Rory Laura & Chester
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Post by Rory Laura & Chester on Oct 22, 2019 12:22:35 GMT -7
Doctors have found neck/disc issues, want to run MRI ☆ 1 Is there still currently pain? X reluctant to move much in crate such as shift positions or slow, ginger movements X shivering, trembling ☐ yelping when picked up or moved ☐ tight tense tummy X can’t find a comfortable position, appears restless ☐ Arched back X head held high or nose to the ground X Holding front or back leg flamingo style not wanting to bear weightX Not their normal perky selves? ☆ 2 How much does your dog weigh? 22.5 lbsA.. He is on ✙ methadone because the pain is so bad right now, ran a couple courses of carprophen 37.5mg 1x/day and methacarbamol 250mg 2x/day over the last 2.5 weeks. [Moderator's Note. Please do not edit 22.5 lbs crate rest rested on 10/5 diagnosis of disc episode? carprofen as of 10/5 ish?: 37.5 mgs 1x/day for approx 14 days stopped 10/20 methocarbamol 250mgs 2x/day ✙methodone (opiod) as of 10/22 at neuro no tramadol (opiod) on 10/5? no gabapentin on 10/5 no Pepcid AC to protect against carprofen on 10/5?]
B.. If on a steroid….what was the start date & dose? No steroids yet, took the last NSAID dose 48 hrs ago
☆ 3 -- He's been eating and drinking ok until last night when he could barely move, ate some of dinner and drank a little. -- Poop has been normal other than an occasional loose stool after the carprophen dose. No dark black or bright red blood indicating bleeding ulcers and no diarrhea ☆ 4 He's a Dachshund named Chester, about 10.5 yrs old, I'm Rory and his mom is Laura ☆ 5 They are running an MRI now but then we are pretty much out of money. Only got enough care credit for MRI but the neuro vet is pretty sure its neck/disc related. -- Is the vet a general DVM or a specialist surgeon: ACVIM neurology with a possible ortho consult. ☆ 6 Tried medication treatment last 2 weeks, went to ER last night and now neuro has him. Surgery imminent☆ 7 Can your dog specifically sniff and squat and then release urine which is bladder control - He just got really bad last night - this remains to be seen in his new condition. ☆ 8 He is still wobbly walking but winces when he turns sharply and doesn't want to stop moving. Tail wags occiasionally. The main issue is that although we've gotten this far, we don't think we'll be able to foot the surgery bill and in his condition we don't know if he'll even be able to handle the crate-rest/assisted bathroom breaks. Attachments:
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PaulaM
Moderator.
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,493
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Post by PaulaM on Oct 22, 2019 12:24:52 GMT -7
Rory, so very sorry to hear Chester is having a neck disc. With what you reported, his meds have NEVER been at the usual aggressive approach nor the full compliement of pain meds on board. No wonder pain was not in control since 2.5 weeks ago (about Oct 5th ish?) Also you did not report if you were practicing 100% STRICT crate rest to prevent the neck disc from worsening and to prevent the need for a surgery. If you are not going to do a surgery then there would be no reason to find out which disc is the problem disc with an MRI. During conservative treatment all discs are rested. If surgery is going to take, place we are also here to support you with Chester's post op recovery. As you hear more, do please keep us posted on what the surgeon says and if the pain is incontrol prior to the immenent surgery. The guest board is a temporary Guest courtesy to get immediate help until you can register. I encourage you to register and login when you can. That way all the features of the Forum are available to you, making it faster to reply and get an email alert about replies. It also makes is far easier for us to track your dog and give the best assistance. Illustrated what to expect during registration: www.dodgerslist.com/forumads/RegisterFORUM/register.htm
Worthwhile readings about surgery and conservative treatments to help you form questions for the surgeon and to ease your mind: Resources: 1. Look into Care Credit now just in case things go into crisis mode and surgery is needed. It is best to know all your options, financially and where surgery would be done, ahead of time rather than scrambling for that information in an emergency. No or low interest credit for veterinary costs can be obtained from Care Credit. You find out online if you qualify: www.carecredit.com/faqs.html2. Surgery vs. conservative information: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsurgery.htm3. Dr Isaacs, Neuor (ACVIM) on surgery: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsurgery.htm
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Post by Rory & Chester on Oct 22, 2019 12:49:55 GMT -7
Thanks Paula, I have registered and will stay involved. We/our vet honestly didn't think we were in need of an aggressive approach because he responded immediately to those two meds, and even continued improving afterward. They weren't even sure if it was disc related so we were in a holding pattern but last night he went from 70% activity level to 10% in a few hours. There was no inciting incident that we know of, but he had recovered enough that we were letting him walk around. No jumping, playing, stairs, couches, etc. but not on strict crate rest. In hindsight we should have but honestly he's been my girlfriend's dog for 5 years and I've been around for 2, so I only have (had) so much control over his care. Now that we're at this point I'll be putting my foot down, but I think she's going to understand the gravity if we get through this..
I think the reason for the scan is that we need to know how bad it is. The neuro doc said he may have detected other discs in his back, and we're exploring all options for the funds.. Loans, friends/family, and I started a gofundme gf.me/u/v64yxd to try to have the surgery. I've been through it with a sick dog before so I'm a little scared of the strength and resolve it's going to take to help him heal, but we're not giving up no matter what.
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PaulaM
Moderator.
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,493
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Post by PaulaM on Oct 22, 2019 12:54:23 GMT -7
Rory, thanks for registering. I'll move Chester's thread to the conservative board until you notify us a surgery took place. If surgery is not a financial option, then do know there is still hope that conservative treatment can work. The big IF on that is owners are up to speed on the disease. Hard to commit to what it takes to get the disc to heal if not aware of what keeps it from healing. Both of you should read this summary to get a quick overview how conservative works. This is a disease Chester was born with. Many dogs have only one episode their entire life while other can have multiples. That is why educaition is so important. This disease is very unpreditable. Here is the link: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingpage.htmKnowledge as you will see is really key to fighting the IVDD enemy.
Keep in mind the key word in the name of the disease is DISC. #1 Take a look so you can visualize just why the need to be strict about crate rest for the DISC is so important in preventing a surgery.
#2 How/why meds are used while the DISC is healing. A good review of the many things your vet may not have mentioned about his diagnosis, the Rx’d meds, crate rest, or other stuff that you may not have fully processed during that short vet visit 2.5 weeks ago. If the pain can be brought into control so Chester can heal in comfort, then conservative treatment could go forward. Highly advise reading conservative vs. surgery so you know what each of these treatment seek to accomplish. All the better to be able to understand and ask good questions of the surgeon. LINK: Surgery vs. conservative information: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsurgery.htm
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Post by Rory & Chester on Oct 22, 2019 13:14:15 GMT -7
Thanks again for all of this.. I will go through all with my girlfriend and touch base when we have more information.
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Post by Rory & Chester on Aug 12, 2020 18:47:35 GMT -7
Sorry it's been so long, between Chester, family issues and Covid it's been hard to keep track of everything but Chester is doing great. After his spontaneous improvement the night before his surgery, we brought him home, kept him in bed on trazedone, carprophen & gabapentin for about 3 months. We slowly reintroduced him to the outside world (beyond bathroom breaks) and he is now back to pretty regular activity. Obviously he can't get on the bed or go up & down stairs anymore, but he's taking walks like normal, interacting with other dogs, and generally acting 5 years younger than his age as usual. He did have a couple seizures in the beginning of the year, but we think it had something to to with occasional trazodone doses we gave him to reduce his movement when overstimulated. Both seizures occurred within 48 hours of a dose. I think we just got really lucky, and by following the advice we found here as well as a couple great veterinarians along the way, we have Chester back pretty much as happy-go-lucky as ever. Please let me know if anyone has any questions about his recovery!
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PaulaM
Moderator.
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,493
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Post by PaulaM on Aug 13, 2020 6:49:18 GMT -7
Rory, thank you very much for letting us know how things are going for Chester. I'm glad to hear that he did not need a surgery and with strict rest and meds to make him comfortable, that neck disc did heal. There are a number of things you will want to know about (dentals, ideas for blocking furniture, fun this for IVDD dogs) for living many happy years ahead with your IVDD Chester. Browse the articles here: dodgerslist.com/living-with-ivdd-tips/
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