I was devastated when I first discovered Holly had cancer and needed surgery. The tumor was in her face near the neck. I was so relieved when the lab reported that the surgery was clean and that chemotherapy was not required. Holly was only two years old when that occurred. She has had many more tumors since then, but each biopsy revealed no cancer. Because she is predisposed to cancer, every new lump on her sends us to the vet.

Holly's hip, elbow and joint problems were discovered after a camping trip when I found her limping slightly. I thought she had sustained a sprain, so the vet gave her some anti-inflammatory medication. The limp didn't go away even after being kept off her feet for a few weeks. It was most evident whenever she arose from a reclining position. X-rays were taken, and OFFA findings revealed dysplasia in both hips, the left elbow, and degenerate joint disease. I knew that this could happen to Goldens, but I thought the problems wouldn't manifest themselves until the geriatric years, if at all. The doctor prescribed rimydal and thought she might have to take this for the rest of her life. We continued on that medication for the first few weeks, but after that I switched Holly to glucosamine and chondroitin when I read about the many risks and side affects of rimydal. Apparently the supplements are helping as she does not limp any more. She exhibits no symtoms of the arthritis either. She is taken 500mg of glucosamine and 400 mg of chondroitin daily. I'm getting this in the form of "Pain Free" which is made for people with joint problems. It not only alleviates the pain, but it claims to rebuild the destroyed cartilege surrounding the joint. It seems to be working. Holly is able to continue in obedience competition, which involves some jumping several times a week. The other exercises include trotting speeds, but not for long durations. I'm careful now not to over-walk her either.

For those of you owning Goldens, I read it's not a good idea to take them jogging as this may cause too much stress on their skeleton. I let Holly run off leash as much as she wants in an enclosed park, but I don't run her along-side my bike any more. They may be able to keep up with you, but not without harm to their bodies. I had to learn the hard way. Holly was always very active, so I thought running her would slow her down a bit. They tell you in doggie books to do this to use up excess energy, but apparently, not all large, active dogs can run even moderate distances. If you do jog or bike with your dogs running along-side, keep them on dirt rather than paved or concrete paths. This will lessen the impact.