Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

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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vermontluvr
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Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by vermontluvr »

Hello all - I am new to this forum and have been very appreciative to find this site after our beloved Pippa became paralyzed almost 3 weeks ago. Pippa work up paralyzed after coming up lame the night before while running for her ball. That morning our vet told us she was deep pain negative and we needed surgery within the first 24 hours to give her the best chance at recovery. We found a neurologist who confirmed through a MRI that she had ruptured a disk at T13/L1 and that the disc rupture had compressed her spine by 85% at that spot in her spine. He was able to remove all of the disk material that day and Pippa has been on crate rest since, starting therapy this week. Our neurologist told us at the time of surgery that she had a 50% chance of recovering mobility but if she didn't walk within the first 2 weeks after surgery, her chances diminished to just 10%. Although she hasn't walked or moved her legs purposely, we have seen so many things that give us hope: she licks her legs and toes constantly over the last week; her legs tremble sometimes after therapy, she has sensation between her toes now, we have seen some tail movement, and after removing the catheter yesterday she voids on her own when we take her out. We want to believe that these indications are meaningful and indicative of her regaining sensation and ultimately mobility, but we have no experience with this and would appreciate your feedback. Also, we were told to start therapy this week and are doing daily exercises, hydrotherapy in our pool, and a weekly acupuncture/laser therapy with a local vet. Is there anything else we should be doing? Your feedback is greatly appreciated, and if you have had similar experiences we would really value hearing your experience, strength and hope!!
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CarolC
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by CarolC »

Hi vermontluvr,
Replies in blue...

:gang:
vermontluvr wrote: Sun May 15, 2022 6:55 am Hello all - I am new to this forum and have been very appreciative to find this site after our beloved Pippa became paralyzed almost 3 weeks ago. Pippa work up paralyzed after coming up lame the night before while running for her ball. That morning our vet told us she was deep pain negative and we needed surgery within the first 24 hours to give her the best chance at recovery. We found a neurologist who confirmed through a MRI that she had ruptured a disk at T13/L1 and that the disc rupture had compressed her spine by 85% at that spot in her spine.

The report after my dog's surgery said, "A severe fracture luxation at T12-13 has been repaired. There was 100% overriding of the spinal canal at the T12-13 junction." She learned to walk again.

He was able to remove all of the disk material that day and Pippa has been on crate rest since, starting therapy this week. Our neurologist told us at the time of surgery that she had a 50% chance of recovering mobility but if she didn't walk within the first 2 weeks after surgery, her chances diminished to just 10%.

I do not know where those figures come from. :? There have been a "zillion" dogs here who walked later, or much later, or even much, much later than that. Every case is different. Every dog heals at their own pace.

Although she hasn't walked or moved her legs purposely, we have seen so many things that give us hope: she licks her legs and toes constantly over the last week;

Chewing is a very important thing to watch, as some dogs will injure themselves from chewing. The theory is that the dog is feeling a pins and needles sensation or a burning sensation as the nerves are recovering, sort of like if you sleep on your arm funny and it goes numb and then starts to wake back up. It is called "neuropathic pain" and is a phase some dogs go through during recovery. Dogs will lick and chew at the area and sometimes they don't stop even if they start to draw blood. I would put a cone collar on her immediately and ask the vet for medication (usually gabapentin or pregabalin) to prevent her injuring herself. I am copying some information from another post. The original post was even longer and contains links to sobering stories of dogs who injured themselves. If you have time to read a long post, I would recommend it because this is such an important topic.
:book:
Here is a summary of what I have picked up from experience here on the topic of chewing.
https://handicappedpet.net/helppets/viewtopic.php?p=112620#p112620 wrote:
  • Chewing is usually considered a temporary phase some dogs go through following spinal injury, however it should not be underestimated, in extreme cases it has been fatal
  • It often means the nerves are improving, but in some cases such as degenerative myelopathy it can occur as the nerves progressively deteriorate
  • The theory is the dog is feeling a pins-and-needles or burning sensation, sort of like we feel when we sleep on our arm funny and it goes numb and then tingles while it is waking back up
  • It is usually temporary, but I'm not aware of any guideline on how long it might last for any indivdual dog
  • It often occurs following a spinal injury or spinal surgery but can also occur later. There have been dogs here that developed chewing 2 years and 4 years after spinal injury
  • It can be treated with medication for neuropathic pain, such as gabapentin, pregabalin, or tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline
  • Medication is the best solution as most methods to prevent chewing will not work, however the dog needs to be prevented from chewing until the right dose of medication has been found
  • Cone collar - dogs can get out of it, helpful to tie the strings and also attach it to the dog's leather collar, use your judgment
  • Muzzle - dogs can paw them off
  • Applying bad tasting substances such as Bitter Apple or YUK-2-E - dogs will ignore it and chew anyway
  • Bandaging - dogs will chew off the bandage
  • Putting the dog in a drag bag - they chew through the drag bag
  • Making hard cover braces for the legs as described above - worked for one family, however feet and legs are not the only areas that have been chewed, especially with male dogs who may chew the penis, so a cone collar may also be needed until you are sure medication dosage is correct
her legs tremble sometimes after therapy, she has sensation between her toes now, we have seen some tail movement, and after removing the catheter yesterday she voids on her own when we take her out.
That all sounds good, and HOORAY for bladder control! :hurray: If she's got that, it's very encouraging!

We want to believe that these indications are meaningful and indicative of her regaining sensation and ultimately mobility, but we have no experience with this and would appreciate your feedback. Also, we were told to start therapy this week and are doing daily exercises, hydrotherapy in our pool, and a weekly acupuncture/laser therapy with a local vet. Is there anything else we should be doing? Your feedback is greatly appreciated, and if you have had similar experiences we would really value hearing your experience, strength and hope!!

It sounds like you're doing all the right things. Swimming is sooo helpful.
:swim:

You just want to get the chewing under control right away.

You may want to keep an eye on her urine for a while. In some cases when a dog is regaining bladder control and begins to urinate voluntarily, they may not have complete control yet, so they can initiate urination but they may actually not be getting their bladder completely empty. If you notice any odor or other changes to her urine, you may want to get an "express check", where the vet or vet tech will try to express her (squeeze her tummy to make her pee) right after she went. If they can still get some out, it indicates she may not be getting herself empty every time.

Please don't worry too much about the 2 weeks estimate by the vet. It can be very upsetting to have an expectation of a certain amount of improvement within a certain timeframe, if your dog's progress is slower. Your dog is going to heal at her own pace, and not your vet's or the surgeon's or anybody else's. Drop dead dates are unrealisitic. You may hear (or read) she should be at a certain point at 1 month, 2 months, etc. You may hear that if she isn't to a certain point by then she never will be. The truth is nobody knows because each case is different. I think it is better to celebrate each little sign of improvement, and be happy that she is continuing to progress, without looking toward an artificial deadline that may or may not be accurate. Recovery takes time, and there's no substitute for time, but it's worth the wait, and your dog sounds like she's making really good progess. Bladder control is major! :D

While you are waiting, you may want to think about any changes that might be needed at your house once she recovers. They recommend dogs with IVDD should not be allowed to get on furniture, or go up and down steps, in order to prevent future problems. So you may want to think about baby gates on stairs, ways to block off furniture, or ramps, and avoiding rough play. If you need ideas for any of those, just ask and I can find some links for you.
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critters
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by critters »

:whale: I couldn't agree more, especially about gabapentin and pregabalin as the nerves recover.
vermontluvr
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by vermontluvr »

Thank you so much for the feedback - we definitely will take the recommended steps to ensure she isn't hurting herself as she recovers, and will provide gabapentin when indicated. I am especially overjoyed to hear that there isn't a blueprint for Pippa's recovery; that there is hope for recovery of mobility - on Pippa's timeframe. We had a huge development today - while out to potty, she supported herself on her hind legs for about 5 seconds. We were able to repeat this several times for shorter periods. :hurray:
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CarolC
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by CarolC »

Woohoo!!! Yay! Pippa! :hurray:

What kind of dog is she?

:trophy:
vermontluvr
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by vermontluvr »

Pippa is a dachshund mix - a little bit of boxer in her face, a little bit or corgi in her stance/paws - with a brindle coat. Truly unique and quite a powerhouse for a small dog!!
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CarolC
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by CarolC »

That sounds cool! I love it when you have a one-of-a-kind dog. :D Corgis and doxies are both breeds that sometimes have disk problems. The boxer is interesting! :D Glad she isn't too big.
coxmaria3
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Re: Newly Paralyzed Dog - Rehab Advice and Feedback

Post by coxmaria3 »

:strobe:

Go Pippa! Hope she has continued her good progress. If there's one thing I've learned, there is no blueprint for this kind of recovery. You are in the best, supportive place! This board saved my sanity!
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