What about Dog's Bones and Joints?

What makes up bones?

If you’ve ever given your dog a beef bone, pig knuckle, or marrow bone, you probably noticed the solid consistency. Bones can be hard as rock, hard enough to break teeth. This might give you the impression that bones are static, unchanging, but we all know that they do change. They grow, and at times that growth can cause pain in both humans and dogs because of their compact make-up.

Bones are alive and kicking, complete with nerves and blood vessels. Their tissue is continuously broken down and recomposed, and the marrow (the center) of the bone develops red blood cells for the body. 

What do joints do?

Flex your leg up and down. There, that’s what joints do.

Joints, in conjunction with the bones and muscles, help the entire skeleton move. Without getting too in-depth, a muscle usually bridges between two joints and contracts to create motion.

How strong are my dog’s bones?

That depends upon your dog, her age, her health, and her environment. Getting tired of that answer yet? Well, when it comes to bone or joint strength, those factors can make even more of a difference. Imagine the stress on the bones of a 150-pound dog compared to those of a 15-pound dog. While the larger dog may have been built to compensate a bit for its extra weight, the amount of stress placed on her skeleton can reduce the amount of cushioning fluid in her joints and result in problems.

This is especially true during your dog’s developmental stages. Larger breeds have weaker bones and slower bone growth during their first year of life, and even within breeds the smaller female puppies have stronger skeletons and joints than the larger males. This means that larger pups should be kept from high-impact playtimes until their bones mature, since additional stress on their skeleton can result in deformities later in life.