holistic approach

I for one, have no idea.

Callie would be the one to ask.  You can pm her if she doesnt see this thread.  Its calliecritturs.

Is there a holistic vet anywhere near you?  I'd really look into hooking up with one for accupuncture. I would think that would be the most helpful, non-drug, way to ease the pain.  I actually read recently that some human accupuncturists can/will work on animals.  It might be worth looking into.

With his scope of problems, I would highly suggest a consultation with a good holistic vet.
 

Try acupuncture for sure. By going through a holistic vet you'll have more pain med options, learn more about massage (that you can do yourself), and you'll have a way for acupuncture.
 
It's a great way to heal and help our sore friends.

There is a new thing made in Australia out of all kinds of herbs and I reckon roots, etc, called DogGonePain and some on my golden boards us it for their old arthritic dogs and says it does work.  Takes a little while and isn't cheap.  But they said it really works. Best I can tell you to do is to google it.

jackson1; I agree with the others about finding a holistic vet. If you go to this site there is a locator to help you find one in your area;  [linkhttp://www.ahvma.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=12]http://www.ahvma.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=12[/link]
 
  Callie and forpaws know some homeopathics that can help relieve pain; I'll send both of them an e-mail about this thread. I have a mix that also has a front end out of proportion to the rear( GSD, Rotty, Beagle) but not as bad as yours; I watch her weight carefully so her front end doesn't get too heavy; if yours is overweight a diet may help.

I've had really good success using traditional Chinese veterinary medicine -- and the best place I know of for a good list is [linkhttp://www.chi-institute.com]http://www.chi-institute.com[/link] -- they have a good locator.
 
Acupuncture surely would help.  But honestly, you may need to get this dog evaluated for hip dysplasia and such -- knowing how it stands so you can be proactice is a big huge deal. 
 
You don't have to use NSAIDs like Rimadyl, etc. just because you have a good regular vet evaluate the dog.  You might want to try the best vet school your state has -- they can be a great diagnostic tool and less expensive than a 'specialty' vet. 
 
I'm fortunate -- U of Florida has a great vet school and they are very holistically inclined (they *teach* acupuncture and herbals there). 
 
But honestly, wiithout knowing exactly what's going on, I'd be hesitant to just say '"use this for pain" -- because different things can be retty specific about what you do and don't do.  For example -- spondylosis is a boney overgrowth so you don't do anything that will encourage bone growth -- but with hip dysplasia it wears away bone and cartilage so you have to encourage that TO grow to relieve pain.
 
I've got information on arthritis I'd be happy to send you, but honestly get the dog evaluated first if you haven't already.  But email me and I'm happy to send it to you.  Sorry I was so long responding to this.
 
(Jessie's Mom thanks for emailing me -- I've been so out of pocket with Billy I'm just slammed!!)

Jessie's Mom thanks for emailing me -- I've been so out of pocket with Billy I'm just slammed!!)

 
  I was just doing what you asked;  [] the advice about getting the dog evaluated is excellent. I hope you can rest over the weekend.

Everyone else had excellent advice.  I also had to go out of town to a holistic vet, and it was helpful.  Last year, WHOLE DOG JOURNAL listed Wobenzym for inflammation relief -- your dog doesn't have inflammation by the sounds of it.  But, I tried this for myself and it helped. But, even with a non-NSAID pain reliever, it hurt my stomach taking it between meals - which is what the directions say to do.   I am mentioning this because they also recently talked about DGP - DOG GONE PAIN.  I haven't read the entire article, but the geist of what I took away was that it did help with pain relief.  It was a proporitory? blend - they won't tell you what is in it.  But, reading the editor's letters this month, apparently someone had called the company and they had said that there was not any NSAIDS in it.  
 
 NSAIDS are really bad on the stomach.  I know I cannot take common name brands that are on the market because it makes my stomach hurt.  These types of pain relievers can actually cause bleeding in the stomach and actually do cause many deaths a year.  And with animals, it is impossible to ask: "is your stomach hurting, because then we need to stop the meds".  So, I would be really cautious about giving any pain relievers on my own.  That's another reason why it is really worth the effort it takes to find a good, qualified holistic vet. So, even with DGP, I would want advice from a vet BECAUSE while they won't tell you the ingredient listing -- they WILL TELL a vet what the ingredients are IF the vet agrees not to disclose those ingredients.   So, then you have advice with information that you couldn't get on your own.
 
 Glad you are interested in this approach.  Good luck to you and your baby.

I too have heard of the Dog Gone Pain but, don't know what is in it.
 
There are Homeopathic Remedies that will help with this,  I've used them on Chevy when he had a limp & I've used them on myself.  chevy's limp was gone in no time at all,  & I was all but pain free.   I'm not qualified to tell you which remedy & the potency to use, but I'm including a link, to find a Homeopath by state,. 
 
Also,  some Holistic Vet's also use Homeopathic Remedies, & may be able to help with this safely.  
[linkhttp://www.viim.org/findvets/vetlist.asp]http://www.viim.org/findvets/vetlist.asp[/link]
 
 
Best of luck to you & your pup...
 
              chevy & karen