Welcome to Dodgerslist, Jen. So glad you’ve joined us all. We’ve got valuable information we’ve gleaned from the vets Dodgerslist consults with and our own experiences with IVDD since 2002 to share with you.
**Disc disease is not a death sentence! ** Struggling with quality of life questions? Re-think things:
www.dodgerslist.com/index/SDUNCANquality.htmIf Tommy is still showing signs of pain, that would mean that there is still swelling pressing on the nerves of the spine and still a need for an anti-inflammatory, pain meds and a stomach protector. Does he tremble/shiver all over or is it just his legs? Nerve damage can cause trembling in the legs. Holding his nose to the ground is a sign of pain (doesn't want to lift his head up because it hurts). It can take 7-30 days for swelling to resolve and neck injuries can take even longer. Getting back on an anti-inflammatory and pain meds would not delay surgery but if you are in a position to have surgery done, an emergency consult with a Board-certified neurologist should be done ASAP. If you are not in a financial position to proceed with surgery and IF your current vet can get Tommy's pain completely under control today, then a consult would not be needed. More info on conservative vs. surgery below. More info on surgery vs. conservative below.
Tommy's pain needs to be brought under control today. Pain hinders healing so have no patience with it and there are many options of pain relief available. Neck injuries are usually much more painful than back injuries and most often require three pain meds to address the three types of pain involved: Tramadol as a general pain med, Gabapentin for nerve pain and Methocarbamol for the pain of muscle spasms (the vet has room to increase the dosage of this med). Please speak to the vet ASAP this morning about getting Tommy's pain completely under control.
Methocarbamol (Robaxin) Initially, methocarbamol is dosed at 7 to 20 mg per pound (15 to 44 mg/kg) up to three times daily. The dose of methocarbamol should not exceed 110 mg per pound (300 mg/kg) per day.
www.petplace.com/article/drug-library/library/prescription/methocarbamol-robaxin-v Written by: Dr. Dawn Ruben Last Modified: August 11, 2015
PEPCID AC: Anytime a dog is taking an anti-inflammatory, stomach protection must be added. If Tommy does go back on an anti-inflammatory, be sure to ask if your dog has any health issues to prevent use of Pepcid AC (famotidine)? (doesn’t need it, we wait til there is problem…are NOT answers to your question!) If you get a “no health” issues answer, then go to the grocery store to purchase over the counter Pepcid AC containing one single active ingredient (famotidine).
canigivemydog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/can-i-give-my-dog-pepcid-ac-300x300.jpg 
Doxie weight dogs: 5mg Pepcid AC (famotidine) every 12 hours. NOTE: Pepcid AC (famotidine) for dogs is 0.44mg per pound, 30 mins before the anti-inflammatory and thereafter every 12 hours for as long as your dog is on the anti-inflammatory.
www.1800petmeds.com/Famotidine-prod11171.htmlNeuropathic pain is not common but you should be aware of it. This kind of pain is abnormal, phantom pain sensations with severe spinal cord damage. Signs are obsessive licking of paw, leg, genitals, tail. Escalates to biting, life-threatening chewing off parts. Immediately put on an e-collar (or lengthwise folded towel around neck and duct taped closed) to prevent access to lower body. Contact vet immediately for Gabapentin or stronger Lyrica (pregabalin) for neuropathic pain. More info:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/neuropathy.pdfNerves can take a very long time to heal, think more in terms of months rather than weeks. But heal they can so hang in there. Often there may not be any sign of nerve healing during the 8 weeks of strict crate rest so the fact that there has been no improvement yet is not unusual. If it turns out that you cannot afford surgery, do know that conservative treatment is a viable option for treatment. We have seen many dogs recover with conservative care.
The hallmark component of conservative treatment is the very STRICT crate rest part (no PT, little movement). With little blood supply discs are much slower to form good scar tissue than it takes a blood rich broken bone to heal. Those weeks of a cast for a broken arm to heal is similar to the recovery suite being a kind of cast for the disc.
100% STRICT crate rest 24/7 for 8 weeks provides limited movement to allow good strong scar tissue to form.
Super tried and true tips for setting up the recovery suite, the mattress and more! —>
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/CrateRRP.htmSTRICT means: ◼︎no laps ◼︎no couches ◼︎no baths ◼︎no sleeping with you ◼︎no chiro therapy whys:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/chiropractic.htm ◼︎no dragging or meandering at potty times. ◼︎no PT for conservative dogs during 8 weeks to heal disc ◼︎At home laser or acupuncture for severe neuro damage is best. Transports are always a risk to the disc of too much movement. Vet visits must be weighed risk vs. benefit for dogs with little to mild neuro diminishment.
Tommy should be eating inside the crate. The only time he should be out of the crate is to potty. If he can't sit up to eat and you're hand feeding him, can you manage that with him inside the crate? Cleaning him should be done with him inside the crate also (use a cloth dampened with cooled decaf green tea to wipe belly and legs - it neutralizes the acidity of urine and leaves a nice fresh scent).
A wire crate can be converted to open from the top if that would be easier for you. Instructions here:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cratesupplies/cratetopconvert.pdfThe only way to tell if Tommy still has bladder control is to carry him to a spot outside, support him but not under his belly, let him sniff and see if he can release bladder control. If he can, then he has bladder control. If not, then his bladder needs to be manually expressed. Diapers can cause skin problems so it would be best to carry him outside to do potty or on a pee pad inside if he'll do that.
SURGERYThe purpose of surgery is to take the pressure off of the spinal cord by removing the disc material causing the compression. Surgical decompression allows a normal blood supply to return to the compressed spinal cord and for neurologic recovery to begin by the body self-healing nerves.
CONSERVATIVE
Seeks to relieve swelling/compression of the spinal cord with an anti-inflammatory. Over time the hope is that disc material where it should not be will shrink back enough so that pain resolves and nerves can start to self repair.
Reference reading conservative vs. surgery :
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingsurgery.htmThere are several things you should be doing to help the neck heal, such as softening hard kibble, raising food/water dishes. More info here:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/cervical.htmIf there is great pain or severe neuro diminishment, acupuncture or laser light therapy can be be started right away as an adjunct to pain meds and to kick start nerve cell energy production. Options: Acupuncture vet who does home visits to avoid back moving during transports. For transport to necessary visits, pad out the recovery suite extra space with a rolled up towel/blanket to prevent body shifts during braking or cornering.
CAUTIONS: ~~ Laser light therapy is contra-indicated with tumors which are detected via x-ray.
~~ During conservative treatment, anytime out of the recovery suite is a dangerous time for the healing disc. Movement of the back can increase a disc tear and escape of disc material into the spinal cord . For an animal with very mild neuro deficits, the risk of transporting to therapy has to be carefully weighed against what benefit is to be gained.
www.ahvma.org/find-a-holistic-veterinarian/~~ Why Chiropractic is not recommended for IVDD dogs:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/chiropractic.htmKnowledge is the power to fight the IVDD enemy and win!! The very best thing you can do for YOU, the caregiver, and for your dog is to get up to speed on IVDD soonest possible. Begin absorbing the must-have overall sense of meds, care and how the treatment works. Your dog will be depending on your ability to learn - excellent video series here:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/theater.htm PRINT OUT this link and tape to your fridge:
www.dodgerslist.com/literature/healingpage.htm use the printout as your roadmap to avoid dangerous detours in your dog’s care
make notes/highlight to keep yourself on track
follow all the links in the next days to become the IVDD savvy pet parent your dog needs. Use the “search box” to easily locate topics over at our Main
www.Dodgerslist.com website:
www.dodgerslist.com/index/searchBOX.jpgThe guest board is a temporary Guest courtesy to get immediate help until you can register.
I encourage you to register and login. That way all the features of the Forum are available to you, making it faster to reply and get an email alert about replies.
It also makes is far easier for us to track your dog and give the best assistance. Illustrated what to expect during registration:
www.dodgerslist.com/forumads/RegisterFORUM/register.htmPlease let us know what the vet says this morning after speaking to them. Healing prayers for Tommy.
