Welcome to the Forum Liz! Just so you know....... about any thought of putting to sleep....
Sucralfate is one kind of GI tract protector that bandaids where there is damage to the GI tract. If throwing up Pepcid AC (famotidine) in addition to sucralfate needs to be on board now to suppress acid production. Get now and keep your vet in the loop in the morning.
The usual dose of Pepcid AC (famotidine) with a disc episode is 0.44mg mg per pound every 12 hours. Pepcid AC has a very limited potential for side effects.
0.44 x 32 lbs = 14mgs of famotidine 2x/day.
You can round down to a 10 mgs dose twice a day
Ask if your dog has any health issues to prevent use of Pepcid AC (famotidine)? (doesn’t need it, we wait til there is problem…are NOT answers to your question!) If you get a “no health” issues answer, then go to the grocery store to purchase over the counter Pepcid AC containing one single active ingredient (famotidine).
Cold laser is fine, just be sure there is absolutely no Chiro adjustments on Charlie. Why? read here:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/chiropractic.htmAre there any signs of pain since only being Rx's one pain reliever?
Advocate that any of the pain meds be given 3x/day (every 8 hours).
—Methocarbamol works on the pain of muscle spasms.
— Tramadol is the general pain reliever.
— Gabapentin works on nerve pain.
There should be no sign of pain from one dose of meds to the next. Have no patience with pain as it does hinder healing. Look for your dog to be acting their normal, perky self when pain is fully under control round the clock.
SIGNS OF PAIN:
◻︎ shivering-trembling ◻︎ yelping when picked up or moved
◻︎ slow to move ◻︎ tight tense tummy
◻︎ arched back, ears pinned back ◻︎ head held high or nose to the ground.
◻︎ restless, can't find a comfortable position
◻︎ slow or reluctant to move much in crate such as shift positions
◻︎ looks up with just eyes and does not move head and neck easily.
◻︎ not eating due to painful chewing or in too much overall pain
◻︎ holds front or back leg flamingo style not wanting to bear weight
◻︎ not their normal perky selves
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY
Please do bone up on the roll of a steroid with a disc episode. A three-day course is not likley to have gotten rid of all swelling. It usuall takes in the range of 7 to 30 days (excluding any taper days). This is tricky since the vet has Buddy tapering on a Sunday when he is not open!
Dex, like all steroids, is an unusual med in that it may not be abruptly stopped. The taper just happens to be a perfect test for painful swelling for IVDD dogs! Here is how that "test for pain" taper works:
--- The vet takes a guess usually at the 7 or 14 day point that all the painful swelling might be gone.
--- The vet calls for all the pain-masking pain meds to be either backed off of stopped.
--- The vet also calls for the Dex to begin a taper to a lower mg dose/ fewer times/day
--- Your job at home is to watch for any hint of pain and report to the vet at once.
-- With the report of pain, Dex would go back up on the anti-inflammatory dose level for a bit longer to try and get all painful swelling down. All pain meds would be on board as well as Pepcid AC.
--- Getting all the swelling down can possible take from 7-30 days excluding any days that Dex is at the tapering lower dose/frequency.
-- Always have a plan "B" in place with the vet during a taper on what you should do should pain surface. A plan "B" might be an Rx you could fill or having enough meds on hand should that happen over a weekend or evening when the Vet is closed, to save an expensive ER visit.
--- For a more complete education than the above quickie outline, you will want to read these two pages:
How pain meds work:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingpain.htmHow anti-inflammatories:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsweling.htmThere is really no better education on each part of conservative treatment including the 4 phases of healing than this page. You will find a quick overall summary + links to give you the in-depth knowledge that an IVDD pet savvy parent demands.
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingpage.htmQUESTIONS--
what is the exact name of the cortizone shot this am?--
Did you get a lesson on expressing the bladder a health issue to prevent UTI's? While on Dex you may need to express every 2-3 hrs as you are learning a new skill and dex may cause increased thirst. Leaking on you when lifted or finding urine in bedding are signs that bladder control is lost.
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/Expressing.htm Learn also how to express for poop:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/Expressing.htm#poop
