Welcome to Dodgerslist! So glad you’ve joined us all. We’ve got valuable information we’ve gleaned from the vets Dodgerslist consults with and our own experiences with IVDD since 2002 to share with you!
Bailey is likely constipated because of the pain medications.. Very common, it will ease up in a few days. To help him along: Sweet potato's high fiber can firm up stools and help with diarrhea or loosen the stool to help with constipation. The amount of water in the diet makes all the difference. To loosen the stool,
add equal parts water to each kibble meal along with once a day 1 teaspoon of SWEET POTATO. Peeing only once a day is not good! The urine being held in the bladder can cause overflowing which isn't healthy for her bladder.. The urine that remains is a breeding ground for bacteria and Urinary tract infection is the result.. Small dogs usually need to go around every 4 hours but being on Prednisone can cause extra thirst which means they need to go more often about every 2 hours..
Disc disease is not a death sentence!
Struggling with quality of life questions?
Re-think things:
www.dodgerslist.com/index/more.htmIt will help us work together with you and avoid offering ideas that could cause harm or lead the discussion in the wrong direction delaying help for your dog — please share the details with us:
Is there still currently pain?
☐ shivering, trembling ☐ Arched back
☐ yelping when picked up or moved ☐ can’t find a comfortable position
☐ reluctant or slow to move much in crate such as shift positions
☐ tight tense tummy
☐ Holding front or back leg flamingo style not wanting to bear weight
☐ Nose to the ground or head held high, uses eyes only to look
☐ Not their normal perky selves?
Full pain relief is expected in 1 hour and stays that way dose to dose, round the clock. If not in control your vet needs to know asap to adjust meds.
What are the doses in mg’s and times per day given of each of the medications you listed?
Prednisone what was the start date & dose?
Date of steroid taper?
Please include the all important stomach protector such as Pepcid AC (famotidine) when taking any anti-inflammatory med (steroid or NSAID). We follow vets who are proactive against not eating, vomit, diarrhea, bleeding ulcers by giving doxie weight dogs 5mg Pepcid (famotidine) 30 minutes before the anti-inflammatory.
canigivemydog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/can-i-give-my-dog-pepcid-ac-300x300.jpg What breed? What is your name, too?
Is the vet a general DVM or a specialist surgeon (ACVIM neurology or ACVS ortho)?
Super tried and true tips for setting up the recovery suite:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htmSTRICT rest means:
◼︎ no laps ◼︎ no couches
◼︎ no baths ◼︎ no sleeping with you
◼︎ no chiro therapy "whys" --
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/chiropractic.htm ◼︎ no dragging or meandering at potty times.
1) CONSERVATIVE: The hallmark component of conservative treatment is the crate rest part. With little blood supply discs are much slower to form good scar tissue than it takes a blood rich broken bone to heal. Those weeks of a cast for a broken arm to heal is similar to the recovery suite being a kind of cast for the disc. 100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 for 8 weeks provides limited back movement to allow good strong disc scar tissue to form. PT waits til graduation day. LASER or ACUPUNCTURE for severe neuro damage is best at home via a mobile vet. Transports are always a risk to the disc of too much movement. Vet visits must be weighed risk vs. benefit for dogs with little to mild neuro diminishment during conservative treatment.
Carry to and from the recovery suite to the potty place and then allow a very few limited footsteps. Using a sling (long winter scarf, ace bandage, belt) will save your back and help to keep a wobbly dog’s back aligned and butt from tipping over. A harness and 6 foot leash is to control speed and keep footsteps to minimum as you stand in one spot. An ex-pen in the grass is an excellent alternative to minimizing footsteps with the physical and visual to indicate there will be no sniff festing going on!
We look forward to learning more about Bailey..
