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Post by Jessi & Caramel on Jul 15, 2014 9:54:20 GMT -7
Hello All -
Our beautiful little girl was diagnosed with IVDD late 2013. She recovered from her first episode but had a second episode the end of January and had to undergo surgery. Her prognosis was very, very promising and the vets said she had greater than a 95% chance of a full recovery.
After 8 Weeks of post-surgery crate rest and then many more months, Olli is sill not fully recovered. She can "kind of" walk but still has accidents and we have to help her potty. We are currently in the trial at Iowa State to see if that will help her. She shows some improvement but isn't back to herself by a long shot.
I'm looking for some additional options to possibly help her recover. Has anyone tried laser therapy with any success? What about acupuncture? Any other recommendations?
Also - she still has many accidents around the house because of her condition. She doesn't know when she is going potty. Do you have any recommendations on how to make this more manageable for mom and dad? Less laundry, less cleaning etc?
Thank you in advance for your help. Our little girl means so much to us and we want to give her the best chance of full recovery possible.
Olli's Mom
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PaulaM
Moderator. 
Member since 2007: surgery, conservative . Montana, USA
Posts: 19,611
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Post by PaulaM on Jul 15, 2014 10:29:42 GMT -7
Jessi, is that correct? Hi, I'm Paula. Glad to hear you are in the Iowa State trial vetmed.iastate.edu/vmc/small-animal/clinical-trials/chondroitinase-clinical-trial-0Are you expressing her for poop and for urine? If yes, how many hours apart....every 4-6ish hours? Have you giving her the sniff and pee test to ascertain if she does have full control over her bladder. The only way for us humans to know if there is bladder control is with the sniff and pee test. Carry outdoors, set on an old pee spot to sniff it. See if urine is then released. Make sure the sling or your hands are not on the tummy area as that can press on the bladder. If urine comes out after sniffing, bladder control is returning. You should do a quick express check to verify there is full voiding until you are certain it is consistently happening. Let us know what you observe. Tips on expressing for urine and for poop: www.dodgerslist.com/literature/Expressing.htmwww.dodgerslist.com/literature/Expressing.htm#poopWhen is the last time she had a urinalyis to verify there is no bladder infection. Sometimes UTI do not show us any sign they are there, sometimes there is foul odor, etc. A urinalysis will let the vet know if infection is present and whether anti-biotics are needed. -- Laser light therapy, acupuncture and electroacupuncture which sends a microcurrent of electricity to and from acupuncture points (which are really big nerve bundles), can be very beneficial at helping to re-establish the nerve connections in the body. Any one of these therapies can be started right away if in your budget... they not only help relieve pain and inflammation but will kick start nerves to begin regeneration. Find a holistic vet here: ahvma.org/Widgets/FindVet.htmlwww.serenityvetacupuncture.com/index.php/faq_/ [one vet's overview/prices] Chiropractic is not recommended for IVDD dogs. Learn more about how laser therapy works with IVDD: www.veterinarypracticenews.com/vet-practice-news-columns/complementary-medicine/laser-therapy-may-work-on-tl-ivdd.aspx OR tinyurl.com/3j9n52d [vet practice news] "Clinicians at UF's Small Animal Hospital began using the procedure routinely after results from a year-long study showed the laser's effectiveness in patients with intervertebral disc disease... The study is the first ever to compare dogs with intervertebral disc disease treated postoperatively with lasers to dogs not treated with lasers, Schubert said. He called the results "revolutionary." veterinarypage.vetmed.ufl.edu/2011/09/19/laser-treatment-helps-dogs-with-spinal-cord-injury/ [UF Vet] Do continue to keep us posted on Dr. Jeffery and Hu's clinical trial and how Olli does. |
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Post by Jessi & Caramel on Jul 20, 2014 13:25:03 GMT -7
Hello -
We are only expressing her for urine at this time and we do so about 4 times a day. However, she still has several accidents between us expressing her bladder. Iowa State does a urinalysis whenever she goes to ensure she can do therapy in the pool. So she is tested for a bladder infection about once a month. We take her out to potty at the same spot every time, but she doesn't potty on her own. She needs our help before she'll do so.
Thank you for the great info on the different types of therapies!
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Marjorie
Moderator~ 
Member since 2011. Surgery & Conservative
Posts: 5,724 
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Post by Marjorie on Jul 21, 2014 5:10:43 GMT -7
When you express her urine, do you feel the bladder go flat with your fingers almost touching? The bladder moves around as it gets smaller and you may not be emptying it enough. I know that I had thought I was doing very well expressing but Jeremy would still leak between expressings. Then I realized that the bladder was slipping back toward his hips and when I looked and found it again, there was still more urine in it. I also had to move up his expressings to every 3-4 hours (at least 5 times a day) and that helped a lot, too.
I don't take Jeremy out every time to express him any longer. I found a low small pan that I stick underneath him and express him in that and wash it out. That pan follows us everywhere! I've learned that he mostly leaks when he's been lying down and stands up and starts to walk. He's always lying by my feet so when I get up to go into another room, he stands up and I express him right there and then.
If Olli leaks urine on herself, clean her up with green tea. Green tea neutralizes the acidity of the urine so it helps with urine burn and leaves a nice scent. Just brew up a pot of green tea, let it cool and wipe her with it. The rest can be refrigerated for later. I'm lucky that I have all laminate flooring in my house but if you're dealing with urine in the carpet, I would think that green tea would help with that, too. Just test spot in a place not seen to make sure. Or use white vinegar in a spray bottle to kill the bacteria and the odor they cause on floors, linens, carpets, etc. I keep a microfiber towel on a Swifter and a bottle of cleaner handy for fast cleanups.
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