Glucosamine/Chondroitin - Are all brands created equal?

Unfortunately no -- as you are finding some are full of 'fillers' -- but there is also some that are just plain lesser quality.
 
And there is differeing medical opinion ... some practitioners say take them separately, or only one, and others say take them together.  I've found that other stuff helps more.  Glucosamine/chondroitin is purely temporary -- ALL it does is hydrate the joint tissue -- so IF there is still cartilage between the bones it 'plumps' it up.  But if you don't take it tomorrow, it stops working.
 
I like to use Knox Nutra Joint -- that actually rebuilds joint tissue (the cartilage) so the progress you make is permanent.  It takes about 3 months to 'do' anything -- so you just give it day after day (depending on the size of dog about 1/2 scoop a day is all you need), but at the end of that time you do see results. 
 
Yes, it's human stuff -- get it in the grocery aisle of your grocery store (I don't think it's sold in Canada) and each $9 cannister lasts about a month for one dog. 
 
Then if there IS pain, I tend to use a very very gentle nsaid like chammomile or willow bark in a low dose, but give a relaxant like valerian root along with it.  If you are dealing with arthritis, email me and I will be glad to send you the information I have.  It's all easy to obtain stuff.
 
I also use massage a LOT on my dogs -- with something like White Flower Oil or Wood Lock Oil (both essential oil blends -- the create a gentle heat when you rub them in but don't gunk up dog fut).
 
There's nothing wrong with glucosamine/chondroitin but they can be a crap shoot.  I'd be really suspcious of anything not a name brand that I know -- when it comes to herbals and supplements I tend to err on the side of caution because the lower grades may not have much of ANY of that 'thing' in them.  It's buyer beware for sure.

I use Glyco Flex III by vetri science... my vet recommends their line and it seems to be of good quality. Look it up online... it can be fairly pricey but I found some good sources online and got a good deal buying several containers at once.

Callie... i think I should start the Knox Nutra Joint for Oliver...

I got mine from ...
http://www.entirelypets.com/
free shipping and I got a free container of joint treats that I stuff pills in
it was the best price I found for that product...

Hi

Thank you both. Just in looking at all the brands on ebay, I was tossing my hands up. I've been using a Wild Oats Glucosamine brand, which I got for around $40.00, and it has lasted over a month for two of our dogs. One of our dogs chews her in a liver flavored treat, which I also have my doubts about, but we can't mix hers in kibble, else she won't eat  The Knox Nutra Joint sounds really interesting, and I am assuming you can find it most anywhere. That may be the route to go.  Thanks again

If you have a Walmart nearby, you can find Knox Nutra Joint down the supplement aisle. I've always seen it on the bottom shelves, so it's been easy to overlook.

Yep, the Knox won't hurt Oliver at all, and this is a time of rebuilding for his body ANYway, so yeah. 
 
It's just a gritty powder.  I used to put mine in my coffee (and you can't even taste it -- the last mouthful is just a bit gritty is all).  And yeah, that's how I got turned onto it -- 6 years ago I was walking (limping) everywhere on a can (and sometimes TWO).  I could barely hobble down the hall to the ladies room at work - no joke.  My boss (who is one of those who nibbled on supplements constantly)  recommended it to me -- and SHE said then "but you gotta take the stuff for like THREE months before you notice any difference".  So I just started using it and didn't even bother to think about it.  But gosh -- it worked!!  All of a sudden in about 3 months I noticed one day I hadn't bothered to get the cane before I got up.  HUH??? I didn't NEED it.  Wow!! 
 
I go back to it when I get a new place that gets 'hurting'   I went back to it a year ago when I wrecked my shoulder.  But the 'change' is permanent. 
 
The dogs don't seem to have a problem with it -- you could mush it up in braunschweiger if you want (or ricotta cheese or anything).  It won't 'stick' to dry food so those who feed kibble will need to add it to something sticky or wet.  But they actually kinda like the taste -- that's never a problem.  It's simply gelatin and calcium.  If you go to the Knox NutraJoint website usually you can get a coupon too. 
 
But yeah -- it's available everywhere.  And the massage oils I was talking about -- I get those from [linkhttp://www.morningstarhealth.com]http://www.morningstarhealth.com[/link] -- they're decent to order from and you get stuff pretty fast. 

I just wanted to add that Foster and Smith has a new line of joint products out too. 

I use both Cosequin DS (chews) and Curaflex 2 (chews) for my kids....they aren't quite 2yrs yet and have NO probs but just use it as a preventative measure!  The Cosequin has the gluc/chon combo and the Curaflex has the MSM in it...VERY helpful with joint maintenance!

BTW the combo I give is recommended by the Certified Chiro Vet that works at the clinic I work at.....it seems to do a lot of partients good!

Thanks. While doing some searching through the thousands of ebay listings for dog vitamins, supplements, and the like, I came across a product called NUTRO. Anyone have any experience with this?  It is expensive. Why do we always equate expensive with good quality?

It is an overwhelming task just to sort through the maze of products. I only want to keep my dogs healthy, you know, having just lost a dear dog to cancer. On the other hand, I don't want to drown them in vitamins and supplements that may do more harm than good....

Correction, that product is NUPRO joint support. A 20 lb crate of it costs about $100.00

So Lucy -- are your dogs geriatric with problems with joints or are they breeds 'prone' to problems??  I honestly wouldn't supplement them for such stuff if they don't need it.  If you have a young dog that is a breed prone to problems like dysplasia, then it can be helpful -- but otherwise you'd probably be better off concentrating on food (I homecook for three dogs but it is fully worth it in many ways, and I know others here do raw, etc.)  Not being bossy -- just trying to help you sort it out.

Hi

Yes, one is a 10 year old Husky, she's slowing down, hesitant to jump into the car anymore; Sarge is about 5, but has a broken rib that never healed, so he walks with a limp; Max is 7, a Rottie mix, huge and a little overweight; and we got a new one yesterday, a 7-8 female Basset Mix who's also a little overweight. So now we have 5 dogs, 4 of whom are either geriatric or, in Sarge's case, needs something for preventative measures. We have a house full. We want to keep costs as low as possible, but give them all the best that we can

I always used the Kirkland (Costco) brand and it worked fine for both of us (me & the dog) - if I remember right, it's about $20 for 180  500/400 mg. tablets. Both of us took 2 a day.