Hi mandymmr,
I agree with you, I see no reason why you should have to make a hasty decision. As long as you are physically able to put your dog in a wheelchair and give her the nursing case she needs (mainly that will be assistance with pottying, and in some cases turning the dog to the other side several times a day if she can't turn herself) then you can care for her. The only thing is, right now she is having some back pain and you are waiting to see whether that will resolve or at least diminish.
Not sure how it was diagnosed, but older dogs can have spinal arthritis or other conditions associated with aging and sometimes a dog can go down from that. It does sound like a disk but I would not feel 100% sure without advanced imaging. I just lost a 14-year old dog who had a fall several years ago (injured disk at that time) and recovered and was able to walk again and even trot a little if he felt frisky, but he gradually lost bladder and bowel control as he aged and by the end of his life he was knuckling both back paws and unable to stand. Various conditions can combine to bring a dog down. For example, spinal arthitis, a bad hip, kidney problems, and a previous disk problem did it for my dog. Weight will also complicate things for some older dogs. You might want to consider whether your dog is down only because of this recent back problem, or whether other things are also contributing. I only say that because of your dog's age. Given the discomfort she is feeling, and the fact that surgery is not an option in this case, rest and steroids would be a common treatment, and as you said, a wheelchair is your best back-up plan.
There really isn't a lot you can do right now, other than additional testing which would be expensive and would probably not change the course of treatment. Some dogs do respond to crate rest and steroids given enough time. We have had a number of good reports about acupuncture from credible people. You are kind of in a waiting pattern right now, that is unavoidable. If you are the kind of take charge person who wants to
do something, it is hard because about all you can do is give her her meds, make sure she rests, and give it time. There is no hurrying recovery from a spinal injury unfortunately. So the good news is it does not sound like you have failed to do anything, or are failing to do anything, you are already on track. I would be inclined to give it quite a bit more time than the one week your vet mentioned. The 6-8 weeks Dianne mentioned is no exaggeration. Dogs with a disk injury are sometimes given muscle relaxers or pain pills. Some pain meds are OK to give with steroids and some are not. Tramadol is safer than some of the pain meds when used with steroids (I am not a vet). As long as your dog is on steroids, they recommend giving something to protect the stomach (such as Pepcid a/c) since steroids can do a number on the GI tract, from diarrhea to bleeding ulcers. There have been cases where dogs have died from steroids so if your dog is not already on Pepcid or the like, I would ask the vet about this and find out the right dose.
I would like to know if she has bladder control and can she turn herself. Also how you have her bed or crate set up? What are you using to assist her outside? Do you have a harness?
