I have a dog that I love very much, a Golden Retriever; and now he cant walk...
@imaginationing (35)
United States
February 28, 2007 8:32pm CST
One day I woke up and realized that my best friend (my dog) had no control over his back legs. I took him to the vet right away for x-rays and tests. The vet said that there was a less than 10% chance of him regaining the use of his back legs again.4 days after that, my dog started to walk again. I was amazed. Then, again; he lost the use of his back legs overnight. People are telling me to put him to sleep but I dont know what to do. He still eats, wags his tail, barks, kisses me... he just cant walk. Any words of wisdom?
1 person likes this
6 responses
@TinWolf (184)
• United States
1 Mar 07
First thing I'd do is switch VETS, or get multiple opinions.
Hip Dysplasia for example, isn't like the human disorder "Myosthenia Gravis" (SP) If in fact that's one issue.
Neurological disorders may be playing a part? Clots? SO many issues could be causing the Miracle and the reversal?
Wisdom only comes from knowledge, and LOVING a pet often confuses both. I'll give a harsh example of your dilemma in an analogy. If you had a HUMAN child who suddenly exhibited similar symptoms, would you expect that the best recourse was to Euthanize the child?
Your DOG IS YOUR CHILD, and as such deserves all the help you can give or get for him until there are no options.
Steven Wolf
@imaginationing (35)
• United States
2 Mar 07
Your 100% right, my dog is my child and I would do anything within my power to help him. I already sold my car in case I do need the money quickly. The next step is definitely to get a second opinion. My vet only seems to give me pills for him or tell me to get a cart. He also said that from the x-rays that he has a less than 10% chance of gaining the use of his back legs again. The thing that gets me is that this all happened overnight. The day before he was walking fine. He did have arthritis, but not to the extend where he could walk. He just couldn't run.
What do you mean by "clots"? Can you explain a bit more about that?
Rob
@TinWolf (184)
• United States
1 Mar 07
With all due respect to you, your dog, and others who answer, certainly the issue is sad, and anyone who reads this should be able to empathize. I especially liked the answer stating the Spine/vertabrea possibility, and even in the cost factor, I'd do what I could,,,until I couldn't
Blessings to you both.
Steven Wolf
1 person likes this
@gardengrrl (1445)
• United States
1 Mar 07
I'm guessing your dog has a bulging disk in his lower spine. When the bulge is small, he can walk. If it gets inflamed, he can't. You need to find a veterinary specialist hospital in your area where they're equipped to perform a myelogram (around $500). In this test, the dog is anestisized (sp?) and a small amount of radio-opaque dye is injected into the spinal column, and they do Xrays all along the spine to see where the compression is. based on this, they can tell you if surgery is appropriate for him. Even if it is not, they can give you a pretty good idea if he has pain. If he isn't suffering, there's no reason to kill him. For around $300, you can buy the doggy equivalent of a wheelchair. There's a couple of different types, but they all basically hold his hind legs off the ground so he can use the wheels to walk around. Dogs don't waste time on self-pity, mine was set in his cart, took about two minutes to get used to it, and then started running around like his old nutty self. The carts are designed so they can relieve their bowels and bladder without messing themselves.
If you do go the surgery route, be prepared for a bill of $3500 - $5000 for the whole thing. I took out a loan to get my Basset Hound done. It was totally worth it!
BTW, your vet should have told you all of this. You may want to think about finding a better one.
Good luck, and God bless you for loving him so much. Keep us posted on how you make out.
1 person likes this
@imaginationing (35)
• United States
2 Mar 07
Wow, thank you for your response. Its definitely informing. The vet did take x-rays, but did not inject any dye. After the x-ray he gave him a shot of prednisone (or something like that) and then gave him a script for the pills. He did speak about the cart; however he also said to see if he starts to walk on his own again. Ultimately he told me that it was my choice weather or not I thought that he needed the cart. Its strange because he has good days and bad days. For three days he was walking all on his own and then all of a sudden again, he was back to not walking. For now I made a comfortable padded belt that I attached a handle to so that I can hold up the back of his body while he walks with his front legs. How long do you think that a dog should stay on prednisone for? On Monday I'll ask him about this procedure that you mentioned here. Thanks again, great info.
Rob
@friendship (2084)
• Canada
1 Mar 07
I am so sad about your dog. But please don't put him to sleep. I believe that it is sin. I think he may have rheumatic. I am not sure but it is like humans. When we have rheumatic, our part of body can't be function very well. May be, you can message his legs and cover its legs with warm clothes. But please don't take into account my advice because I'm not a vet. Does he ever fall? I hope that your dog is getting well soon.
@imaginationing (35)
• United States
2 Mar 07
Thank you, I actually do massage him daily for an hour or so.. he seems to love it.
@aby1villamor (74)
• Philippines
1 Mar 07
my god,,,,i'm very sad about your problem since i also love dogs. don't worry i'll try to ask the vet bout this...
good day!!!
@someinhere (25)
• Swaziland
1 Mar 07
As I read this, I started to cry. My favorite dogs are golden retrivers and beagles. I once had a dog that had this happen. Luckily at the time I had a really good job and was able to pay for his surgery. He lived for another 5 years! I hope the same happens for you. BTW in human years, not doggy.
