Injured Sudden Paralyasis

[melissa.petitt]

My handsome boy was struck by a car thursday 8-23-12 he got passed me at the door and bolted for the female who was in season 2 houses up. No sooner could I get My shoes on and make chase he was struck by a nice elderly couple who to their credit did stop. They were only trying to do the right thing but they offered to pay for him and I could no longer hold myself up and fell to the ground. I'm getting a little off subject here and I'm sorry but that was no different than offering to pay for my childs life. Ok my Problem is this my Handsome Mayhem (mayhem is his name) is now unable to use back legs but his vet says it could only be temporary but as the days go by the prognosis is'nt looking good. So Should I try to rent a mini cart for him or go ahead and purchase one? And I have no idea about what accesories I will need but I am commited to helping him live as normal and long happy life as he can. I would'nt give up on my son if he was unable to walk and Mayhem is as much a member of our family as any one of us! I'd like to thank everyone who will respond to this in advance! Your expierence and advice is much appreciated!!

[CarolC]

Hi melissa,

What kind of dog is he? What tests did the vet do, and do you know if he has what is called "deep pain sensation" (which means he can still feel his toes). What treatment did the vet give him? Is your dog on crate rest, and is he on any medication? Can he urinate without assistance?

[melissa.petitt]

Mayhem is a mixed breed miniture poodle and daushaund. All the vet has said is it could be tempory and as far as treatment goes we will discuss that when I pick him up tomorrow. I dont know if he has any feeling in his feet but I will mention that to the vet tomorrow and he can find out. They have done several x-rays and can find no spinal trauma. He was on sterriods for inflamation but he was took of those yesterday. They also discontinued the pain meds. No he cant urinate without help we have to express his bladder for him. Right now all I have been told is he may or may not use his back legs and thats very frustrating!! Oh but the vet wasted no time asking me about having him put to sleep cause it will be hard to care for him he said. That made me angry! Especially when he said alot of people would. I'm not most people my husband & I agreed that whatever it takes as long as he's not suffering we will see him through everything else. Thank You for responding.

[CarolC]

They say that x-rays are not the best way to see if there is a disk problem. An x-ray shows hard material like bone the best, it does not give such a clear picture of soft material like disks. When the x-ray shows the spacing between two vertebrae is too small, it suggests a disk has been injured, but they can't really see it. You really need advanced imaging such as a CT or MRI (or myelogram--effective but has more risk to the dog) to get a clear view of what might be going on with his disks. So if the vet only did x-rays and did not see anything, it's possible something might have been missed. If there is a disk problem and deep pain sensation is lost, the sooner you do surgery the better your chance of him regaining function. I would call them first thing tomorrow morning and ask them if he has deep pain, and would it be better for him to get a referral to someplace where he can get a CT or MRI (or myelogram) for a better diagnosis. That usually means driving the dog to a regional specialty hospital or veterinary teaching hospital. Time is of the essence in these situations.

It sounds like the vet is telling you to do what is called conservative treatment, where you use non-surgical treatment such as rest and medication for the dog. Here is some good information on doing conservative treatment.

http://www.dodgerslist.com/literature/conservative.htm

Before you bring him home, the vet should give you some training on expressing his bladder. They should let you put your hand on his abdomen and actually locate the bladder so you know what it feels like, before it is emptied. We have a lot of good information on expressing in this article, with videos at the end.

http://www.handicappedpets.com/mediawiki/index.php?title=Express_a_dog_or_cat

If I were in your shoes, I would start looking at wheelchairs online but I would not order one yet. It may turn out he does not need one, and he needs to rest several weeks to give his back a chance to heal. I would let him rest and maybe consider acupuncture.

You can also find a lot of information about dachshund disk problems and an email group on Dodger's List, http://www.dodgerslist.com

[melissa.petitt]

Thank you for all the helpfull advice. Mayhem is now home and he was fine all day Monday however he has quit drinking water and has been whinning so I have no idea what to do. Should I get an dropper and give him water anyway?

[CarolC]

I suspect he probably needs to still be on pain meds, I don't know why the vet took him off. I would call the vet and report he is not drinking and ask about that.

[melissa.petitt]

I took him to his vet after my last post and got him some pain meds. He did so much better last night. I also placed his water next to him so he could reach it on his own cause the vet said me holding it for him could be why hes not drinking it and when he thought I wasnt paying any attention he drank it. We also talked about the psychological repercussions of his accident. Mayhem is a proud little dog so the fact that he can't do things like go to the bathroom by himself and go to his food and water dish may take awhile for him to accept and adjust to this. All I can do is show him all the love and affection I can so he knows hes not a burden and its gonna be ok. I just hope he knows how much I do love him and that I will do anything to make him better. Anything you can suggest for me to do that I'm not doing to help him come to terms with his circumstances? Thanks so much!

[critters]

Personally, I'd be working for longer-term steroids or NSAIDS to help encourage the best outcome. Pred is my friend.