Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

[CarolC]

I'll try it if he starts doing it again. I don't know why he'll do it sometimes, then not do it. He quit doing it about the time you mentioned gabapentin. I have no idea what's going on with his neck. I assume the implants are all 6 broken. He still has the lump of glue under his chin preventing him tipping his nose down and opening up that space between C1-C2 too much. (I bet there's a surgical name for that lump of glue, wonder what it is.) His neck pops like it did before surgery. I hope he isn't intermittently pinching or misaligning something.

Life is rolling along. A few days ago I noticed him walking to a location he likes to hang out in, in the doorway of the living room, and he was taking little steps with all 4 of his feet like normal dogs do. The only real difference was the rounded back and head carriage. It was cool. I need to do his back stretching exercises again. He can straighten, he just doesn't usually. For a while before surgery he was stretching it himself.

[CarolC]

Pip is doing something new. It sounds like nothing, but it's MAJOR! He can now stand on all 4 feet and put his nose down to smell the ground. I saw him do it twice today. That must mean he senses his front legs are strong enough to hold him when he leans forward. I could hardly believe it. I looked out the window and he looked like a horse standing in a field grazing. I've had him since July 2021 and I've never seen him do that. His atlantoaxial surgery was June 2023.

[critters]

“He looked like a horse”

Congrats!

[CarolC]

I tried him on unsweetened Kikkoman Pearl soy milk and he drank it exactly as well. Like he couldn't tell the difference between sweetened Rice Dream and unsweetened Pearl. This is better for his teeth. The calories are 120 per cup vs 90. Kikkoman is hard to get.

So I offered him soy milk one afternoon when there were no blox. He was fine with that. But I'm worried about the calories, plus I don't want him having too much soy and possibly becoming allergic to it or something. But he needs his fluids. So I tried mixing water into it. He can drink it watered down! The whole point of the soy milk was the creaminess, to help his swallowing issue. Possibly his swallowing is a little better now, and he doesn't need it as thick to be able to get it down. Really don't know, just glad it's working thinned. There's still the sugar and his teeth.

[critters]

If you’re that worried about his teeth you could brush them.

[CarolC]

Yeah, I bet he'd love that! I might (emphasis on might) be able to get them in a few places. He lets me remove tear stains from below his eyes. He's really sweet when I come with the hot wet washcloths to give him his sponge bath. He's a real sweetheart. The only thing he really reacts to is if you try to touch him under his chin. I can sponge bathe his neck but don't dare touch his chin.

[critters]

You have to use pet toothpaste, but I always liked using an infant toothbrush.

[CarolC]

You've actually done this? Whoa, good job! I watched a video yesterday of a gal brushing a chihuahua's teeth. She had Hartz toothpaste and a brush with 2 sides, a big head for big dogs and a very little head for little dogs. She said she used both sides. The video was cute as can be and the dog wagged her tail a lot. The only thing was, she sat on the floor and put her dog in her lap upside down like a baby. Then she had both hands free so she could pull back the lips and brush. I've got a dog with atlantoaxial instability, who had surgery and broke his implants. I want to be so careful with his neck. I haven't tried dental chews. He gets a Milk Bone after dinner, which I hope cleans his teeth a little. When he gets kibble, it's soaked because he can't drink water, so it probably isn't scrubbing his teeth.

[critters]

Those 2-headed brushes were too unwieldy for my liking with smaller critters.

[CarolC]

I bet a smaller one would be less scary, too. I trim Dolly with a pair of very small scissors you can barely see in my hand. She panics if she sees regular scissors.