Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

Neurological Disorders Resources. Treatment and care for pets having pain or trouble walking or standing due to spinal injuries or neurological disorders like IVDD, FCE and DM.
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critters
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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I make the Bad Boys come in about 4 to try to keep them from tussling with 'possums, coons, or copperheads.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Yikes! I didn't realize copperheads come out in the late afternoon. Supposedly they have them here, but I've never seen or heard of one.

Yesterday Pip stood by the back door and it was a nearly perfect stand. His legs and back and weight distribution were perfect, his head was not quite held all the way up.

When we come inside he's been doing something different. I carry him in and put him near the wall where we do wall walking for treats. Twice now, by the time I brought Dolly in, he had walked to the middle of the roon. He used to just get to his feet and lean on the wall or walk halfway along the wall (before I'd put the treat down), but instead he is walking in the room. It may not sound lke anything, but he does not walk indoors of his own volition (only during the treats exercise), and maybe now he is a little bit. Very cool if he's thinking, "I think I'll walk over to that part of the room", and he does it.
:trophy:
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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*shrug* I saw in a newspaper article one time that they're most active in the later afternoon, maybe because it's cooler? I've known several people to get bitten, one on 2 separate times, so I try not to habitat them.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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News you can use! :lol:
:thankyou:
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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We had some weather blow in last night. The clouds looked like hail clouds, but all we got was wind and lightning in the end. Pip didn't like the weather coming and began whining. I took him out at 10PM for bedtime potty and he was nervous. I gave him his raw diet with water mixed in, but he wouldn't touch it. I made him some dry food with water mixed in like he gets for breakfast, but he wasn't interested. This is the dog that will not drink water, but I didn't want him to go 24 hours without any fluids, because his last fluids were breakfast at 7:30AM and he was going to have to wait till morning if he didn't eat his dinner with water mixed in. I offered him a little bowl of water and he lapped 3 sips. So he skipped his dinner and missed half his daily fluids and I don't know what to do about it. I gave him extra at breakfast. This is the second time he refused a meal. It was a storm last time, too.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Hmm. I wonder if he'd eat baby food? I guess you don't have lunch meat or cheese around to try...
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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I did have baby food in the cupboard and didn't try it. He did it again last night when it wasn't stormy. He wouldn't eat the raw diet, so I tried w/d soaked in water like he gets for breakfast, but he didn't eat that either. I worried off and on all night, wondering if he would be dehydrated when I woke up.

His food was still in his playpen uneaten, but he actually seems pretty good. He did have some urine when we went outside this morning, and he did eat his breakfast which had lots of water in it.

It's possible it's something about the current bag of raw diet. We started a new bag and he had one or two patties and then this started. I opened a different bag this morning and am thawing some for his dinner tonight. If he does it again though, I think I'm going to have to call the vet. He used to really like his dinner and scarf it down. :( Could he just be tired of it? But then he should have eaten the w/d, which he ate fine this morning. I worry it's something with his swallowing. Maybe I'm missing something?

Maybe he has a cold-senstive tooth. The raw diet is always cold. But the w/d wasn't cold and he wouldn't eat that either. He's eating his treats OK when we do exercises.
:?
I've noticed twice when I was carrying him, I could feel a very slight kind of hiccup going on in his chest. That was Sunday and again Monday. But I carried him a number of other times on both days without feeling it, and didn't notice it this morning.

I showed the neurologist the video of how he can't drink back when he got his diagnosis. She said it had nothing to do with the cervical injury and would need to be checked with a scope. I called my vet and they don't do that kind of exam with a scope. He'd have to go to the specialty hospital and I haven't been there since they changed hands. It would require anaesthesia.

It is really limiting and concerning when you normally put a bowl of water for your pet and assume he will drink if he's thirsty, but that doesn't work with Pip. We're fine if he's getting it in his food twice a day, but last night he didn't again.

Theoretically I could give him fluids when this happens. I've got a bag on hand. I don't know how he would react. I'm not sure how much feeling he has in his shoulder area. HIs skin's nice and loose. I don't know, maybe it's not a problem. Maybe a dog can drink once a day occasionally and be OK. But I don't want him getting crystals or anything.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Yes, I agree about crystals, especially after that freaky neurogenic bladder that Buddy got after his crystals. I think I'd stick him if it were me; it won't cost anything, and the bag won't stay good forever anyway.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Yeah, it's things like that that worry me. He's been paralyzed a year now, though he's got a lot back and you couldn't really call him paralyzed, but he has residual effects. I look at him and he looks strong and healthy. But I worry, "Am I missing anything?" Last night I fixed his dinner out of the new bag of patties and he ate it. He seems perfectly good today.
:pardon:
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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:hurray:
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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At 8:30 I took the dogs out and let Pip do his business(es) and run from the back of the yard to the door. After a bit I put him at the back to run to the door again. He got to the door and as soon as he stopped he began doing his breathing thing. He does not hang his tongue out to pant, he just seems to breathe in his nose, then opens his mouth enough to breathe out, so he is opening and closing his mouth with each breath kind of like a goldfish.

I knew that was his way of panting so I needed to take him in right away, which I did. Then I got on the computer to see what temperature it was outside. It was still 98! No wonder he was "panting".

I've been wanting to get something in his vet record and possibly make a sign over his playpen to tell people what to look for. I'm worried if anything happens to me, nobody will know that he overheats, or what his panting looks like. I've never known a dog like this before, that pants like a goldfish. He can open his mouth wide when he yawns. He can't drink water and I have never seen him hang his tongue out even a little. The neurologist said the swallowing thing has nothing to do with his paralysis.

9/15/22 EDIT: 3 months later in September he was diagnosed with laryngeal paralysis. This explains the goldfish breathing and overheating in hot weather or after exercise.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Definitely unusual, but, then wonkers don't necessarily play by the same rules that everybody else does.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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I'm afraid I'm missing something and something might go wrong and it will be my fault that I didn't find out. I don't like that he must depend on a caregiver that much to ensure he stays hydrated and doesn't overheat, it means his life is more unsafe for him. He's strong, he can bark, run and eat. The overheating is related to the cervical injury. I assume the swallowing is brain related? It can't be a stricture, he swallows food. And he gets water down when combined with food in his bowl. I make it quite soupy, the kibbles float. But I don't see how he could be a non drinker and survive to 7 in Texas before his paralysis. He'd have to be sedated to have a swallowing study. It would have to be at the specialty hospital. I'm thinking I need to do it. Maybe in July, I don't know how much it costs and I don't have tons of money right now.

EDIT: Months later he was diagnosed with laryngeal paralysis, which affects breathing in hot or humid weather or during exercise.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Yes, I agree he must've been drinking somehow.
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Re: Pip diagnosis - Central cord syndrome

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Pip is doing something new. He's been yawning. Not often. About as often as any dog. He started doing it maybe 4-6 weeks ago. Before that, it had not occurred to me that he never did it. Now he does. I've seen him do it maybe 4-5 times. I don't know if this means there is some improvement in his mouth or neck or whatever it is, since he didn't used to and now he does. He is still not hanging his tongue out to pant or cool himself. The first time I ever saw him open his mouth wide was when he began to yawn once in a while a few weeks ago. :trophy:
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