As I think I've mentioned before, we had kind of a hybrid situation. Following Tinker's surgery, the hospital sent us home with a rear harness that is actually the soft saddle sling used in a Doggon' cart- (which works very well). Then, when we started rehab, the facility we go to recommended an Edd...

While Tinker is only about 14-1/2" and 21 lbs., what we did initially while he was down was to stand behind him and the cart and lift his whole body up aim and then place his legs in the saddle, then carefully place the front of him between the rails. Now that he's stronger and much more mobile...

Hi, Jean. Thanks for the complement on the website. Our situation was this: About 2 wks. after Tinker's surgery last Feb, his surgeon started him on Bethanechol and Phenoxybenzamine for maybe 4-6 wks. After the initial stage of getting used to expressing him (and doing it thoroughly) on a schedule, ...

So sorry to hear you're going through this. It must have been a harrowing weekend.

You mentioned that she had a stiff neck. Could the sepsis have caused Meningitis (with complications that could include paralysis)? Has she been evaluated by a neurological vet?

I think that this is the product that Critters was referring to.



Anxiety Wrap

Marni, keep up the good work and celebrate each little victory. As long as you see improvement of any kind, he's heading in the right direction. There are dogs who never recover dps and still relearn to walk! And, it isn't unusual for one side to be stronger than the other- Tinker is that way, too. ...

Thanks, Carol. It always makes me smile when I see you using pictures from Tinker's blog to illustrate points about crating or using the porta crib. Who knew he'd turn out to be a spokesBeagle for handicapped pets?! We are so proud of his progress and really want to be able to help and encourage oth...

Paul, I'm so sorry to hear that your wife was injured- I'm sure the whole incident was very upsetting. I wanted to mention another possibility. There is something called REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (or RBD) that has been recognized in humans for quite some time (and how it can result in violent beha...

My condolences to you and your family. I'm glad you had a few extra weeks with her and, if it had to be, that she went peacefully among those she loved and loved her best.

Hooray for Jasper and for you for hanging in there with him! It must really be gratifying to see him return to normal activity. I think I remember your posts back when he was first injured. I remember that one leg was weaker than the other, which is quite common. Did you do acupuncture and hydrother...

Bendy- Can you give me links/info you may have on how/why vertabrae sometimes fuse naturally. My other dog (not Tinker) has some lower back issues that her chiropractor suspects is fused vertabrae. I want to understand more about it, but when I look up spinal fusion on the web, it only comes up with...

Thanks for the ideas!

I guess covering it after applying some kind of salve is a possibility. I was hoping to find a (nontoxic) cream that would soothe the area, rather than something gooey. Where the hair is somewhat worn away and the skin gets pink isn't on his abdomen. It's right over the bladder area where we compres...

I've noticed that Tinker's skin is quite pink from having his bladder expressed 5 or more times a day. The hair is somewhat worn away, which you can't do much about. But, can anyone recommend something safe to put on the skin covering the bladder area, maybe overnight, to soothe it? Of couse it need...

Sheri- Are you kidding? Celebrate every victory, absolutely! Pete is continuing to make progress and that is WONDERFUL! Heck, when Tinker was able to raise his tail 1/2" I was telling everyone I knew who would listen!