Please help new to this Skipper my dog is lame both back legs

[kandykane]

I am not going to do the traction exercises - too scary for me
I'll stick with massages and Skipper being grounded for now

I do have inversion table for me and my back and neck, it does help when I'm in real bad pain
But it's me doing it to me and I can tell myself nope not now

I don't want to do traction to Skipper he can't tell me no no no and I really don't want to do anything to worsen matters, I do like this Vet so far he did take his time with Skipper and seemed to care about what he was doing not just with Skipper but the other pets he was seeing

I did give Skipper 1 of his favorite treats this morning and his tail did move a little not pushing anything gonna let time do it's thing and keep Praying and hope for the best

[CarolC]

That's a relief to hear. And that is wonderful to see a little movement of his tail. It kind of doesn't matter how long it takes, as long as he's headed in the right direction. Whew!

I don't know why I thought you might have back problems, but I was worried that even if you didn't, it's important to be careful. If you have a history of it, then I totally 100% support being careful. And I just realized, if you have a good chiropractor in your home town, and now you are living in a different town to take care of your sister, not only do you not have your regular vet, but also you don't have your regular chiroproctor who you trust and who knows what works for you. My chiropractor I've had since the 90's moved out of state (I'm happy for him) so now I don't have one and I've been looking. With my old chiropractor, I could get in almost any time. But I need to find one now before I need one really bad and find myself stuck without one. I want to find one and go for a minor adjustment a few times to see if I feel OK with him. By doing that now, then hopefully I'll already have one if (when) something comes up. Just for example, I dislocated a rib caring for my 63 lb dog and went to the chiropractor several times for that, thank goodness I had one! But it did make me unable to properly care for even my small disabled dog for a while. It is harder to find time to take care of yourself when you are caring for 2 patients.

[kandykane]

I know it is going to take time, just every little sign is good, sure glad I found this forum and you are a great help Thank You so much, you'll never know how much it means, but ya you probably do

I was hit by a drug addict years ago, flipped my car don't know how many times, lucky for seat belts, for some unknown reason the air bags didn't go off, I was lucky to walk away (crawl) with what injuries I got and of course they didn't have insurance and Thank God for good people who stopped

My pain management Dr. referred me to 1 here and sent him my records, I haven't tried a chiropractor have gotten shots in my back and I joined a gym here for $10 a week so I can go use their pool, hoping to go tomorrow morning after I get Skipper and my sister settled for a while need a little me time don't get it to often but I know when I am getting to that point that I need to stop, took me many years to say yep need me time, felt guilty at first but now I knew I got to

Ha I am trying to design a doggy wheel chair just in case, don't want it to come to that but then thought while he is healing and he does start using his legs still don't want him to over do it, looked at the prices and they are expensive and maybe will help get him motivated and his super duper grounded is dine

[CarolC]

Three cheers for 'me' time, that is so right. There is a saying here, it's like being on an airplane, in an emergency when the oxygen masks drop down, they tell you to put the mask on yourself first, then your kids. You have to take care of yourself first so you can care for your pet (or in this case pet and family).

That's a good deal, $10 a week. The cheapest place I've found here is $65/m which is closer to $16/week. The accident sounds horrific. It was sure good planning when you had the doctor give a referral and transfer your records. I've been rearended a number of times (nothing like what you are describing) and the thing that does me the most good is breast stroke. I've been wanting to start again but right now I'm trying to get a swimswuit put together, the last one wore out.

Hope your 'me' time can include something else you would enjoy, some kind of treat. There were 2 things I used to do to get out of the house. I would go to the mall and buy a diet coke and just window shop, I think the walking was good. Or I would go to a restaurant and get a lunch special or maybe just a piece of pie, and sit and look through a magazine or catalog because I was too distracted to actually read anything. Somehow it was SO luxurious to have someone waiting on me, even if it was only just stopping by to refill the iced tea and ask if I needed anything. It's such a lift, because THEY'RE taking care of YOU. When you're spending all your time taking care of someone else, it is wonderful to have someone else take care of you even in a small way. There are so many things you could do. Go to the library and check out DVDs. Go to the craft store or thrift shop and see what they have. Walk through the aisles of Home Depot. That's kind of 'me' time because it's fun.

I guess your sister has tools there because you got the ramp put together. Easier working with your own tools. Even if he turns out not to need a wheelchair, you would have it in case he needs it when he gets older.

Yeah, I kinda know how it's nice to have people here to fall back on or bounce ideas off of. I was alone with my paralyzed dog for 3 months and a week before I found this forum. Then when I started reading the posts I even liked reading the ones that had nothing to do with what I was dealing with with my pet, because they were written by people who really cared about their pets, and that's the same whether the pet is paralyzed or blind or whatever the case may be.

[kandykane]

Thank You had a fantastic day
went swimming, did grab a bite to eat and did find a great thrift store, was talking to a lady while swimming and she said when you feel like leaving here she'd take me to the thrift store she goes to, it is part of the animal control here, fantastic store and all proceeds go to the animals and cheap prices, got a few things, very nice people, talked with the man that runs the store told him what was going on with my dog, says they occasionally get items in that might be of assistance to me, so gave him my name and number and he could call or send pics and I could tell him if he should hold it for me cause I just can't drop everything and come to the store, no problem and yes of course I think just about every time I go out it is either home depot or Lowe's
We all got tools to work with, my Dad said growing up no use depending on a man to do what you can do and my Ma was handy with tools also, even worked on her own car till about 2 years before she passed away and I kinda find it relaxing and get to enjoy the out come

I get lost reading other peoples posts here, so many people have such experiences you can learn by and how how they Love their babies, some my heart goes out to big time

Was nice and quiet when I got home both a sleep and looks like they slept away the day, So I'm gonna start fixing supper and wake em both up

[CarolC]

That is great! Hopefully swimming can kind of unkink things when you've done a lot of lifting and bending. And thrift shops are my favorite place for dog blankets and other lucky finds. Now if you can just find a nice flea market...

You know, swimming is good for dogs, too. By the time he is off crate rest it will be....close to the end of June, depending on how he is progressing and whether you are doing 6 weeks or 8. Anyway, with him being more long than tall, he could probably swim in a cheap back yard pool later this summer if he needs rehab. I haven't priced them lately but they used to be pretty cheap. I was thinking, then you'd have to lift him in the pool, but if you already made a ramp for 4 steps, then making a ramp for an 18" pool would be easy compared to that. Dunno, just a thought. It doesn't have to be deep enough to actually swim (though that's nice if you can manage it). But it's still good if it is just enough water to help support the dog a little to walk around. He may not need it, but if he does, it will be a good time of year for it, lucky it's not winter. Don't know if you have seen Poppy?

http://www.abledogs.net/poppy.html

This link is about the underwater treadmill but I think the information can apply to a backyard pool, too. It shows how much support the dog gets with water at different levels.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=20404

[kandykane]

Yes I was reading the posts on Poppy, looks like a sweety
also was reading your posts on Dolly is that Dolly on your website? good writing
thinking maybe should do that with Skipper, will help me think and remember what is what

I was thinking of a small pool, and Skipper does like the water, I know I feel so much better after swimming and figure it would be good therapy for Skipper but not yet your right he has a long ways to go

Question though today I took Skipper out to do his business and his rear legs were crossed for a bit never seen that before is that normal or is this a set back, he was a little acting up before hand had to tell him you stop being a turd

Tomorrow here it is gonna rain all day so making a pee and poop area better in the house
Mowed the grass today that relaxes me too, I like sitting back and enjoy the smell most times of fresh cut grass and safer for Skipper and me and my sisters house is surrounded by woods, like it cut short in case of snakes and who knows what else may come in the yard, did have 7 deer in the back yard couple days ago,5 were babies so sat with my coffee and watched em play and eat

His poop is back to normal I did buy poop pee diapers/pads and it's nope not putting them on me, he may not have use of his back legs but his front legs make up for it and he is a bull, if he don't want to do it he's not doing it, think he gets that from me haha stubborn and not going to stress him out

I'm a thifty shop addict, yes I wish there was a good flea market close, I hate going in stores and paying full price, I know something ya got to but, I bought a solid wood desk at the thrift shop and using the wood for projects, some people see furniture I see solid wood I can use that guess thats just me though

[kandykane]

I like the swim therapy
a bottle of wine sounds good
and treat floating toys
man I'm learning so much Thank You

[CarolC]

Nice to have it mowed before it rains!

Re crossing the legs, it is very common. From what you have seen before and now, is he using one of his legs more than before, or less? I kind of thought before he was mostly only using his left leg? Is he now using his right leg somewhat also?

The crossing is also called scissoring. Many dogs walk that way after spinal injury and it does not seem to bother them, (and who cares how it looks if it works). If they cross a lot they may tangle their legs enough to trip themselves, this is also common. I like to call the situation where they get locked "hock lock". My dog did that for such a long time--months. She was learning to walk again and would be walking and would not only cross but cross and lock and down she'd go, then she'd be dragging. She eventually learned to uncross by herself with a lot of practice. I spent months running after her calling "Uncross! Uncross!" I know someone else who has a dog with the same problem and she says, "Fix your feet, fix your feet". It's just something we deal with.

Guess the diaper bombed, huh? Well, you tried!

The dog on the website is Katie (completely paralyzed, learned to walk again). Dolly is her adopted "little sister" (partially paralyzed, dual incontinent). Dolly doesn't have a website, just her own long thread. Since you have all the posts about Skipper in one thread, Skipper has his own thread, too. I agree it is helpful to either post messages or keep a journal. It also helps other people who might be going through the same thing, either by picking up tips they learn from your experience, or just knowing they aren't the only one with the same situation.

Did your dog see the deer? He didn't bark?

[kandykane]

some what left leg, right leg was putting lotion on his toes and pads and had movement he spread his tootsies

Had me worried when all of a sudden he started crossing his legs, thought great all he needs is something else to fight and get better
He did stretch and rolled over on his back this morning, every little sign gives me hope and get scared at the same time

ha was looking at my sisters wheel chair and thought I could cut it down and make a doggy wheel chair can't do that though but gonna give it a good look over and see if I got a good used one could make it work just a thought

Didn't get all the lawn mowed she has 4 acres and can't be out there that long and figured do to much not good for me neither or the lawn mower, got the important parts though

I was outside alone when the deer were out, I like to sit out there and gather my thoughts of the day, nice and peaceful, kinda my morning talk to myself saying yep it's gonna be a good day, and plan it out some what never goes by plan though, gotta Love life

[CarolC]

To be honest I am not sure what to make of him crossing his legs for the first time after a little over 4 weeks post injury, and I don't want to say the wrong thing. My first thought is he is trying to use his weak leg more but it is simply crossing, which would not be unusual, but I don't know. He shouldn't be getting worse if he is on super strict crate rest and medication, but it isn't impossible. That's not much of an answer, I'm sorry.

If you can do it without hurting yourself, you might want to bend over and help him position his foot, or maybe you already are. I realize it is tricky when you are holding the harness with one hand already, then trying to bend over and reach with the other. They say the average dog carries 60% of his weight on the front legs and 40% on the hind legs. If he is 48 lbs, then 40% is 19 lbs, so you are supporting about 19 lbs with the harness hand. I'm sure I can find videos of dogs crossing their legs, I can think of a couple right now. One I am thinking of is kind of long, the other is a little blurry. If I can think of something else, I'll post it.

Proprioception is the ability to feel different parts of your own body and know where they are in space. With a nerve injury, there is a loss of proprioception. When they can't feel their feet very well, and when they lose some of the muscle control to position their feet normally, you see crossing. The other thing that is common is knuckling, where they kind of curl their toes under and stand on the top of the foot instead of the pads, and may seem unaware of it. There can be a period of skinned toes during recovery. That is another thing where it is helpful to correct it if you can, and put the foot in the correct pads-down position. It just helps them to relearn how to place the feet.

Just a little heads up about being outside with other animals? When I brought my paralyzed dog home from the hospital, I started out by expressing her in the grass on the theory that it would seem more natural to her. One dark night I was getting ready to express her and a cat walked down the alley on the other side of the fence. My dog took off dragging on her front legs so fast there was no way to catch her. You can't believe how fast they can go on 2 legs. She flew! I didn't realize she would do that.

[FYI]

http://www.dodgerslist.com/literature/d ... quence.htm

[kandykane]

he only crossed his paws a couple of times yesterday was good today no paw crossing
But last night I took him out of his grounded area and he moved to get a drink of water while i was making up his bedding and his back legs were crossed and i uncrossed them

Did the pinch test on his paws, fast reaction on his left side rear paw very slow reaction on his right side rear paw and it does look like he knuckles on his right side

I get carried away reading the posts on here and between Skipper and my sister, I lose track of what I am doing, seen you posted here for me last night and it was i got to lay down a few minutes and then reply to you, well I was out woke up at 5 this morning and that's late for me, guess my body told me enough is enough, but felt refreshed

I always look around outside to make sure the coast is clear cause I know if Skipper sees a squirrel he'd try to go after it, but that was something with your dog, I'd be like just what do you think you are doing you know you are grounded, but dogs will be dogs

[CarolC]

OK, well that sounds pretty encouraging. My dog had a back injury and had no feeling in her toes, but at 149 days after the injury they determined she had a deep pain response. That was one day shy of 5 months.

There are several products to help with knuckling if it becomes an issue. They make little foot braces that keep the toes from turning under. Most dogs get through it without using them, you just treat the boo-boos or some people will wrap the feet or use booties, but the braces do exist. I can find links if you get curious about them.

I had not seen that link from FYI about the sequence of losing and regaining function. At the end was a link to a bunch of cases of individual dogs' success stories, marked with whether they had surgery (S) or whether they had conservative treatment (C) like you are doing with Skipper. I haven't seen all of them but it looks like they include videos, or at least some of them do.

http://www.dodgerslist.com/monthstory.htm

[kandykane]

it is good to know he has some feeling at first I thought well he does stretch so that's good and spread his toes, didn't dawn on me they could still do that, then understood o.k. you have to do the pinch test to really see what is what, boy what ya learn along the way

Don't think Skippers paw is too club footed and he does have a long way to go, don't think I would jump right into foot braces, when he does get up and walking,it's gonna be baby steps would like him to have almost a normal life as possible, but still grounded from certain things

I have had dogs all my life and this threw me for a loop, Skipper always being healthy and this happens, tend to blame myself as I know he is 14 and I should be slowing down and playing not so hard, I think he is cooping with this better than me at times, just breaks my Heart seeing Skipper like this

I Thank You for all your help and leading me to the right tips and gives me more hope reading the recovery stories brings a smile to my face