My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

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NiaDevary
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Joined: Thu Nov 23, 2017 3:54 am

My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

Post by NiaDevary »

My 9 mnth dogs back is dislocated at last thoracic due to injury by fall from lap. Didn't happen immediately. After the fall he walked with a lot of pain in back legs for 3 days. We only took him out to potty. On 3rd day he was in his crate, tried to get up and suddenly started screaming in agonizing pain. He screamed whole night until a meloxicam injection was given. Then he had spasms and no back leg movement. After that the vet came home and diagnosed dislocated vertebrae. He pulled his spine straight after which no more pain or muscle spasms.

But he cant use his back legs since. Cant get up or stand at all. We can feel the bulge on his spine and its bigger today. A nurse from the local vet comes every day to catheter his pee and does chiropractic moves. He pulls his hind legs outwards to fully extend his spine and presses the bulge in. Also passive cycling movements.

He has full pain perception on his hind legs. He is hurting there and doesn't let us go near his hind legs. Actually he had hip dysplasia to begin with.

Mostly has bladder control unless he is very full. He can hold pee for about 20 hours then leaks it when can't anymore. Bowel control also is there more or less. Doesn't do it spontaneously but he poops when nurse tries to lift him and flip him or instigate anus.

Hes getting painkiller, Mecobalamin and Hydroxocobalamin. He keeps moving in his crate like rotates 180 degree but can't flip. Every time we leave him alone he tries to rotate and lets out a cry. We don't take him out of the crate / small dog house at all. For one he is heavy we can't carry, second he can't carry his own weight. Just lifts his torso up. :(:(:(

Yesterday we saw one of his hind legs move a few times impulsively and today he sort of kicked me when I tried to touch them and gave resistance during exercises.

But worried about the increasing bulge at the point of dislocation. Also we area worried how to handle the pee situation. He is too resistive to expressing bladder. Wont let us touch his belly and freaks out.

Today the nurse left the catheter tube in so that we wont have to wait 24 hours before bladder is emptied. We dont know really how to use it. The tube is inserted and its plugged. Is it safe to leave it in? How long can it be left inside? Should the tube be replaced every few days? Do we need to give him antibiotics?

How often and method do we flip him?

We live in a small town in India. No surgery, MRI or good Xray. We are taking the conservative approach as that's the only option. Vet is also looking for a brace but b that could take time. Please help what to do? Absolute newbies with handling (semi) paralyzed dog.
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critters
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Re: My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

Post by critters »

NiaDevary wrote:My 9 mnth dogs back is dislocated at last thoracic due to injury by fall from lap. Didn't happen immediately. After the fall he walked with a lot of pain in back legs for 3 days. We only took him out to potty. On 3rd day he was in his crate, tried to get up and suddenly started screaming in agonizing pain. He screamed whole night until a meloxicam injection was given. Then he had spasms and no back leg movement. After that the vet came home and diagnosed dislocated vertebrae. He pulled his spine straight after which no more pain or muscle spasms.

But he cant use his back legs since. When was the injury?Cant get up or stand at all. We can feel the bulge on his spine and its bigger today. A nurse from the local vet comes every day to catheter his pee and does chiropractic moves. He pulls his hind legs outwards to fully extend his spine and presses the bulge in. Also passive cycling movements.

He has full pain perception on his hind legs. He is hurting there and doesn't let us go near his hind legs. Actually he had hip dysplasia to begin with.

Mostly has bladder control unless he is very full. He can hold pee for about 20 hours then leaks it when can't anymore. Bowel control also is there more or less. Doesn't do it spontaneously but he poops when nurse tries to lift him and flip him or instigate anus. Do you know about expressing his bladder (squeezing it by hand so that he can pee)? Waiting so long could cause him to get a urinary tract infection (UTI).

Hes getting painkiller, Mecobalamin and Hydroxocobalamin. How about a steroid, like hydrocortisone?He keeps moving in his crate like rotates 180 degree but can't flip. Every time we leave him alone he tries to rotate and lets out a cry. We don't take him out of the crate / small dog house at all. For one he is heavy we can't carry, second he can't carry his own weight. Just lifts his torso up. :(:(:( Have you considered using a wheelchair so that he might help more with his care?

Yesterday we saw one of his hind legs move a few times impulsively and today he sort of kicked me when I tried to touch them and gave resistance during exercises. That's GOOD!

But worried about the increasing bulge at the point of dislocation. Also we area worried how to handle the pee situation. He is too resistive to expressing bladder. Wont let us touch his belly and freaks out. Ah. Have you tried to desensitize him some, like by using treats? Expressing would be MUCH cheaper, easier, and less likely to lead to UTI. With my Buddy, I had to develop techniques to get past obnoxious behavior, too, so that I might express him. :twisted:

Today the nurse left the catheter tube in so that we wont have to wait 24 hours before bladder is emptied. We dont know really how to use it. The tube is inserted and its plugged.To drain it, I suppose you clean it and use some clean means to drain it, but I have NO idea what kind of schedule he should be on. Is it safe to leave it in? How long can it be left inside? It needs to be replaced at some point, but I have NO idea what the schedule should be.Should the tube be replaced every few days? Do we need to give him antibiotics? You might.

How often and method do we flip him? I'd flip him every few house.

We live in a small town in India. No surgery, MRI or good Xray. Honestly, xrays probably wouldn't be useful anyway, so I wouldn't worry about it.We are taking the conservative approach as that's the only option. Vet is also looking for a brace What kind of brace? Feet? Legs?but b that could take time. Please help what to do? Absolute newbies with handling (semi) paralyzed dog.
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CarolC
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Re: My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

Post by CarolC »

I am not a vet. Normally a dog with a spinal injury would be on a steroid in addition to the pain medication (and possibly vitamins) that you mention. Prednisone is an example of a common steroid given in these situations. It would help the swelling go down around the area.

I cannot tell if he got a fracture from the fall, or just severe bruising. You might be able to tell with an x-ray, but an x-ray is best at showing bone, so a good x-ray might show a fracture but will not be as useful for showing a compressed disk. With a fracture, the spine may still be lined up and any swelling should subside with rest, or the spine may actually be offset creating a slight hump. Here is a photo of a puppy where they originally thought he had a spinal deformity, but they later learned he had an old fracture, possibly from being dropped.

http://handicappedpet.net/helppets/view ... =9&t=13301

Here is a way to flip him:

http://www.mzjf.com/turn-dog.htm

Because of the location of the injury, he may be harder to express. When a spinal injury is in the upper or mid back, it tends to make the bladder hard to express. When the injury is in the lower back, it tends to do the opposite, the dog may leak and dribble. Since your dog has a mid back injury, I think it will be easier to express with medication. For a dog with a thoracic injury, you could try medication to relax the urinary sphincter so it isn't so tight when you try to squeeze the urine out. Phenoxybenzamine is one common medication, as well as robaxin (methocarbamol), prazosin, and diazepam (benzodiazepine). These may have different brand names in your country, but your vet will know what they are called. I am not a vet, please ask your vet if these are appropriate and which he would recommend, or if he can recommend another medication that will relax the sphincter. These ideas can help you start a conversation with your vet.

If he won't let you touch him, you may need to put an elizabethan collar (lampshade collar) on him after he comes home. The other option is to continue to catheterize him at home. It can be done longterm but must be done using sanitary methods to avoid infection. This link shows a lot of information on expressing the bladder. If you scroll to the end there are a lot of videos.

http://handicappedpet.net/helppets/view ... =5&t=16027

:malewrap:

If he is urinating voluntarily, that is an extremely good sign. Sometimes it is hard to tell if urination if voluntary or simply the result of a bladder filling and eventually releasing through overflow. Either way, it is very important to keep his skin dry. If he lies on soaked bedding, he will soon develop sores. Pressure sores are one thing you can prevent by turning, but when the skin is inflamed or reddened by a urine burn, it is much harder to prevent a pressure sore because the skin is already damaged. You may want to use male wraps with him at home, and the trick will be finding a pad to put in the wrap that will absorb the amount of urine produced by a large dog. You need the maximum sized incontinence pads, or a baby diaper laid flat against the skin and held in place with the wrap.

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Xenxstar
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Re: My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

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I'm getting more knowledge from every comment.
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critters
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Re: My 9mo GSD can't get up back legs paralyzed

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:whale: xenxstar
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