Jeannie's Duncan 3/10 Surgery4-6wk-French Bulldog; GRAD 4/21

Yes I agree. We are heading to the vet on Thursday May 4th and I will check. Thanks

Those therapies simply do not have enough research behind them to be recommended by Dodgerslist.

Acupuncture can help re-establish nerve connections in the body and underwater treadmill also can do this. You are doing the therapies that have been shown to work best but nerve healing takes time. I know how hard it is to be patient. After my dog Frankie's surgery, he was still as paralyzed as when he went into surgery at the one month checkup. I thought he would never improve. At least the terrible pain was gone. His primary therapy was underwater treadmill which I think helped a lot in his recovery. Still it was some months before we saw much of an improvement. Frankie soldiered on, though, and eventually regained his ability to walk as well as bladder and bowel control. For Duncan, there is still a lot of healing that can still take place.

Jeanne it appears that Duncan would surely be graduated bynow if the neuro ended up wanting 6 weeks of post op rest to heal the surgical areas.

If that is the case, below is how you would gradually and safely transition him back to family life and activity.  It is still very early in the nerve healing department.
        Nerves recover slowly, and maximal recovery may take many months or several years.

Some dogs can heal their damaged nerves faster than others. Once nerves have repaired then muscles will also have to be retrained to relearn proper placement of the paws. Some muscles will need to regain strength for walking. Consider learning to walk again as it would be for a stroke victim or a baby learning to walk. At first, the steps will be weak and a bit unstable. Relearning to walk takes coordination, building up strength, and lots of patience. It is very normal for recovery to be gradual over the course of months rather than days/weeks. Expect plateaus where your dog doesn’t seem to improve. Inside where you can't see nerves are at work regenerating til the next connection can be made. When the connection is made then on the outside, then you can observe the result!

GRADUATION, A SLOW RE-INTRODUCTION
     Determine how you are going to ease back into more normal activity at graduation from rest. The idea is to gradually give Duncan more freedom under controlled conditions. Not free rein of the house and yard immediately! LOL
      Your dog's muscles are soft and out of shape after the rest period. Gradually build up their muscles and their lungs.
    Take a look at our information. Gradually building your dogs muscles over a month's time will have your dog safely wobbly walking and having fun again!

SAMPLE SCHEDULE
Here is a sample schedule to safely and slowly introduce your dog back to family life and physical activity: dodgerslist.com/2020/06/15/back-friendly/?highlight=sample%20schedule

DIY back PROTECTION around the house
   **
   
1) Good ideas in making your home back friendly:   dodgerslist.com/2020/07/09/home-protect-ivdd-backs/

2) Ideas and products to provide improved traction for wobbly dogs: dodgerslist.com/2022/10/08/traction-solution-improvements/

3) Teach your dog to be safe and not jumping up or down, but to use a ramp whether over steps leading outdoors or up/down to furniture in the house.
Dogs are best at visual learning rather than verbal commands. Dog trainer Anna Jane Grossman says “Dogs learn in pictures. Inside your dog’s brain is a very simple algorithm – pleasant images in one place and unpleasant images in another."

HAPPY DAYS AHEAD
 You and Duncan have survived a disc herniation! Learn what you can do from this point forward.  Lots more ideas and tips in living with an IVDD dog such as dentals, nail trims, safe ways to have fun together, and more:
dodgerslist.com/living-with-ivdd-tips-2

PT THERAPY AT CLINIC or HOME
     Safety first. You should always consult with a veterinarian before starting any exercise program with your dog. For example, although senior dogs need to stay limber, severe arthritis might make certain movements inappropriate.
-- Water therapy:  dodgerslist.com/2020/05/28/surgery-dog-water-therapy
-- Strengthening core muscles.
This applies not just for humans, but REALLY does apply to the IVDD dog: "...improve the strength and coordination of the muscles that surround the spine so they can act like the world's greatest back and neck brace." www.spineuniverse.com/conditions/spondylosis
    Core exercises don't require specialized equipment. Here are 5 exercises you can do at home: totofit.com/five-basic-exercises-essential-to-building-core-strength/

Jeannie , may we turn the tables and ask YOU for help?
      Did you know there are less than a handful who volunteer daily to help dogs and their owners? We need helping hands from other Forum members in educating.
     Disc disease is our number one mission!
    We invite you to hop on to our educational bandwagon team. Too many dogs are put to sleep because owners lack education about IVDD treatment. STRICT crate rest and proper medication have helped many dogs recover or maybe to avoid a surgery. We depend on all members to pay it forward for the help they have received with their dog by helping us educate!

Pick what suits you....
We depend on you. Here are some ways to help..
-- "Share" our FB posts www.facebook.com/Dodgerslist
-- When in conversation at the grocery store line or wherever you may meet breeds most prone to IVDD (Dachshunds, Beagles, Poodles, Spaniels, Shih Tzus, Pekingese, and Chihuahuas, Frenchies) give out our free little wallet cards.
Hand carry our literature and print out our letter of introduction for your vet.
           ►Today ORDER BROCHURES & cards, they're free!◀︎] dodgerslist.com/free-literature-2/
          for your vet and wallet cards for you

-- Would you consider helping another trying to make decisions about surgery?
We have a directory where you can share surgical info.
          Here is where you can share your dog's info: dodgerslist.boards.net/board/13/member-reported-surgery-costs-recommendations
State:
Hospital:
Address:
Cost:
Date of surgery:
What was included in cost (MRI?, days stay, ER? PT? meds for home, sling, etc.)
Comments:


And finally, don't be a stranger! Stop in periodically. We really do love to hear how your dog is doing. We'd love a short video clip to see Duncan in action at home, at PT and living & loving life in spite of IVDD!
    if you see a new member in a tough spot, give them hope. A brief paragraph about your dog can be insanely supportive and inspiring in a time of need!

Jeannie, we feel honored you will to continue to keep us updated on Duncan's progress post op!!!  Duncan is part of our Dodgerslist family, so we look forward to any news from you on how he is doing when your time permits.

Absolutely, graduation day means a SLOW and gradual introduction to family life. Start with a little free time totally supervised by you to sling walk down the hallyway or scoot around a bit in the living room.  Then when you are not supervising and his time is up, back in to the recovery suite. Your couch potato needs time to slowly build up muscles and stamina. You know best to decide what length of time to taylor for Duncan with the SAMPLE schedule on this page:   dodgerslist.com/2020/06/15/back-friendly/?highlight=sample%20schedule 

How is he doing with wobbly walking?  Can he do a number of footsteps with the aid of a sling even if his paws do knuckle under still or are slow to correct?  

Are you able upload a video or a picture of Duncan wobbly walking?  Normally with wobbly walking, a cart would not be recommended.  

It takes about 2 weeks or more to build a cart to size and get it shipped out.   By then it is possible that Duncan could show new increased ability with legs and not need a cart.  If budget is not an issue, then a cart could be considered a rehab tool.  The right cart would support his body and allow the legs to touch the ground and take footsteps.  A video would help us to best know just where Duncan is.

Buying a cart. Features/Fit to look for with an IVDD dog:  dodgerslist.com/2020/06/06/wheelchairs/

There are many ways to aid the effort in helping us help IVDD dogs. 
Thank you for thinking about us.  Check out this page  dodgerslist.com/aid-effort 

The very best water therapy is the underwater treadmill because it is practicing the art of walking.  

Water therapy that is swimming practices something different---swimming.

With warmer weather approaching, Duncan may love an inexpensive child's plastic swimming pool to walk around in and go after tennis balls??

Expressing for Poop
Expressing is so that before mother nature would just let poop plop out anywhere, you get there first to encourage poop to clear from the digestive tube to plop out where you desire. Most of us express on the toilet: upon awaking in the morning, maybe at 1-2 pm during the day and again before bedtime. First you should make a chart of eating, poop plopping times and try to figure out the timing for Duncan and when you should be expressing. You really do not need anyone to demonstrate how to express for poop. This video shows how easy it is:

Jeannie, thank you for the current neuro status.
--- His back legs have some weak ability to move
--- his back paws knuckle under
--- He can't yet move up into a stand by himself

When you get the poop to exit his body, you will have a smile on your face for sure! Keep us posted.

Nerve healing takes a long time. Healing can still take place. Dogs on this list have regained function six months and even in a few cases a year after the episode. Three months after my dog's surgery, he was not walking either. He did eventually regain his ability to walk and bowel and bladder control.

Have you had a chance to look into carts yet? I am putting the link on carts again here for your easy reference:
www.dodgerslist.com/2020/06/06/wheelchairs/

Jeannie, glad to hear Duncan still rules the roost from his wheelchair or from a seated position on the floor!

Are you still expressing his bladder every 4-6 hours? Why diapers, then? Does he not stay dry in between expressing?  Not sure what the reference to "it is only diapers" means.

Jeannie, if he is staying free of UTI's with your expressing every 3-4 hrs, you are doing a good job of keeping the bladder free of bacteria! Well, done!