FCE in 6yr old Border Collie

[Chris & Ally]

Hi all, just joined here due to our boy being diagnosed last Friday 31st August with an FCE. Was the first we have ever heard of this affliction, and was an extremely scary experience for us and Brock. He was running with our other dog on Friday evening and just went down in a screaming heap, will never forget that yelp and the look of panic in his eyes when I got to him....... Straight in the car and to the local vet, X-rays, physical check etc and advised of classic case of FCE. He did have deep pain sensation in his feet, which is obviously a good sign, yet was completely paralyzed in both rear legs, prognosis not great.... Really sad weekend with reality of situation hitting and vet advising if no improvement in 2 -3 weeks we would need to have a "serious discussion"........ Sunday afternoon was able to at least weight bare with assistance in order to pee. He is a heavy bugger to lift and carry around...... Lots of TLC and massage, and animal herbs in food etc etc This afternoon, incredibly he got up on all fours and is walking, a little wobbly in the rear end but dragged his mum (human one) around our 3 acres, even lifted his leg to pee without falling, right rear was knuckling at first, but even that is no longer occurring.
Now the question I have is should we be letting him walk so early, all I have read, and advice from vet is to confine him and keep him immobile for at least 2 weeks. Definately had planned and set up for that with hiring a dog crate, buying a puppy playpen etc etc, but being a very active Border Collie before last Friday, he is going stir crazy being so restricted. We are both soooooo happy that the boy we thought may not walk again only 3 days ago is doing so well, but are also rather confused at the rapid improvement. Chris &Ally

[cricketsmom]

Hi there!
I'm sorry for the trauma you and your dog have been through. I see this was a couple days ago. Sounds like he was making good strides in recovery. How is he now?
I don't have personal experience with FCE, but I do know that spinal injuries of any sort are serious. It's a delicate situation when they are healing, so things can go wrong if the dog is allowed full freedom too soon. I would try to follow your vet's recommendation to keep him as quiet as possible for a couple weeks. If all he does is stress in the kennel like it sounds like he might be, maybe just leash walks and chilling in the house will do the trick. Good luck

[Chris & Ally]

Hi cricketsmom, Thanks for the reply. Brock is doing remarkably well, we can't believe the progress in such a short time. Totally agree on trying to keep him quiet, and yes leash walks around the house are what we trying to restrict him to. With the weather in Melbourne starting to get a little warmer we have taken the puppy pen out the front on the verandah, the cheeky thing leapt out of it today and took off into the paddock chasing a rabbit..... Just unbelievable considering his condition a week ago. He is still very weak in the back end, can't hold rear leg up long enough to finish peeing, but he is one very determined border that's for sure. We will have to get some bird netting to put across the top of the pen now to stop him trying to jump out again when outside. Ally is taking him back to the vet tomorrow for an early check up considering he really shouldn't be as good as he is so soon, it's only 10 days today since it happened and was diagnosed. Will keep you updated and try and post a pic of the boy soon, thanks for your thoughts.
Chris and Ally

[KManclow]

hello-

I am sorry about your situation as well. I have a recovering lab from FCE. Impacted all four limbs. We crated and kept her down the first week and a half. We started physical therapy the end of the second week (just stretches) by week three we were trying to stand. After that we worked her pretty hard. Built her a rig and got her walking. She is about 95% back to normal. Runs around the yard, plays ball, swims, etc.

It sounds like you are off to a great start. I would let your baby guide you on activity. We stopped when our lab wanted to stop but if you know labs... they like to be active. Best of luck!
Kristi

[Chris & Ally]

Hi Kristi,

Thanks for the post, great to hear your lab is doing so well. How long has it taken for her to get back to where she is now?
Brock is still doing remarkably well considering its now still,only 4 1/2 weeks since we were struck down.
He is still a bit wobbly in the back half, and the brain wants to do things the legs can't quite keep up with yet.
He has a bit of muscle atrophy through trying to keep him a bit quiet, but really all things considered he is doing really well.
Biggest problem we have at the moment is trying to stop him from chasing rabbits in the paddock, and stirring up the horses.

We will be commencing a more structured rehab program in the next couple of weeks, with underwater treadmill and swimming etc, fortunately he LOVES water and swimming , so that should be fun as well as rehab for him.

Suppose the real message here is for those going through this, and those that will be looking on here for info etc when they have the unfortunate experience we have, and not knowing what to expect, is that there is hope, and with patience, love and care, there will be improvements. We seem to have been some of the lucky ones to date with the speed of Brock's improvement, and are very appreciative of that. Thanks again for your thoughts and advice. CHris & Ally

[cricketsmom]

Chris and Ally,

I'm so pleased to see this good news! It sounds like Brock is doing beautifully! It's really great that you're going to do the water therapy, too. He will enjoy that and be getting stronger at the same time.

[Chris & Ally]

Hi Cricketsmom,
Thanks for the message and thoughts.
Well an update on Brock, he is continuing a remarkable recovery, we have done a little water treadmill, a lot of lead walks and some swimming in the local dam now the weather is warming up.
After what is now approx 10 weeks since suffering his FCE, Brock is already back to approx 85% of his pre incident self.
Still is a bit stiff in movement at times, and bunny hops in the rear end when running flat out, is a bit of a struggle getting up after lying down for an extended period, but even all the above I'm probably being picky about.
We are so thankful for the extent and speed that he has recovered at so far.
He can't wait for me to get home from work each day, and nags to go for a walk. We are back up to about 3 km per walk again, bout half what it was prior, but building further each week.
All going really well for us at the moment.
Chris & Ally