Physical Therapy for Dog on Crate Rest?

[tammypinca]

Hello. Four weeks ago our 13 lb terrier mix suddenly lost the use of her hind legs. She could barely scoot. She retained bladder and bowel control. We could only afford x-rays and our vet said that it looked like she had 2-3 slipped discs. At that visit he told us that the following 2-3 days were critical because she was on the verge of total paralysis. Scared and upset us so bad. He prescribed methocarbamol and carprofen. We also give her a product called Nzymes. Vet told us strict crate rest for 3 weeks. After a lot of research we decided 8 weeks of crate rest. Two weeks into crate rest she began to stand. A few days later she was walking on her potty breaks. We take her out, let her do her business and bring her back in. She has just passed the four week mark of crate rest. She walks and stands pretty well, but her hind legs are still wobbly. She walks well on the concrete outdoors, but slips on the indoor laminate. My question is, since she is on strict crate rest, aren't the muscles in her hind legs beginning to atrophy? What should we do to help build the muscles without risking injury?

Thank you for any advice.

Tammy
Hazel's mom

[CarolC]

It turns out that there is really less worry about atrophy of the leg muscles than you might think. Basically, it's just muscle and it comes back. According to a professional canine rehabilitation therapist:

Dogs on conservative treatment crate rest who are not paralyzed are able to move around a bit in the crate and at potty time to keep their joints and muscles toned. No additional therapy is necessary.

Any muscle lost during the weeks of crate rest comes back once the dog is able to be active again. But doing the full 8 weeks of crate rest (as your research indicated) properly is important to let the disk really heal. I like to compare it to baking an angelfood cake. You open the oven door a little early and it might appear done, but if you take it out too soon, in spite of how it looks, the cake is likely to fall. The more the dog improves, the more tempting it is to let the dog off crate rest early, but you want to be sure the disk(s) is really fully healed. I know that's not what you were suggesting, you are just looking for any therapy that might be done safely while on crate rest, which is a different question. I'm just saying, doing complete strict crate rest will be better in the long run, than trying to do therapy and risking a setback. If a dog could not move at all, passive range of motion might be needed, but since your dog is walking a little, the professional advice says that's all you need.

Sometimes the hardest thing is to just sit on your hands, especially when you want to be sure not to miss anything that might help your dog toward a better outcome. It sounds like your dog is going to have a good outcome if you can keep on with the rest as you have been doing. They actually say not to let the dog walk any more than is necessary to potty, so carry the dog outside, and carry the dog back in, and keep the dog on a leash while out pottying. But later when your dog is allowed to walk around in the house, she might do better with some area rugs or runners. That is something you might consider getting ready for her during this time while she is resting, so you'll have the floors ready if you think she's going to need something to help her not slip. You might not necessarily need to buy any right now, perhaps you can wait a few more weeks and see how she is progressing, she may not need them. But if you look around now, you will know what is available if you decide she would benefit from something to prevent slipping. Just a thought. Some people also try booties and they work if you find the right ones, but it can be trial and error. I went with rugs and was happy with them.

I don't know if you have read some of the information on Dodger's List, they have a lot of tips you may find helpful. http://www.dodgerslist.com

[tammypinca]

Thank you so much for your reply! Sorry I did not thank you earlier.....last three days have been busy ones at our house.

Sounds like we are doing crate rest the proper way. We are half way through now. Hopefully both Hazel and her humans will survive the next 4 weeks. It's hard for Hazel because she sees her sister having an normal life outside of the crate. However, as soon as Hazel is well enough both dogs will be crated together when we are not home or in bed. We are already working on training her sister not to jump on furniture and thinking of ways to block the couches and chairs. Hard habit to break since for the last 5 years both dogs were allowed to be on furniture and beds.

Again, thank you for the information. It is very much appreciated!

Tammy