|
|
Post by Micki & Lucy on Aug 4, 2015 20:19:38 GMT -7
Hello, my name is Micki and Im here to introduce Lucy. Lucy is a mini dox, 8 years old. She had her first IVDD surgery two years ago and recovered to full movement within two weeks. On June 25, 2015 she had her second surgery. This time she is not recovering as quickly. She still needs support most of the time and cannot walk on hard wood floors. She had both surgeries in Decatur, Alabama at an emergency clinic that specializes in IVDD. Both surgeons are renowned for their work so she was in excellent hands. Lucy was able to potty right away this time with a support scarf, that was a relief. It took her longer last time. I don't think she is in pain anymore but sometimes she does shiver or groan when picked up. She has been doing very well with crate rest these six weeks which has been a relief because last time she was ready to chew it up after about 3 weeks. This time she rests a lot but does not like the flat memory foam bed at night, she will put up with it during the day but not at night-I finally gave in and let her have her old soft squishy bed bed back and now she sleeps like the dead at night. Im going down the list here so…..Im not sure what you mean by arched back, but hers is somewhat humped up, it seems like it's getting better though. She holds her head normally and is on no meds at this time. She eats, drinks, and poops like she did before the surgery. Lucy weighs about 11 pounds. She is walking now as I noted before. Its a little wobbly but really pretty good for just 6 weeks out. Im still giving her support with the scarf but sometimes she will take off running and I let her run out of the scarf, I still have her leashed and we are in a very small fenced yard so she doesn't go far. I give her massages every day and a bath about once a week with some water massage. I hope she can eventually walk on hardwood floors because that is most of our house. We have a sunken living room so we have ramps everywhere-we have two mini doxies, Lucy is full blooded and Coco is half Jack Russell so she is stouter. It is very difficult to get them to use the ramps, however, the cat uses them all the time….lol. Any advice on training them to always use them? Lucy thought she was a ninja before her surgery and was very hard to control, even after her first surgery. The past couple of days she has been shaking her most affected back foot as if it has something stuck in it, I was wondering is perhaps this is a good thing? Like the nerves are healing? Or should I be concerned? Most of the time she is good about not dragging her feet and getting better every day. We go for two 20 minute walks around the yard every day and two full body massages every day. Is there anything else I can do to make sure she recovers as much as possible? This little girl has my whole heart and I really want her life to be fun again. I might also add that Lucy is a light eater so her weight has never really been a problem and before surgery she got really good vigorous walks everyday so she was sleek, muscular, and in great shape, I think this fact has been helpful in her recovery. I bought her a back brace from Wiggleless, thinking it would help strengthen her back and limit her movement when she is fully recovered. I don't want her to go back to her craziness. I try very hard to control her and our house looks like a rehab center with four ramps just in the living room alone but she is very stubborn and sneaky. Do you know anything about the back braces. Im a little nervous about putting it on her.
|
|
|
|
Post by Pauliana on Aug 4, 2015 21:20:59 GMT -7
Welcome to Dodgerslist, Micki! Thank you for introducing us to Lucy. We would have loved to have been a support to you during her 6 weeks of crate rest after surgery but so glad you have joined and posted now.. Here is our article on ramp training. I hope this will be of help to you in training Lucy and Coco to use the ramp. Tell them kitty has the right idea! dodgerslist.com/literature/ramptrain.htmWe have hardwood floors in our home also but we also put out carpet runners and small rugs so our Tyler who also has IVDD won't slip and slide on the hardwood floors which is dangerous for an IVDD dog. Back braces, please don't put one on Lucy. Dodgerslist has consulted with several neuro and rehab specialists. The overriding concern is that owners may buy a brace on their own thinking it will be instead of strict crate rest or think it would prevent a future disc problem. During a disc episode these are the concerns: - Getting them on without causing any more pain or damage to the spine is on top of the list. Too much movement to get the brace on is not good for a dog that you are trying to limit movement of the back. - Additional muscle atrophy in the spine is another big concern as muscle strength is very important to maintaining spinal health. - Unnecessary discomfort, pain and anxiety caused by having to wear this device tight enough to limit movement… adequate limited movement is supplied with owner commitment to safe and effective 100% STRICT crate rest 24/7. - Braces would require monitoring for pressure (rub) sores. Also, if not properly fitted (not covering from thoracic down to tail) there is the potential to create a fulcrum. It is hard to immobilize the entire back and not end up creating a fulcrum that stresses out adjacent disks. - A brace would not be a preventative measure. Disc disease is caused by prematurely aging discs…a disc problem happens at the point the disc has hardened too much. Any activity such as turning to lick a paw or putting on and off a brace could be the last straw for a disc that is no longer flexible. At this time there isn’t enough research on them for Dodgerslist to support their use with an IVDD dog. Have you discussed with her Vet about her shaking her back foot? Has she shown any signs of licking or chewing that back foot? |
|
