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Post by Casey & Nathan on Apr 29, 2014 4:06:21 GMT -7
Good morning - my little red man, Nathan, began whining from the floor to be picked up and put on the couch when he would normally just jump up. His sister, Bella, had attacked him earlier in the day (playing) but scared him and I figured he was just being a baby - fast forward to the next morning, he is hiding under the bed and squealed when I tried to grab him. Instantly, I'm in tears and freaking out - so we bring him to the emergency vet who takes a look at him, says since he is still walking and barking at her (he had been there previously when he took to eating some raisins and probably remembers she's the one who made him vomit since he never barks at people) - to just monitor him, rest him, and get him to our regular vet ASAP. I am currently awaiting a vet visit (hoping for today or tomorrow) but in the meantime I am giving him baby aceteminophen and resting him - he is not one for being in a crate but has been willingly going in the crate, himself, and is not jumping on anything - up or down - I work from home so thankfully I am able to monitor him closely - but am hoping that it is just a bruised muscle and I can get him out of the crate as soon as possible. He is still excited about treats and when we talk to him - he is eating, drinking, walking, and able to use the bathroom, so if it is his back the good news is that it is definitely not advanced at this point but any suggestions on what to ask the vet, what to do, etc, would be greatly appreciated. I want to make sure that, if it is his back, I am doing everything in my power to make sure it doesn't get worse.
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Marjorie
Moderator~ 
Member since 2011. Surgery & Conservative
Posts: 5,724 
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Post by Marjorie on Apr 29, 2014 6:38:31 GMT -7
Hi, Casey - Welcome to Dodgerslist. Is Nathan a dachshund? You're doing the exact right thing in immediately crating Nathan to protect his spine, if it's indeed a spinal injury. The less movement of the spine, the better. Be sure to lift him with his spine straight. www.dodgerslist.com/literature/liftcarry.jpg. Pad his crate well for the car visit to the vet so he doesn't jostle around too much. I wouldn't give him the aceteminophen though. American Veterinary Medical Association
www.avma.org "Animal poisoning by drugs is by far the most common type of small animal poison exposure, accounting for 75% of 1990 toxin exposures as reported by the AAPCC and 82 of 425 fatalities. "Due to the significant toxicity to pets in relatively minimal dosages, the recommendation is clear — Tylenol should not be given to dogs or cats." When you do see the vet - and please do try to get him in ASAP this morning as an emergency visit - he will need an anti-inflammatory to get the swelling down, pain meds to resolve the pain, and Pepcid AC to protect against the side effects of the anti-inflammatory. 5 mg of Pepcid AC (generic is famotidine) 30 minutes before the dose of the anti-inflammatory and thereafter every 12 hours). Phrase the question to your vet in this particular way: "Is there any medical reason my dog may not take Pepcid AC?" If your vet says your dog has no health issues such as liver, heart, etc to keep her from taking Pepcid AC, then do get it on board. With this disease self education is critical not just so you make sure the right things are being done for the best recovery but for your own emotions. The unknown is simply a scary place. Get ready to fight this disease now and in the future by knowing all things IVDD. There is no better place to start than on our main web page with "Overview: the essentials" and then read all you can as soon as possible. Here's the link www.dodgerslist.com/healingindex.htm100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 only out to potty for a full 8 weeks is the SINGLE most important thing you can do to help your dog-- it is the hallmark component of conservative treatment. Carried in and out to potty. 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. www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htmSigns of pain are shivering, trembling, yelping when picked up or moved, reluctant/slow to move head or body, nose held to the ground, head held up high, tight hard tummy, arched back. Once Nathan has been prescribed pain meds, the pain should be under control within an hour and there should be no signs of pain from one dose of meds to the next as pain hinders healing. I'm surprised that the ER vet didn't make a diagnosis or prescribe any medication. Please let us know what your vet says and prescribes so we can support you further. We're here for you and will help you and Nathan through this. It's excellent news that Nathan does not show any neurological deficits at this point and hopefully this is a mild episode and with the correct treatment, he will be fine. Healing prayers for Nathan. |
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Post by Casey & Nathan on May 1, 2014 3:42:39 GMT -7
Hey there - Nathan is a dachshund and has not gotten any worse. Unfortunately, we could not get him into the vet until tomorrow which, if he were getting worse, I would be worried about but he isn't yelping, he is walking, and eliminating himself as well as eating/drinking. I am wondering if it is a pulled muscle in his front more so than his back end since he seems to be favoring one of his front paws and putting full weight on his back with no issues. He is crating himself and free to roam the house, if he wants to, but doesn't appear to want to other than to eat (only a couple steps) and to go to the bathroom (only a few more steps as he is 100% puppy pad trained).
I really appreciate the support and information and will update, again, once we go to the vet. I would bring him elsewhere but this vet is wonderful and has experience with dachshunds and knows how serious a potential back issue is as opposed to our local emergency vet that shrugged it off.
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Marjorie
Moderator~
Member since 2011. Surgery & Conservative
Posts: 5,724
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Post by Marjorie on May 1, 2014 4:16:11 GMT -7
Until you get a definite diagnosis, please keep him crated 24/7 to protect his spine. Too much movement and a torn disc can tear more or rupture, causing nerve damage/paralysis. His not wanting to move much is a sign of pain. Dogs are very good at hiding pain. He should be given his food in the crate, carried in and out to potty. Since he's favoring a front paw, it may well be a disc in his neck, rather than his back, that is damaged. Here are some helpful tips, such as raising the food and water dishes so Nathan doesn't have to bend his neck down to them, moistening hard kibble, etc. www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cervical.htmPlease keep us updated and continued prayers for Nathan. |
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Post by Casey & Nathan on May 3, 2014 6:07:31 GMT -7
Hi there! An XRay was done and he has several calcified disks. The vet agreed that it is most likely the one in his neck causing the issue and has given him pain meds and he is on strict restriction for 4-8 weeks, depending on how he does. Lucky for us, he is a calm dog - if this were one of our females we would have to give them sedatives to keep them calm. He has been better with the crate than I thought he would be and he is still eating, drinking, and going to the bathroom - he is 100% puppy pad trained so he doesn't even have to go out to potty thankfully - We have already made accomodations for when he comes off of rest including purchasing a new bed frame that literally sits on the floor, bought a harness, and will be purchasing ramps (we had stairs to get up and down but he never used them despite how often I tried to get him to do so) - We are also reducing his weight by a lb or 2 and will be switching his treats from bones to carrots which he favors anyway. Overall, not a worst case scenario and am hopeful that it will not get worse with some extra care and love. Thank you for the support.
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Marjorie
Moderator~
Member since 2011. Surgery & Conservative
Posts: 5,724
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Post by Marjorie on May 3, 2014 8:31:30 GMT -7
Please be aware, Casey, that it does take a full 8 weeks for a damaged disc to heal. Even if he seems fine sooner than that, the crate acts as a cast for the spine so please don't be tempted to cut short the crate rest, even with the advice of a vet. We've seen far too many cases of a dog being allowed too much movement before the disc has fully healed and the disc has re-torn/ruptured. Nathan isn't showing any neuro deficits yet so please continue with a full 8 weeks of 100% strict crate rest. It's great that he's doing well in the crate and while 8 weeks does seem like a long time, it's definitely worth it. Did the vet prescribe an anti-inflammatory, such as a NSAID or steriod? Pain indicates that there is swelling around the spine and that swelling is pressing on nerves, which can cause nerve damage. It's most important that an anti-inflammatory be started ASAP, along with Pepcid AC to reduce the acid caused by the anti-inflammatory. If an anti-inflammatory was not prescribed, please call the vet today and speak to them about adding an anti-inflammatory to resolve the swelling. When you speak to the vet and get the anti-inflammatory prescribed, please also get your vet's permission to give 5 mg of Pepcid AC (generic is famotidine) 30 minutes before the dose of the anti-inflammatory and thereafter every 12 hours. Phrase the question to your vet in this particular way: "Is there any medical reason my dog may not take Pepcid AC?" If your vet says your dog has no health issues such as liver, heart, etc to keep him from taking Pepcid AC, then do get it on board. Please let us know the exact names of all meds prescribed, including mgs and frequency given. Since you're dealing with a cervical issue, here are some helpful tips, such as raising the food and water dishes so Nathan doesn't have to bend his neck down to them, moistening hard kibble, etc. www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cervical.htmNathan has a lot of repair jobs to do so continue his normal food rations while on crate rest. Good idea to switch his treats to something lower caloric. Treats if any should be low cal carrots, piece of apple or some frozen broth ice cubes to lick. If you feel after crate rest he needs to lose some weight, then it will be safe for more activity plus he can go on a bit of a diet to slowly get him down to a good weight over a period of several months. This page explains feeding for weight loss: www.nonprofitnw.org/drnw/id47.htmlSince the vet previously said that the crate didn't need to be strict and Nathan wasn't strictly confined until now, I'm changing the date in the subject line of this thread to today's date. |
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