Fabian's Fredi 1/29 Conservative -Canada; Grad 3/27

Here are some tips to help calm your dog in the crate. If these do not help, it may be necessary to have the vet prescribe a mild sedative.

To calm your dog in the crate, it would be a good idea to cover the top with a towel. That should mellow him/her. It also creates a den like feeling that dogs love.

Using any oral calmer in combination with a Pheromone diffuser seems to work best. It takes several days for these to start working - it isn't immediate but they are a much better option if you can avoid heavy duty prescription sedatives such as Acepromazine, Trazodone, etc. Of course always keep your vet in the loop on all things you give your dog. Other product brands may be available in your area or on-line… just shop by the active ingredient(s) on the label and the quantity for best price.

Place a DAP pheromone diffuser at floor level where the recovery suite is.
Dogs: Adaptil (DAP) wall plug in diffuser 48ml www.adaptil.com/us/Products/ADAPTIL-Calm-Home-Diffuser with dog pheromones

Use a diffuser with one oral calmer from below:
1) ANXITANE® S chewable tabs contain 50 mg L-Theanine, an amino acid that acts neurologically to help keep dogs calm, relaxed
2) Composure Soft Chews are colostrum based like calming mother's milk and contain 21 mg of L-Theanine.
3) Bach's Rescue Remedy is a liquid 5-herb combo to help with relaxation (Star of Bethlehem – Orithogalum umbellatum, Rock Rose – Helianthemum, Cherry Plum – Prunus cerasifera, Impatiens – Impatiens gladulifera, Clematis – Clematis vitalba)

Be aware you might be inadvertently training for unwanted behavior. To dogs rewards are: food, looking at them, talking to them, eye contact, approaching the crate, petting. So anytime you see unwanted behavior ignore it, turn your back, leave the room if you have to. Preferable is to start teaching what you do want before there is too much practice in doing the unwanted behavior. Anytime your dog is sitting or lying down quietly, give a reward. Soon your dog will see they get rewards for four feet on the floor, quietly sitting, etc.

Consider some of these ideas:
-- Many members have found a pet stroller to solve the whining problem because the stroller can be wheeled from room to room as you go about your activities. Pet strollers, however, should only be used when you are directly supervising. More details on strollers: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/strollers.htm

--Caster wheels can be added to a wire crate so the crate can be wheeled from one room to the next so your dog can stay with you.

-- Put a garment you have been wearing and have not washed in the crate.

-- Nan Arthur, CDBC, CPDT, KPACTP writes:
"According to the book, Stress in Dogs, by Martina Scholz & Clarissa von Reinhardt, the most well-behaved dogs get 17 or more hours of rest and sleep per day.
Teaching self-calming exercises can also help your dog to relax more. You can make something as simple as eye contact a very rewarding behavior that also acts as a way for your dog to “ask permission” when he wants something. When dogs have a focus and an understanding about how to behave to get what they want, they are much calmer overall. To do this, each time your dog looks at you, say, something like, “Yes!” or use a clicker to mark the second he looks at you, and then give your dog a high-value food reward. Wait for your dog to look up at you again, say, “Yes,” and reward again. Do this exercise 10 or so times and then say, “All done,” and put the treats away. Come back later and do it again until you can see that your dog is really starting to make automatic eye contact in hopes you will say, “Yes,” again and give him his reward. " [NOTE: treats should be subtracted from the normal daily kibble ration so as not to gain weight during crate rest.]
wholedogtraining.com/images/stories/Are_all_dogs_trainable.pdf

-- If your dog won’t get too excited seeing what’s happening outside, during the day try putting the crate on the coffee table or the dining room table so there will be a view out a window and a better perspective on what is going on in the house from on high.

-- Play classical music or one of the wildlife TV shows.

-- Fill a Kong with soft dog food and freeze. Put part of the dog's total daily dinner kibble in the Kong to lengthen time to consume dinner. Good low cal snacks are carrots, apples, or frozen green beans, licking a frozen low sodium broth ice cube. Good thick low salt/no fat chicken broth is full of cartilage-building proteins and amino acids. Freeze it up into cubes for easy access as you need it. Fun and keeps the body hydrated: place cubes in a bowl for licking.

If a dog is jumping up at the sides of the crate, you can lower the ceiling of the crate. Cut a piece of cardboard the size of the top of the crate, punch holes in the corners and tie the cardboard down into the crate to the level of the top of the dog's head when standing. Or cover the top of the crate with a blanket or towel, bringing the blanket/towel down to the level of the dog's eyes so when he/she jumps up, he won't be able to see anything. That may discourage him/her from jumping up.

www.dodgerslist.com/literature/EmergencyCrate%20Training.htm

Have you tried a children's playpen?

My dogs hate being created but will tolerate a pack and play.

Fabian, moving slower than normal IS pain. For a 20.5lbs dog the one pain med he is on is almost like not giving any pain med.  A disc episode is normally a painful thing. 

We side with the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) guidelines: "We can’t always know that our patient does hurt, but we can do our best to ensure that it doesn’t hurt"  www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/PDF_old/jsap_0.pdf 

Typically is takes an Rx for three different pain meds each addressing a different kind of pain. These pain meds do not stay in the system long UNLESS the vet has prescribed for an ever 8 hrs dose. Every 8 hr dose ensures than a dog stays pain free round the clock dose to dose.
- Gabapentin every 8 hrs in line with a dose for a 20.5 lbs dog for nerve pain
- Tramadol every 8 hrs as the general analgesic
- If there are muscle spasms then, methocarbamol every 8 hrs. 

What did the vet say when you contacted them? Were changes made to the meds? Please bring us up to date on any med changes. Be sure to let the vet know that you're giving Pepcid AC. The dosage should be 10 mg 30 mins before the Metacam and every 12 hours thereafter (2x/day).

There will be some restrictions after the 8 weeks of crate rest is finished but sure, he'll be his old self again and you'll soon get used to his "new normal". He'll be allowed to run. He's having a very mild episode so he should be just fine. We'll give you more information on graduation from the crate. Here's the list of things that will need to be restricted.

No more stairs or steps. Use ramps indoors with furniture and on outdoor steps to help decrease impact on the spine. How to build your own ramps
No more jumping up or down, those activities increase impact on the spine. Teach your dog to use a ramp: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/ramptrain.htm
No tug-o-war, pulling games.
No killing the prey, via shaking toys.
No zig zag running.
No rambunctious playing with other dogs.
Teach your dog to not pull on the leash
No sitting up or standing on back legs. Teach your dog to sit down rather than jump AND keep all four feet on the ground

What country are you in, Fabian?

Fredi can walk, wag his tail, and he's happy and not in pain.

He's doing very well and just give him time to heal and I believe you'll see even more progress.

Take it day by day.

Hi everyone,

I have bad news. We noticed Fredi's mood declining over the last few days, we were not sure if he was getting better or worse. Today, we definitely noticed him getting worse. He was still wagging his tail, but he was dragging his hindlegs and looked very sad and in pain.

We took him to the vet again, who confirmed he got worse and referred us to a 2nd vet for another opinion. The 2nd vet took another set of X-rays and confirmed his condition worsened and recommended surgery.

Honestly, we most likely can't afford it. The vet threw some numbers, but didn't give us an official quote. I'm going to call tomorrow again to try to get an official number, but it's not looking very good right now.

Even though the 2 vets have been expensive so far, I'm not happy with the service. The other vet today basically told me surgery was the only option, and when I asked him about laser therapy, acupuncture or even physiotherapy she plainly said no, and only asked me if I wanted to set up an out of province (!) appointment for the surgery.

I've read a lot about IVDD these days, but I would like to hear it from here. What can I expect in the best and worst case scenario? Is he going to keep getting worse until the damage "stabilizes"? Is that ever going to heal even if he loses the ability to walk? Can I do anything else to help him?

▲Gabapentin was also adjusted to 100mg, 1 every 12h for the pain.

[Moderator's note: please do not modify
20.5 lbs
Metacam as of 1/29: 9.5mL 1x/day for 14 days then 2/12 STOP to test for √ 2/5 pain/√ 2/5 neuro issues
gabapentin ▲100mgs 2x/day
Pepcid AC ??mg ??x/day]

So we went to the vet today. Fredi got bloodwork done and it was all good.

The vet wants us to continue with both meds for 2 additional weeks, since the blood tests are all good.

We are giving him the same dosis of metacam. ▼Gabapentin was changed to twice a day 25 mg. Pepcid AC every 12h, 10 mg.

[Moderator's note: please do not modify
20.5 lbs
Metacam as of 1/29: 9.5mL 1x/day for 14 days then 2/12 STOP to test for √ 2/5 pain/√ 2/5 neuro issues
                as of 2/13: 9.5mL 1x/day for 14 days, then 2/26 STOP to test for pain/neuro issues
gabapentin ▼25mgs 2x/day
Pepcid AC 10mg 2x/day]

We will continue with strict crate rest. We try to keep Fredi still, but since he has regained so much movement, he likes to move inside the pen quite a bit. 

3rd week update.

Fredi is not taking any meds anymore. He has been off the meds for around 5 days. He is still painless and improving.

[Moderator's note: please do not modify
20.5 lbs
Metacam as of 1/29: 9.5mL 1x/day for 14 days then 2/12 STOP to test for √ 2/5 pain/√ 2/5 neuro issues
                     as of 2/13: 9.5mL 1x/day for ▼3 days, then 2/16 STOP to test for pain/neuro issues]


This week we continued crate resting. He hasn't improved as much as the 2nd week, but there's definitely some improvement. He's now actively trying to sneak off the pen every time we are not paying attention, and sometimes sits right at the exit while looking at us (We always say no though).

Today when we took him out, I saw a glimpse of coordination of his back legs. He tried to take one step at a time. He also can stand on all four for longer periods of time. Every time I come home now, he stands up and barks. While I can tell he's back to being his usual self 100%, I can also tell he's bored in the pen.

Yes, stopped to test for pain and since he's all good, he's going to stay off the meds unless something changes.

Here he is today drinking water. We put his bowl on top of another bowl to make it taller.

Fredi looks so comfortable and cozy.

I'm happy he's doing so well! Great job.😀

Fabian, what a good report— off all meds and no pain resurfacing PLUS good nerve function improvement of a better gait.  You are right slick floors do not provide good traction when there is nerve damage to contend with.   After graduation, you'll see if you need to put down some rug runners on Fredi's usual flight pattern in your home... like living room to kitchen!

Keep on doing what you are doing...you are playing an instrumental roll in ensuring Fredi heals his disc for graduation day on  March 27