Heather's Kennedy 12/15 conservative Beagle

Heather, welcome to Dodgerslist. We are glad you are here.

When he fell months ago, was an x-ray taken to rule out a vertebral fracture?  Did the vet think one of his discs had been damaged, did he say pinched nerve, disc disease, ruptured disc?

With a damaged disc from either a fall or due to having been born with a degenerative disease (IVDD) the disc needs time to heal and form good secure scar tissue.  Little movement  the recovery suite provides lets the disc work on scar formation…. it is movement of the back that can disrupt that process.

How many mg's of Rimadyl and how many times a day?
How many mg's of methocarbamol (muscle relaxer) and how  many times a day?

When Rimadyl or any other of the anti-inflammatories would be used, the stomach needs to be protected. The FDA and manufacturer pkg insert indicate gastrointestinal problems are side effects of using NSAIDs. The natural defenses of the stomach to shield against stomach acid is hindered when taking NSAIDs. Serious gastrointestinal toxicity such as bleeding, ulceration, and perforation, can occur at any time, with or without warning symptoms. Phrase the question to your vet this particular way:" Is there a medical/health reason my dog may not take Pepcid?" If there is no reason, we follow vets who are proactive in stomach protection by giving  Pepcid (famotidine) 30 minutes before the NSAID. The NSAID should be given with a meal.  Pepcid is generally considered a safe-over-the-counter suppressor of stomach acid production for a healthy dog and good insurance.  We ask that all members read about each med their dog is on or may take as a safety measure. This directory is in alpha order:
www.marvistavet.com/html/pharmacy_center.htm

If this is a disc episode, then with the mild symptoms of pain only, Kennedy would be a good candidate to recover under conservative treatment and avoid a surgery IF, if you can commit to what you have been reading AND the pain is fully under control dose to dose of the muscle relaxer or a combo of pain meds if needed.  100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 only out to potty for a full 8 weeks …. No stairs ever, No laps, no couch, no sleeping in bed with you, no meandering during potty times. No baths, no chiro (aka VOM). In other words do everything you can to limit the vertebrae in the back from moving and putting pressure on the bad disc.

The meds serve another purpose other than healing the disc.  More on the medications is here: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingpage.htm

Heather, it is possible that a disc is starting to bulge and pushes into the spinal cord where that causes is painful swelling. IF the disc has not been allowed to heal, then it is likely for the weak scar tissue to tear again. With a disc problem it takes 8 weeks to let the disc heal by limited movement which is what the recovery suite provides.


There are other diseases that could be mimicking a disc problem. An xray would be able to rule out fractures, infection or a tumor. The MRI is a the gold standard of advanced imaging quite a bit more expensive as it can show quite well both the soft tissue of discs and spinal cord and the hard tissue of bones. Normally the MRI is used to plan out a surgery and done right before the procedure. If it is a mystery as to what Kennedy's problem might be after a hands on exam by the neuro, knowing the beagle breeds diseases, etc. he may want to call for an MRI to make the best diagnosis.

If this is suspicioned by the neuro to be a disc problem, Kennedy could heal under conservative treatment and it would make no difference which disc is the problem (so that an MRI identifying which disc would not be required) as conservative treatment would have all the discs resting including the one that needs to heal. So if you are going with conservative treatment then no you do not need an MRI.

You might be using the neuro in a consultant arrangement where you are wanting to know if the meds for Kennedy are correct, if the neuro can assess with his practiced eye, specialist training and a hands on exam to confirm there is not something else going on with Kennedy that requires different treatment.

Make clear to the neuro why you are hiring him, what finances you have so he understands how to work within in your options to best serve Kennedy. The reality is that not all of us can afford every treatment, med, procedure etc. So be up front with the neuro.

Kennedy really should be carried in and out to do potty as you want to limit his footsteps as much as possible. I do know how difficult it is with a larger, heavier dog, though, as I also had difficulty lifting my Jeremy, who is about 30 lbs. Will Kennedy do his business on a pee pad? If so, you could lay a pee pad right outside of his crate door and he could just step out onto that, do his business and step back into his crate. Or if you have a patio with glass doors, slide his crate right up to the door and let him step outside to do his business. One of our members had an even larger dog and had great success with a Solvit lifting harness.

Have you started Kennedy on the Pepcid AC yet as Paula recommended? That's very important to protect his system from the side effects of the Rimadyl.

I hope that all goes well at the neurologist visit on Thursday.

Hi Heather!

Pepcid AC comes in pills only,  Original strength is 10mgs and you would need to call and ask your Vet the right dosage for a Beagle.  For our dogs that are 15 pounds and under we use 5mg which is half a tablet every twelve hours before the Rimadyl.  

There is an extra strength version of Pepcid AC but don't buy that one.. Stick with the Original strength of 10mgs..

Hope this helps!