How can exercise help arthritis (osteoarthritis/OA)?

When arthritis develops the first sign is usually pain. This may be through limping, yelping, a change in behaviour irrespective of the species. With this that part of the body will automatically be used less to avoid the pain. Therefore, this results in the muscles getting weaker which won't be able to support the joint. Consequently, an increase in shearing forces at the joint results in additional pain and inflammation. A devastating vicious circle for any species. However! By increasing the muscle strength around the joint and identifying habits and movement patterns which may have contributed to the development of the OA in the first please this can decrease inflammation and provide pain relief. A recent study found that

12 supervised exercise sessions seem to be most beneficial as a first-line treatment for symptomatic OA BUT, this is research. Of course 12 sessions will help......more compliance as the sessions are supervised, more time to change habits, more help changing unhelpful movement patterns, more time to build muscle strength. So, I think that just making a start is the most beneficial step and let's see from there. Yes this was in humans but no reason why we can't translate this across to other species....(inspired by Davis AM, Davis KD, Skou ST et al. Why is exercise effective in reducing pain in people with osteoarthritis?. Curr Treat Options in Rheum (2020).)