Do read and act on Marjorie's post above. Just chiming in to organize your approach to getting help for Chelsey.
FRANK DISCUSSION and STRONG ADVOCATING
1.
Severe osteoarthitis IS a painful thing and needs to be treated at once.
2. Increased
nerve damage starting sometime after July
10th ish??; increased pain on July 15th ish ??(exact dates are necessary to us we do not like to assume anything) can well indicate another disc episode. Swelling in the spinal cord causes nerve damage.
ADVOCATE for treatment
What harm to give Chelsey a chance to recover with proper medications on board?
Noopy, owner education is key to presenting your case to Dr. Regular Vet for meds.
1) IMPORTANT medications reading reference here:
dodgerslist.com/2020/04/22/healing-swelling-inflammation/?highlight=anti-inflammatory 2) IMPORTANT understanding of nerve repair here:
dodgerslist.com/2020/04/22/healing-nerves/--
Try a broad spectrum non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that can work for both the pain of arthritis and for the spinal cord swelling for a disc episode.
Broad spectrum NSAIDS: Rimadyl® (carprofen), Metacam® (meloxicam, Deramaxx® (deracoxib), Previcox® (firocoxib)
Single target NSAID: Galliprant® (Grapiprant)
www.elancolabels.com/us/galliprant-with-tear-off targets ONLY the pain of arthritis and does not work for a disc episode's spinal cord swelling according to Galliprant's representative.
-- Try pain medications to provide FULL PAIN RELIEF. Same ideas as for humans who take pain meds so they can get on with the business of LIVING! For Chelsey some pain meds and a NSAID might be long term.
HOWEVER, with a strong suspicion of a disc episode,
the full compliment of meds ought to be on board now so she can go potty in comfort of standing up, and you can care for her without causing a painful overly sensative painful situation. There will be a test stop of the NSAID to determine if she needs to continue taking it. Expect the first course of a NSAID to be for maybe 5-7 days or even a 14-day course. Then the test stop to assess for any remaining pain or worsening of neuro function.
PAIN MEDS last for about 8 hrs. Giving at every 12 hrs means no around the clock relief from pain! There are three sources of pain with a disc episode. No source should be left unattended to. Expect for a 24 kg dog:
Tramadol as the general pain reliever. The maximum analgesic dose in the n neighborhood of 200mgs promptly every 8 hrs.
Methocarbamol treats muscle spasms stemming from aggravated muscles due to nerve trauma related to the spinal cord inflammation. Expect an Rx for promptly every 8 hrs.
Gabapentin for nerve pain such as you describe in thighs. Veterinarians are finding this medication works very well in combination with Tramadol. Also expect an Rx for promptly every 8 hrs.
--
GI TRACT PROTECTION Often there is the mistake of not protecting the stomach when giving any anti-inflammatory drug (a steroid or a non-steroid). Any NSAID Rx'd would demand protection with an acid suppressor such as
PEPCID AC (famotidine) to avoid these progressive signs of stomach damage: nausea, not wanting to eat, loose stool, diarrhea, bleeding ulcer, black or red blood in diarrhea. Expect a Rx (or maybe in your country you, also can buy it at your local grocery or pharmacy) for 20mgs famotidine every 12 hours while on any NSAID.
Never have any patience with painThe Dodgerslist Forum fully stands with Dr. Downing. Robin Downing, DVM, CVA, DAAPM is one of only four veterinarians in the world to hold the Diplomate credential in the American Academy of Pain Management - the largest interdisciplinary pain management organization in human medicine: "
It is always better to use a multi-modal approach to pain management."
And we side with the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) guidelines as well: "
We can’t always know that our patient does hurt, but we can do our best to ensure that it doesn’t hurt"
www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/PDF_old/jsap_0.pdf And finally to support your advocacy to get meds on board is the heartbreaking perspective from a dog's point of view and the need to get things right for Chelsey the very soonest possible!
Dr. Petty, DVM, CVPP, CVMA, CAAPM, CCRT is a past president of the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management and is a frequent lecturer at local, state and national conventions.
Please answers these questions. ▪️ What is the nearest town to you in Australia?▪️ Do the back legs move during dreams? Does she attempt to scratch an ear? Can she reposition her self on her mattress?▪️ Is she also weak in the front legs? Tell us what you observe.▪️ Describe the July 10th knuckling. -- front or back paws? could right her paw, even if slowly -- front or back paws? could not right her paw at all▪️ Describe the current knuckling you observe as calling it "worse" -- front or back paws? is now slower to right the paw -- front or back paws? can not right her paw at allPlease let us know as soon as you have been successful in presenting your case to get pain meds on board. Hopefully you can do that on the phone as the quickest way to get meds in Chelsey. Please provide the details of names of meds, dose in mgs, and how often. Use exact dates for the start of and the ending of meds prescribed.