Unsure on what accurred /can't afford vet visit

[Jibonilla]

This is a huge ordeal that accurred so for the sake of time I'll try to shorten it the best I can.

We are caring for a Malamute that is somewhere between eight and ten years old (wife thinks 8 mother in law thinks 10.) He is my wife's grandmothers dog, she was deemed unfit to live on her own and was placed into a elderly home. We offered to take the dog but we're informed that roughly two weeks ago the dog had collapsed and is now unable to walk (dragging its hind legs, can still stand on front.) We have been caring for Him since Saturday and he has made some progress from simply dragging his hind legs to having a bunny hop and now it seems he is attempting to walk on them again. Our situation is that we do not have the money for vet visits because I was recently laid off work and will not be starting a new job until the 22nd of this month. If he has had a stroke i feel it may require some physical therapy or farther tests to verify no damage has been caused. I believe he does have feeling in his hind legs as he kicks his foot when you scratch his belly and is trying to hop/walk on them again. I wouldn't describe his bathroom usuage uncontrollable but he has been urinating on himself (I feel due to the way he is unable to stand on his hind legs or move them accordingly) he does move away from where he lays to releive himself though.

This is all I can think of at the time I hope it isn't a jumbled mess of thoughts. If I think of anything else I will add it. If you can think of anything else I can do / check I will do it asap.

[CarolC]

There's no way to be sure exactly what is going on without tests, and I am not a vet, but because of his improvement I would say you have reason to be optimistic. There are a lot of things that can cause sudden loss of mobility in a dog. One common possibility that would fit what you describe is something called an FCE (fibrocartilaginous embolism), also known as a spinal stroke. It comes on suddenly, and the great majority of dogs recover from it. It tends to come with no pain, or pain only in the first couple of days. If your dog seems to have no pain now, that would be a good sign. There are other things that could cause sudden loss of mobility, such as infection, a traumatic injury (a fall for example) or a disk problem. The disk problem would normally be painful and you might notice signs of it before the dog actually goes down. If he developed a disk problem 2 weeks ago, I would probably expect him to still be uncomfortable with it. Some older dogs have more general conditions such as arthritis or bone spurs or spondylitis, but I think you would have noticed symptoms before.

Since you did not have the dog before this happened, you probably do not have much background on whether he had any symptoms before. I am not clear on where he was between the time his owner was admitted to assisted living and the time you got him. Was he at a vet, or was someone going over and feeding him in her house, or was he staying with a foster? For example, if he was staying in a different house he was not used to, and doing athletic moves he did not do when he lived with your wife's grandmother, such as jumping off a porch or out of a truck, that might help explain what is going on. A dog that is getting older could easily "overdo" and get a sports injury, just as a human can when we suddenly start doing something we are not conditioned for. If it was an FCE, there is usually no known cause of that. Sometimes it happens during athletic activity, but often it just happens for no known reason. Whatever the cause, if he is already bunny hopping at 2 weeks, that is great.

If he knows he needs to urinate, that is also a good sign. I think you might do best if you can buy or create some kind of sling to help him get around. If you can help steady him for assisted walking, it would probably help him regain his mobility. It is OK to steady him by holding his tail if you hold it at the very base of the tail (the root), this is not that same as "pulling the tail" which we are told not to do when we are children. The only thing about holding the tail is, you are bending over, so a sling or harness would be better. Some people loop a bath towel under the dog's belly to help him walk. An old towel that is not thick will be easier to grasp in your hand. With a big dog something like a saddle girth (from a horse) might work, or cut up a canvas bag so it will support him under the belly and you can hold him up by the handles. Even a firewood carrier can be used if the dog is big enough.

From what you describe, I would be optimistic, it sounds like he is improving well.

[jd]

Hello Jibonilla,

Just happened to see your post and am sorry to hear about your wife's grandmothers dog. Because we've been searching around for wheelchairs and information I do have a couple places that you might check out. One gives sources for free wheelchairs...the other free or help with veterinarian bills or possibly help with a referral to some free animal clinic who might look at him. I've also read that the Humane Society offers reduced fees for treating animals whose owners are at the moment low on cash.
It might be of some help to you guys.

With 5 animals of our own we realize it's not cheap to find the care you need sometimes. I hope you don't give up on him tho. Hopefully one or the other of these sites will lead you in the right direction and also that I haven't seen your post too late.

http://lessonsfromaparalyzeddog.com/whe ... ary-bills/

http://lessonsfromaparalyzeddog.com/two ... eelchairs/


All the best to you and your malamute..they are such cool dogs.

Mack