Is this a sign of hope, or just reflex?

[Mom2AnnaBelle]

Hi everyone! To refresh your memory, my mini poodle, AnnaBelle had a ruptured disc, emergency surgery and very poor prognosis of ever using anything from the waist down again. Her spinal cord was terribly blue with bruising when the neurologist got inside to remove the blown disc. She had lost all deep pain before her surgery, but we opted to go ahead with the surgery for the sake of trying everything we could. It has only been 7 weeks since her surgery / injury, but tonight when I tickled the bottom of her foot, both of her legs would kick. Then when I squeezed her tail, it would slightly move back in the opposite direction. I did these things repeatedly and got the same response each time. Am I just looking for a glimmer of hope, could she possibly be getting some feeling back, or is this all just normal muscular reflex? PLEASE be honest with me, don't try to spare my feelings. I really need to know your opinions! I haven't gone back to her neurologist yet because I didn't think we had anything to show....now I'm starting to wonder?????

Thanks,
Kim

[connie]

hi,
my cricket also ruptured disk and had no deep pain before surgery. that was 10 months ago. he showed refexes like those early,( good signs) and i wasn't given much hope of ever improving .
well low and behold, now he is getting deep pain again. his vet is amazed. your babe sounds like it is doing good. keep up the P.T. and try hyrotherapy. i do that for cricket in bathtub 3 times a week. i always say, he never gave up, so i must'nt either. 7 weeks is still too early to tell what your pet can do later on. every day with cricket i see something more.
i adore his vets, but i have come to realize that they don't know everything. cricket goes to the beat of his own drum.
keep up the good work , and your both in my prayers.
keep us updated, the best of luck to you both.
hugs,
connie and cricket

[Cindidoxiemom]

There really is no way to know. With no deep pain, Oscar could "kick" his feet...it was a very jerky reaction called a "mule kick response" when I pinched his feet. This was simply a reflex.

Reflexes are usually jerky, quick and strong movements. If it is pain returning, she should react to pain. If you pinch her toes, does she try to nip, or yelp?

Does she wag her tail in response to your "happy voice". "Good girl!" "pretty girl"?

Deep pain can return months and months post op...there just is no way to tell right now.

Are you doing PT, Water therapy? Acupuncture? These all seem to help post op, and your far enough out from surgery that you should be doing PT.

Cindi

[Paul Coover]

Yes, there is no way to know. It could be a sign of wonderful things to come, or it may not be. Sorry to dampen the event, but you just never know.

Our Pork Chop kicks his legs all the time, but he can not wag his tail or walk.

Johanna can wag her tail from time to time, but the nerves in her spine are gone, so she will never walk.

When Riley was down he never ave signs of anything. Then, one day, he just started walking. For more on Riley's story, visit www.handicappedpets.com/gallery/riley11/.

Every dog is different, so there is no way to tell. I wish I could say that a vet can answer these questions, but that is not the case either. I would just take every little change as an excuse to be excited over the possibility that a happy ending will eventually take place. Good luck!

[Mom2AnnaBelle]

Thank you for the responses. After I posted last night, I read some of the older ones here and did see the "mule kick" one. That is exactly what Anna Belle is doing.

I look at photos of her just a few short months ago, when she was my happy, jumpy, waggy little girl ... it's still just so hard to accept that she may never be able to run around like that again. Bless her heart though, she does *jump* with her front paws and get excited when I come in to the room. I am just so thankful that she already had such a good bond with my doxie, so she still has her sister to hang out with!

Kim

[Pam (Riley's mom)]

Hi. As a puppy my dog's prognosis was not good. They took X-rays and told me they couldn't really figure out how he was able to walk at all. That was seven years ago. I posted awhile ago that he was walking with his back legs moving independently (he used to always hop) and was even standing up on his back legs to beg for treats. His mobility differs from day to day but he has made tremendous progress for a little dog that would "never be like other dogs." Be open to the possibilities, your pet is.