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Post by ottosmom on Mar 22, 2013 17:27:25 GMT -7
Back in August of 2012, one day out of the blue for no apparent reason Otto, my 7 year old mini Dachshund, just didn't seem right. He was quiet and subdued and was not himself. It wasn't until the next day that he couldn't stand, his rear legs were weak and he just fell down. So as a Dachshund owner for 14 years (I had another Doxie who never went down) I had always heard that when this happens RUN to your vet immediately. Which is what I did and he gave a shot of steroids for pain and took an x-ray which showed the IVDD and more importantly the disc that slipped. He said if he wasn't better the next day to bring him back and we would discuss surgery. I wasn't on board for surgery and I was freaked out to say the least. I called the breeder who I got Otto from and the first thing she told me was to absolutely NOT do the surgery. It isn't a guarantee and most often doesn't work. So I started to Internet search and after many calls to different alternative veterinarians I found Dr. Babette Gladstein (www.animalacupuncture.net). We made an appointment for the next day at about 5 PM. That morning Otto was worse and I was panicked so I went back to my veterinary hospital and saw another vet. She was on the phone right away finding out if they could do the surgery the next day. She said her own dog, not a Doxie, had the same thing and she opted for the surgery and its a YEAR later and her dog is just starting to get back to normal. This was not encouraging at all. I told her I wanted to think about it and I knew I was seeing Dr. Gladstein later that day and I wanted to hear what she would say. Of course the vet told me I had a very small window to operate on Otto or he would become permanently paralyzed which terrified me. But with my mom's, husbands and friends positive encouragement I stuck to my original plan of waiting for Dr. G. My husband and I consider Otto our baby and we were willing to do whatever necessary to help him.
Otto had lost bladder function and one leg was worse than the other just like your dog. Dr. Gladstein didn't sugar coat it and told me he was really not good but she was going to try the acupuncture, physical therapy, prolo treatments and I had a lot of work to do. I had to do the stimulus treatments and the Assisi everyday preferably more than once a day. Which I did religiously. It took a long time (a least 3 months) and he began to be able to stand with assistance at first for short periods of time. I had to make the decision that if it didn't work I was okay, not happy, but okay with him being unable to walk without a wheelchair cart. It isn't a death sentence and if he lost sensation he wouldn't be in pain, yes, it would be harder but I had decided that surgery was not for Otto. I found that filling the bathtub with water and getting in a bathing suit or leaning over the side is really great therapy. When he hits the water his instinct is to kick his legs and swim. Otto doesn't like water but we did it because I saw great improvement as a result. Dr. Gladstein is a great vet and she tells you all your options and has great ideas which were very helpful. In the beginning she came several times a week then slowly we went weekly until he showed real improvement but she always told me that my work with him would be extremely important and detrimental to his walking again. I also, made 100% sure he didn't jump off anything and that he rested most of the time somewhat confined to his stroller and crate. As time and various therapies progressed he slowly started to become stronger on his rear legs and began walking and regained bladder function. I am still extremely cautious as to his activity. Now he does walk a little funny and he does have some issues with his bowels but he is so much better. His ability to walk is completely due to Dr. Gladsteins and my own work, so it does work and you can get results. I hope this helps and gives some encouragement to anyone in a similar situation.
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PaulaM
Moderator. 
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,928
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Post by PaulaM on Mar 22, 2013 21:57:50 GMT -7
Happy to hear Otto was lucky to now have his ability to walk again back. And you are right, if perchance nerves do not heal enough to bring leg function back, it does not matter to dogs how they get to point A-B. We do encourage all owners to review how conservative treatment works to ensure maximum opportunity for the disc to heal. The best chance of healing a disc is with 100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 only out to potty for a full 8 weeks …. No laps, no couch, no sleeping in bed with you, no meandering, scooting or dragging around 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 crate is the only surface that is firm, supportive for the spine, not inclining, always horizontal and keeps a dog from darting off at a TV doorbell and safe from other pets and kids from bothering them. The rest of the details of doing crate rest to ensure the best recovery in this excellent document: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htm The purpose of crate rest is to act as a cast of sorts to let the disc heal… only limited movement of STRICT crate rest allows that to happen…there are no meds to heal a disc. Immediate neuro improvement may or may not come during the 8 weeks of crate rest… as nerves may take more than 8 weeks to heal. |
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PaulaM
Moderator.
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,928
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Post by PaulaM on Mar 22, 2013 22:01:44 GMT -7
Happy to hear Otto was lucky to now have his ability to walk again back. And you are right, if perchance nerves do not heal enough to bring leg function back, it does not matter to dogs how they get to point A-B. We do encourage all owners to review how conservative treatment works to ensure maximum opportunity for the disc to heal. The best chance of healing a disc is with 100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 only out to potty for a full 8 weeks …. No laps, no couch, no sleeping in bed with you, no meandering, scooting or dragging around 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 crate is the only surface that is firm, supportive for the spine, not inclining, always horizontal and keeps a dog from darting off at a TV doorbell and safe from other pets and kids from bothering them. The rest of the details of doing crate rest to ensure the best recovery in this excellent document: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htm The purpose of crate rest is to act as a cast of sorts to let the disc heal… only limited movement of STRICT crate rest allows that to happen…there are no meds to heal a disc. Immediate neuro improvement may or may not come during the 8 weeks of crate rest… as nerves may take more than 8 weeks to heal. |
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