Hemivertebrae
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2024 8:20 pm
I have a 16m old terrier, she has a curly tail, despite this not being a breed trait. I recently googled why some dogs have curly tails and stumbled upon hemivertebrae and a lot of things are now making sense about my dog, we’re booked in to see the vet this week.
I cannot find much information on the internet about the early symptoms of this condition and would love to hear from others who have experienced it directly, do any of the below symptoms sound similar to what you noticed?
My pup has struggled to house train, the usual method of identifying when your dog needs to pee never works with her, because it always seems to catch her by surprise, like she will be trotting along or playing with her ball and will suddenly just start peeing or pooping. Ever since she was a pup it was easy to see when she needed to poop cause her butt hole bulges like crazy and she has to go there and then, there’s no chance of her holding it whilst she searches for the right spot to poop.
The last time I mentioned it to the vet was when pup was much younger, vet said some pups just have weaker bladders/bowels and it sometimes takes time for them to develop better control, so I really wasn’t worried about it too much. However, it seems to have gotten worse, not better. Just this last two weeks she’s been leaving trails of pee - where it’s obvious she started peeing whilst in motion, then stopped to finish. I also saw a poop just fall out of her butt whilst she was playing.
Also, I have been getting help from a behaviourist for what I thought were dominance/aggression issues, sometimes when she is sat on my lap and I move or adjust myself she snarls and growls and snaps. After reading about this condition it occurred to me that perhaps she was in pain and ever since I’ve been more conscientious and observed more carefully and I’m wracked with guilt not to have noticed this before.
All the other signs are more subtle and I don’t know if I’m being paranoid or looking too much into things. She doesn’t like being picked up and will actively move away from me if I try to grab her. She is a challenging dog behaviour wise, I am now wondering if pain/discomfort might be an underlying cause of that.
She is very active and exercises and eats well, her gait is kind of odd but more noticeable in the front legs. She is sometimes clumsy and often falls over or tumbles when running. I know that no one here can diagnose her, I’m just looking to hear from others and get some understanding and reassurance of how this condition first presented for others. It sounds like a serious condition and I’m so worried about her and sad I didn’t realise she might be struggling.
I cannot find much information on the internet about the early symptoms of this condition and would love to hear from others who have experienced it directly, do any of the below symptoms sound similar to what you noticed?
My pup has struggled to house train, the usual method of identifying when your dog needs to pee never works with her, because it always seems to catch her by surprise, like she will be trotting along or playing with her ball and will suddenly just start peeing or pooping. Ever since she was a pup it was easy to see when she needed to poop cause her butt hole bulges like crazy and she has to go there and then, there’s no chance of her holding it whilst she searches for the right spot to poop.
The last time I mentioned it to the vet was when pup was much younger, vet said some pups just have weaker bladders/bowels and it sometimes takes time for them to develop better control, so I really wasn’t worried about it too much. However, it seems to have gotten worse, not better. Just this last two weeks she’s been leaving trails of pee - where it’s obvious she started peeing whilst in motion, then stopped to finish. I also saw a poop just fall out of her butt whilst she was playing.
Also, I have been getting help from a behaviourist for what I thought were dominance/aggression issues, sometimes when she is sat on my lap and I move or adjust myself she snarls and growls and snaps. After reading about this condition it occurred to me that perhaps she was in pain and ever since I’ve been more conscientious and observed more carefully and I’m wracked with guilt not to have noticed this before.
All the other signs are more subtle and I don’t know if I’m being paranoid or looking too much into things. She doesn’t like being picked up and will actively move away from me if I try to grab her. She is a challenging dog behaviour wise, I am now wondering if pain/discomfort might be an underlying cause of that.
She is very active and exercises and eats well, her gait is kind of odd but more noticeable in the front legs. She is sometimes clumsy and often falls over or tumbles when running. I know that no one here can diagnose her, I’m just looking to hear from others and get some understanding and reassurance of how this condition first presented for others. It sounds like a serious condition and I’m so worried about her and sad I didn’t realise she might be struggling.