Hi Everyone,
Just found dodger's list a few days ago on an all nighter researching spine issues/injuries and IVDD. My name is Becca and my dog is Lucy, 12 yo. She weighs
19 lbs she is a pug and I received a probable diagnosis of disc disease on Thursday 12/5 but not 100% confirmed as I refused the myelogram and they did not offer MRI/preferred myelogram. My vet did not offer conservative treatment as an option as rupture was his concern but suggested surgery, put her on Pred & Tramadol until a decision was made and called the spine surgeon he consults with to discuss, who I later called as well to discuss so I could understand the condition.
Lucy has never been a complainer so there were
no super obvious signs of pain like shivering and yelping but more subtle like
reluctance to go up or down stairs,
stiffness in legs and body, reluctance to move,
rests/sleeps a lot, reluctance to jump up or down (my other 12 year old pug is much more agile),
heavy panting at times,
swaying of legs when walking. She'd always had something obvious going on with her back legs but
vet always said it was just arthritis until I took her for acupuncture for arthritis and
acupuncturist said she had a spine issue for sure when he watched her walk as he could see there was a
proprioceptive deficit.
Meds as described are
Prednisone 5mg to be given 2x day for a week, 1x day for 5 days then 1/2 every other day until finished.
Tramadol HCL 50mg half tablet 2x day.
Lucy can currently walk though
wobbly and
sometimes falling but fairly well considering. Tail wagging has never been an issue. Neither has barking for food
Found wet bedding for the FIRST time ever in her life the first day pred was started. Haven't found any since.
Eating and drinking are great,
Poops are fine though she has a little trouble getting too far from the ground and on bad days sometimes
falls over when potting 
We go
tomorrow for a consult/eval to
begin laser therapy and have an appointment with a
neuro on 12/16 (that's the earliest they had). I also plan on getting her electro-acupuncture. I'd like to know if these therapies are done in PLACE of meds and if there are meds I can use in place of the pred for her as I hate it.
I knew in researching this before seeing the vet that this is most likely what she had. I read and read and read and had already been told by our acupuncturist that there was a spine issue so knew to read up on spine conditions. When I found IVDD it clicked. When I saw my vet for her walking issues - dragging feet, slipping, falling which worsened within a 2 week period - he said his diagnosis without doing a myelogram/ was disc issue. When I spoke to surgeon, he concurred with my vet and said degenerative disc disease.
I plan on seeing the neuro on the 16th to discuss the fact that I have
declined to have surgery for her due to age, risks, the fact that this may recur, and simply because I feel it is the best choice for my girl given her age and to ask if she feels we should do an MRI and if she has any suggestions, concerns or guidance about conservative treatment - as well as other medications.
Any input, sage advice or thoughts are so appreciated. Thank you to all of you for providing such a place for this. You are appreciated and I am grateful. <3
~Becca & Lucy
