviating the pain allows us to undertake other management options safely, efficiently and ideally pain free, or with minimal discomfort. As discussed in our AMAZING YouTube […]

  Another fantastic, informative YouTube episode Let’s break it down… Veterinary Surgeons are the only people legally allowed to diagnose and prescribe certain drugs. At some point in this disease process we need a diagnosis (as discussed in my last blog) and to have a prescription of some kind of medication! This ultimately means that […]

Our next step after identification of pain is correct diagnosis. Our super-duper CAM Youtube channel covers this fantastically here: Why is diagnosis so important to us? Well Osteoarthritis is a long term disease; it will affect you financially and emotionally! As we know here at CAM, animals are an absolute pleasure to own and by […]

Hey, Episode 3 from the CAM YouTube channel! I love this one… what to do when you go to the vet! Well fingers crossed you have seen my last blogs about the importance of spotting the signs of pain early #ActAgainstArthritis (https://www.camonlineshop.com/act-against-arthritis/). You are now an avid CAM follower and you have spotted signs of […]

Did you know CAM has a fantastic YouTube Channel! Check out this ‘Identifying chronic pain’ chat!   How can we start working towards management, if we have not yet identified the issue? The answer is… we can’t. Without a correct diagnosis we can’t start putting into place our interventions properly, as we don’t know what […]

Every single dog is unique and every arthritis story is different. Some dogs are stoic and will hide symptoms and others will show very early on that they are in pain. We know that dogs all experience pain differently, X-rays may look horrendous on one dog but clinically they are still fairly mobile whereas X-rays […]

Weight gain and obesity in pets is a massive topic. This will likely be a recurrent theme in many of my blogs, but today I want to start with a brief overview, and discuss why it’s so important in the management of osteoarthritis. Weight gain results in a high Body Condition Score (BCS) and puts […]

Let’s have a look at our multi-modal pyramid (above). We have identified an issue at home; we have gone to a veterinary practice for an appointment and got a diagnosis. We have had support from the veterinary team to manage our expectations of the disease and we are now working closely with our vet. This […]

This January we are all starting our New Year’s resolutions. This year, why don’t you make it your resolution, your mission, to spread the word #yourdogmoreyears. Get the word out about CAM, Holly’s Army and the support we can offer to thousands of dog owners across the UK (and all over the world!) This January […]

So you’ve had the arthritis diagnosis and want to do everything you can for your dog. The likelihood is your dog will have been prescribed pain relief and anti-inflammatory medication; but you know at CAM we are all about multi-modal management.  Supplements may cross your mind… but where to start! With so many on the […]

I would say that managing canine arthritis is part of daily life for most veterinary professionals. In general practice you will be diagnosing, treating, managing the condition. Even as a specialist working in other fields, some of your patients will have arthritis alongside their other conditions or illnesses and this needs to be taken into […]

After coming home from our walk the other day, Daisy needed a bath. It got me thinking… Daisy is 2kg… yes 2kg! (that’s not Daisy in the picture, just in case you wondered!) She can be bathed in the bath, shower or even the sink. She’s extremely easy to support and doesn’t slip or jump […]

When Hannah started CAM, I’m sure she never expected this… an Army of dog lovers, sharing, talking, advising, comforting and guiding others through the emotional rollercoaster that is osteoarthritis! Supported by a network of caring veterinary professional who aim to use evidence based advice to guide you through this minefield. When your dog gets diagnosed […]

Exercising and the arthritic dog I would like everyone to meet Daisy, the apple of my eye. She’s a Chihuahua Cross Jack Russel Terrier and is extremely active for her size (2kg). Unfortunately Daisy has OA in her hips; exercise has changed a little now. I now know how hard it is to get it […]

Autumn and winter, a time for golden leaves, snowball fights, Halloween… then Christmas. Also a time for Over indulgence (for you and your dog) Toxicity risks! Rain Cold weather So let’s talk food… I’m sure I will be doing a full blog on the importance of maintaining a good Body Condition score (BCS) and the […]

As a vet nurse, I see animals on a daily basis struggling with osteoarthritis. Some owners know about it and are well on the way to tackling it, some are innocently oblivious, and some in denial! Wherever on this scale you sit, having your dog diagnosed with osteoarthritis may have come as a bit of […]

It may not be something you think about, but the Arthritis Foundation (for humans) suggests that the emotional component to pain means that people who are anxious are more likely to suffer from chronic pain and visa versa. The same is likely true for our dogs and I truly believe that anxiety has a negative […]

Sometimes you can get something for free! This includes mental enrichment feeding games. Have a look at the video of Fred above! Using things from around the house or garden can be a brilliant way to increase activity at a slower pace and keep brain stimulation high. Cardboard rolls (toilet/kitchen/wrapping paper) – easy but effective! […]

Following on from the last blog, I wanted to talk about another way of using food to encourage movement and entertainment. There is a few varieties of interactive feeders on the market which differing shapes, sizes and difficulties. Fred and I obviously use quite a few over the years, including: Food dispensers – The idea […]

If you have a Labrador, you’ll understand how quickly food gets hoovered up. To be honest any food driven dog will show you just how possible it is to eat a bowl full of food in 1.2 seconds flat! For Fred, his IBD and gastritis means that he cannot eat a large amount of food […]

I thought the first blog of hopefully many should introduce the hound that has been my motivation to spread the word, to possibly help others in similar positions and raise more awareness! Introducing Fred; a Labrador cross. He’s almost 12 years old. Currently has a list of conditions including; arthritis, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Gastritis, Hypothyroidism […]