Amethyst's Aimee 3/4 surgery6wks — Africa GRAD 4/15

Amethyst, welcome to Dodgerslist.  First thing to know is that it is in the cards for Aimee to get back to enjoying life with you after finishing conservative treatment.  Quite often we see that many dogs are able to self repair their nerves just the same as dogs can self repair nerves after a surgery.

The surgery decompresses the spinal cord by removing the offending disc material.

Conservative treatment decompresses the spinal cord over time with the use of an anti-inflammatory drug to resolve painful swelling around the cord.  

Thanks goodness the dog's never get to hear about those dour percentages about walking again...they just get on with the business of life after conservative treatment while waiting on nerves to self heal.


Did the specialist tell you if Aimee still has the last neuro function called deep pain sensation (DPS). DPS is the function to be able to sense when there noxious/painful to the paw.

Let us know what meds she is sent home on.  Exact name of each. The dose in mgs and how often you are to give each.   NOTE: I encourage you to have an understanding of the roll an anti-inflammatory drug plays with a disc episode. Knowledge helps you to understand what the specialist is explaining to you and for you to be able to ask the pertinent questions..  Here is the link to get up to speed on steroids and non-steroid (NSAID) anti-inflammatories.  www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsweling.htm

The job you have today is to get ready for discharge day.
-- jot down all questions so everything you want to know gets an answer. Here is a start list of questions to add your to:   www.dodgerslist.com/literature/dischargequestions.htm

-- See if there are any other things you can do to make conservative crate rest go smoother with these very useful tips and ideas:
   1.  www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htm and      
   2. www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cratesupplies.htm
 
UPdate us when Aimee is back  home again!  What breed is she?

Amethyst, please keep us updated as you get additional reports. Glad to hear the surgery went well!

So glad to hear that Aimee is doing well, Amethyst.

Some dogs prefer play pens or ex-pens, some dogs prefer crates. Whichever recovery suite you choose, it should only be large enough for Aimee to stand up, turn around and lie down with her legs comfortably extended. Any additional room could be filled in with rolled up towels/blankets. Post-op crate rest is not as strict as with conservative care but there shouldn't be too much extra room so Aimee won't move more than she should.

Hope she can come home soon and be with her loved ones. Please keep us updated. Healing prayers for Aimee.

Amethyst, glad to hear she is off of morphine and likley would mean she has transitioned to oral meds she can continue at home.  That is the usual criteria to be able to come home--- being on oral meds.

There is no "normal" as to when neuro functions come back. Each dog is different, each disc episode damage can be of a different degree. If Aimee is already trying to push up with the back legs even if not successful, then that is very good.

Nerves heal typically in the reverse order of the damage to the spinal cord:
1. YES! Deep Pain Sensation (Only correctly identified by a specialist.)
2. YES! Tail wagging with joy at seeing you or getting a treat or meal.
3. YES! Bladder and bowel control verified with the "sniff and pee" test.
4.  YES Leg Movement, and then   ? ability to move up into a standing position, and then ? wobbly walking.
5. Being able to walk with more steadiness and properly place the feet.
6. Ability to walk unassisted and perhaps even run.
More info: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingnerves.htm

What do they say about her bladder control?

What date is discharge expected? IF she doesn't have bladder control on discharge day, you would get will get more out of a hands-on-top-of-your-hands type of expressing lesson by first reading and viewing the video at this page: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/Expressing.htm

I'm very glad to hear that Aimee has regained bladder control, Amethyst. Wonderful news!

I'm very baffled, however, by the specialist wanting to keep Aimee in the hospital until she can stand.
Her ability to stand may takes weeks, even months to return. It's not a reason to keep her in the hospital. Dogs heal much better at home surrounded by their loved ones. Usually we see a dog stay in the hospital post-op for 3-4 days. Your surgeon's instruction regarding this is very unusual.

Hi, Amethyst. Here's our page on how to set up a recovery suite with our recommendations for a mattress. You want something flat, firm and not too high for her to step up onto.

www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cratesupplies.htm

I am happy to hear that Aimee is doing well.

Sometimes dogs do not regain full bladder control for a while after surgery. She can come home before that, but you would need to have a hands-on lesson in expressing from the vet prior to her discharge. Dogs usually do better at home so waiting for Aimee to have bladder control before she is released should not be necessary. Learning to express is just a matter of practice. I was really nervous when my Frankie came home from his surgery without bladder control and I knew I wold have to express him but I practiced and I learned. You will be able to learn too, should Aimee come home before she regains full control.

Amethyst....happy, happy day! Aimee is probably as happy as you are to have her home. She has really made quite some recovery taking some footsteps now. Sounds like she will have even more improvement in nerve repair and retraining muscle/nerve coordination to get back to a more normal gait. Time and patience will have that happening!! Thank you very much for the wonderful update.

Trembling is a sign of pain, Amethyst. It can take 2 weeks for the swelling from the surgery to resolve so she could still have some pain. It's always best to let the surgeon know if you have any concerns such as this. Please let us know what they say after speaking to them.

Since Aimee has bladder control, you should take her out as often as you would have before her injury. Take her out right before bedtime and first thing in the morning, then at least once more during the day. It's fine to take water away at night time but she should be drinking as much as she previously did. If she needs encouragement to drink, you can give her some low salt chicken or beef broth.

Amethyst, some things we do not know about that could relate to not pooping:
-- while she came home yesterday, Mar 14, with no meds, she may have been on constipating meds til yesterday at the hospital. So that could be a reason for not pooping constipation. In that case for constipation you would make sure each meal is soaked in equal part liquid PLUS giving 1 teaspoon of plain pureed canned pumpkin once a day. NOTE: alternatives are really ripe mashed fresh pear, just take off the peel off; microwaved and mashed peeled sweet potato.

-- she could be in pain and not want to get into the poop position. You have mentioned she has shown you signs of pain by trembling when lifted. What did the surgeon or your vet say about this pain when you reported it yesterday? What did he prescribe? It is not unusual for it to take 14 days or so post op before all painful surgical caused swelling is fully gone. Til then pain meds should be on board.

-- Is she eating the normal amount of food each day?

Alternatives for constipation are really ripe mashed fresh pear, just take off the peel off; microwaved and mashed peeled sweet potato.

What are they doing to treat the stomach ulcer? That may have occurred from the meds given in the hospital if a stomach protector wasn't given. Sucralfate does a good job in healing ulcers. I believe it's called Ulsanic in Pakistan. If they haven't given her anything to treat the ulcer, do advocate strongly for the addition of Ulsanic. If you do see signs of pain, do know that pain meds can be given with a stomach ulcer. It's the anti-inflammatory that can cause or aggravate a stomach ulcer.

Good to hear that she's eating. No vomit? —Poops OK? Normal firmness & color -no dark black or bright red blood indicating bleeding ulcers? No diarrhea?

Amethyst IF, indeed, Aimee has stomach ulcers then you should be giving the Ulsanic now! Ulsanic (sucralfate) works by making a gel coat over the areas of the stomach lining that have been damaged. That kind of bandaid, provides a special invironment so that the ulcer can better heal in.

Please read about Ulsanic's ingredient so you know how to give it regarding food: marvistavet.com/sucralfate.pml


Amethyst, you'd need to have observed her in a playpen to know how she acts and might act when you leave home. Otherwise a wire crate is the very safest and secure of recovery suites.

We read what you wrote Mar 15 literally: The vet doesn’t want to give her meds because she HAS a stomach ulcer.   So then if she currently has stomach ulcers then you would give Ulsanic.

Your vet has examined Aimee and is indicating in his answer today that the ulcers have now healed.

Yes, it sounds as though the ulcer has now healed. Since Aimee is no longer on any meds, it's unlikely that you'll see any further signs of an ulcer. Signs of an ulcer is not wanting to eat, vomiting, diarrhea, blooding stool. But it sounds as though she's doing very well!

Do try to read up on IVDD and learn all that you can so you actually become a mini-expert yourself. IVDD is a life long disease so at any time during Aimee's life, another disc could deteriorate to the point where it ruptures or tears. You'll need to recognize the signs of a new disc problem so you can immediately crate to protect the spine until you can get her to a vet. Start your education here:
www.dodgerslist.com/healingindex.htm

Here are some tips on how to make your home back friendly to help protect Aimee's spine once she's off of post-op crate rest that you can start getting ready for:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/protectback.htm