We used to have a 128 lb Alaskan Malamute that lived to be really old. He was healthy, except he had hip issues that made it hard to get around. We used stuff like glucosamine for a while and then it wasn't sufficient. We had reached the point that the vet said there were 2 pain killers that could help him: one was cheap but he'd basically sleep away the rest of his life and one was very expensive, but would keep him active. We didn't like either. My husband's Mom sold Shaklee vitamins and he'd heard someone helped their arthritis with alfalfa, so we tried it (since he was adult human sized, we gave him the human dose). It worked as well, if not better than either pain killer. He lived to 13.5 years with a 9-12 life expectancy, so it worked well.

I don't know if it will work for all dogs with joint issues, but it really helped our dog, so it is worth trying the alfalfa. It is cheap.