advice please!!

[chrissy14551]

i have a 1 and half yr. old lab pup that was fine at 3 am when i awoke at 7 am she was partially paralyzed in her back legs we took her to vet and she said she had ruptured disc in her neck sent us home with prednisone for her and for us to hope for the best....has anyone experienced this? what can we expect? what could her outcome be?

[BethT]

The one thing that I know from this board is that you need to crate rest your dog immediately. You did not mention if your vet recommended that to you. It is very important that your dog move as little as possible. Only take your dog out to go to the bathroom. Does your dog have any bladder control? There are lots of people here that can help you and will be along shortly. Many of us have paralyzed animals (I have a dog in a cart) and can help if it comes to that. But for right now the strongest advice people will give you is crate rest your dog for 6 weeks. That rest and the prednizone will help relieve the swelling of the spinal cord which right now is causing the paralysis. Were any diagnostic tests done? Was the vet a specailist? If the answer to those 2 questions was no you may want to get a second opinion. If you can give us some more information we can help you better. Please get back to us. Beth

[Cindidoxiemom]

Chrissy~
I'm glad you found us, and we will do our best to help you. I need some additional information.
1. How did they diagnosis the disc rupture? Xrays are NOT a definative way of diagnosis
2. Prednisone can be very helpful in bringing down the inflamation of a buldging disc. Are you also giving a pepcid about 30 minutes before you give the steroid? Steroids are very hard on a pup's tummy. Get some pepcid.
3. Are you observing STRICT crate rest for your dog? This means that your dog should remain in a crate, or a small confined space like a play pen. The only time the dog should be out of the crate is to potty. Crate rest should be between 6-8 weeks in length.
4. Is your dog able to FULLY empty her bladder? Many dogs with disc ruptures also suffer some degree of bladder incontinence. If your dog is having problems urinating , you will have to assist her by expressing her.
http://www.handicappedpets.com/Articles/express/
5. If You do not see improvement, or if she gets worse, you really MUST get her to a neurologist. Sometimes strict crate rest and steroids are enough to help the dog recover, sometimes they are not, and the dog requires surgical intervention. Sometimes the dog remains paralyzed, but there are ways of handling that as well. I have a paralyzed dogger myself!
6. I recommend you join Dodger's. It is an forum that was created to help dogs with IVDD.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Dodgerslist/messages Most of the dogs are dachshunds, but we help ALL dogs there. Stop by!

Try not to panic...it is too early to tell what the ultimate outcome of this will be. I will tell you, that you really need to keep her in her crate and resting.

I will also say that I find it a bit odd that they say the herniated disc is in her neck, but it is her rear legs that are effected. I would encourage you to get a second opinion with a neuroligist.
Once you are sure that this is IVDD, and she has gone through her prednisone and crate rest, I can offer acupuncture, PT and other therapies that might help.

Paul and Connie also have IVDD puppers and are EXCELLENT sources of information. I'm sure they will post shortly!
Hugs,
Cindi

[chrissy14551]

actually i do not think she is as bad as i made it sound at 1st. she has bladder control yes it takes alot but i can get her to her feet to go outside, so i think she is having partial paralysis right now? the vet mentioned an mri but would cost 1000 dollars so for now she said complete rest(did not mention crate) and give it a few days on the prednisone, if that does not work we will have to go back and discuss other options like a 3000 dollar surgery she is like my child we love her dearly but we live paycheck to paycheck.

[chrissy14551]

no tests or xrays.....the vet just made her walk and because its affecting her hindlegs and 1 front paw suggested it was the disc in her neck...i did not know about the crate rest we have one and will use it. thankyou for the encouraging words and advice we just found out today at about 3pm so im very upset we love her dearly and hope to not lose her.

[Cindidoxiemom]

Chrissy~

Try to stay calm and remember that she will worry if she sees you worrying. Get her the things that make her feel comfortable...her blanket...toys...chewies etc to put in her crate.

Even IF and that is a huge IF she doesn't fully heal...hon...she can still have a VERY good life. Lots of us have wheelie dogs.

IF she gets worse...or dosen't improve...or shows too much pain...you will need to take her to a neuro to have further testing done. MRIs, Myelograms or CTs can diagnosis IVDD and the degree of damage. I understand the tests and surgery arn't cheap, I have gone through it 3 times now with two of my dogs. I'm single and on a very tight budget, so I completely understand. There are financial programs to help. Credit care is one of them.

Take a deep breath....get her comfortable and get some rest.
Cindi

[chrissy14551]

thankyou so much, you have all been so kind......i will follow your advice and hope for the best

[FYI]

Guidelines for crate rest

[connie]

hi chrissy,
so glad you found this site. i have a little yorkie mix , he had a ruptured disk in back in nov. 2005. i had to take him to memphis tn. cause they don't do that surgery in arkansas near me. anyway, your vet should have done a myelogram,my two vets said that was the only way to tell where disk was ruptured and how bad. it wasn't cheap, but this vet let me pay the surgery bill out monthly. it never hurts to ask.
and important info!!! like others in here said, PLEASE CRATE!!
vet told me if we had known sooner that it was cricket's disk and we had crated him, he could've healed without surgery.
only take your baby out to potty . if your vets don't want to do tests, i'd advise you to find another. my cricket had the surgery, and he is wonderful, was spinal walking in months. and now after almost 10 months, he is getting deep pain back in hind legs , vet said. but i had to CRATE cricket for 6 weeks after surgery. right now, don't let your babe move around. and make sure the bladder is completely empty. a lot of times, we think they have peed enough, but they don't and they could get an infection . i still have to empty cricket 4 times a day.
ask vet to check on bladder for you also.
please keep us updated, we care. i know this is stressful for you, i been that, done that, but it will get better in time.
i never regret a minute or dollar i spent saving my boy. it is taking me years to pay off cricket's surgery. but when i come home and he meets me at door with slurps, my heart aches with joy.
so get vet to run tests, and CRATE REST!!!!!!
MY PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU BOTH!
hugs,
connie and cricket

[chrissy14551]

ty for your kind words and advice i will keep you posted on her progress

[FYI]

LabMed financial aid

Labrador Lifeline financial aid

Other sources of financial aid