I have a Daschund who is 4 and has started having back problems. She has gone to the vet and is on anti-inflammatory meds. She will walk but is a little wobbly and the hair sticks out where she is swollen. Has anyone else had this problem? Any suggestions
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I have a dachshund who is 14 and we have always had to be careful of his back. They have long backs and they can damage them by jumping on and off of things, standing on their back legs, etc. You need to also be careful not to overfeed them because excess weight causes stress to their back. We give ours weight control food, 1/2 cup a day, depending on the size of your dachshund; toy, miniature, etc. They will eat everything in sight if you let them. I would hope your vet explained all this to you. You can also put in a search on the internet to learn how to care for the dog's back. Good luck. Ours is having some arthritis problems now and our vet gave him a prescription. I think it's Rimadyl. My daughter takes him.
Doxies are notorious for bad backs. Get your long one on glucosamine chondroitin supplements. They take about three months to "kick in" but it could help prevent further damage. Check with your vet regarding dosage.
No stairs! No jumping up on beds and sofas. Make carpeted stairs for her, but be absolutely sure she won't jump off. No children picking her up. Careful with movement of the back, especially any downward movement.
Let her rest till she's feeling better, then get her on a moderate exercise program (under your vet's supervision)
Never give your dog any med, especially human meds or OTC things, without first checking with your vet.
Good luck!
Thank you soo much. She has gone to the vet this am due to her wobbly legs. Vet wants an x-ray. I have tried to keep her crated as much as possible which has helped
We have a beagle mix that had terrible problems. They had her on the pills and it wasn't helping and they wanted to replace her knees! Expensive! We let her rest and then started giving her the Purina One Adult Formula that has the glucosamine chondroitin in it. She is off all meds and has been doing great for about 1 1/2 years, with no supplements or surgeries! We also got her the little doggy steps so she could get on and off the couch and we lift her on and off the bed, so she doesn't have to jump. We also added some landscaping blocks to the front, so her step into the yard is shorter. Mostly we allow HER to set her own pace, she seems to know what she can and can't do.
Hi, I know many people who have had success with rain drop therapy it is a kind of reflexology massage with essential oils. My friends swear by it for horses and dogs. You can probably find someone in your area or buy the oils (an investment, not cheap) and do it your self for $5 a session instead of paying for a therapist to do it.It is simple.
Find a chiropractor who works on animals--several will but don't advertise. It helps immensely, but like people, she may need occassional maintenance. That with other recommendations should help your pet feel better.
The xray showed 2 compressed disks. THe vet wants her crated for 2 more weeks and keep taking the anti inflamitory meds. She seems to be walking better today:) She is not herself yet.
Try mixing 1 tablespoon of extra virgin coconut oil in her food. You can get it at most health food stores and some grocery stores and Wal-Mart stores. My dog has something similar to spina bifida and it has helped her to become more active.
I have a daschund thats about 10. 3 days ago I put him out like always. When I went to check on him because he had been so quiet, he could not use his back legs. He can walk a couple steps then they give way, or just split, drags his back, his tail wags and is using the bathroom. Can some one help?
benny AT bennyfmurphy AT peoplepc.com
After 3 wks of crating mine during the day, she has improved. I also am trying the extra virgin coconut oil which she loves and she has become more active. She has ramps now and is not allowed on beds. Good luck with your little man
My dog "Uncle Rusty" 8 yrs old started having back problems. We took him to the vet and had xrays which showed vertibrae problems. And the same as I am reading that he should not be jumping up and down off the furniture. We try to stop him but he is hyper when he is feeling good and like a little old disabled person when he is not.
Yep, everyone is saying don't let them jump. But there is only so much you can do. It's hard to stop them once they have learned. Alx will go up the ramp but still jumps down unless i make her use the ramp. That dachshund stubborn streak. She will do it when she wants to. She is the same way. IF she feels good, she runs like crazy. If not she sleeps in her crate or the middle of the floor. Hope Uncle Rusty feels better.
I have a 2 month old doxie, and 2 days ago she started having problems walking, and then stopped walking altogether last night. I took her to the vet and they ran a bunch of tests. They say she has an infection, but can't see anything on the xrays; even though she whimpers when the vet touched her lower back. The vet is putting her on antibiotics and prednisone for inflammation. I am so worried for her. We have stairs and other puppies, and after reading everyone else's blogs, now I'm really worried that maybe she became injured by going up and down the stairs, or by playing too rough with the other pups. Any advice?
I have a 7 year old Doxie, Buster, that had back surgery a week ago. His back legs quit working 2 weeks ago, and the local vet had him on meds, but he wasn't getting any better, so we took him to a specialist. She did surgery on him the night we brought him in. She told us the longer he is down before the surgery the longer the recovery. He is home now, has to be crated for 6 weeks, and still can't walk on one of his back legs, but the Dr says he has feeling in it again. You should go see a specialist. They can do a test where they inject dye, so they can see exactly what the problem is, and maybe even fix it with meds and therapy. Good luck to you. It's been hard for us and we're not quite out of the woods yet, but Buster is worth it!
I have a 4 year old doxie in jan of this year she jumped off the bed and couldn't move her back legs at all. I took her to the vet, xrayed her & she has a slip disk actually 3 of her disks looked bad. I crated her for 3mo. but within 6 weeks she can walk but is very wobbly. she doesn't seem to be in any pain. she even runs but I worry about her re injuring her back. no more stairs or jumping EVER! I've heard that swimming is really good exercise for her back to strengthening her back & legs. She is young and has a good attitude so I am praying for the best for her.
I had a beautiful female dachshund named Bentlee. She was only 5 yrs old. She was having back pain for a few days before she lost control of her hind legs. She was in great pain. I took her to the best Surgeon in the area. 6 days later I had to put her down. My advise to everyone is to act immediately. Your precious pets life lies in the balance.
I'm so sorry to hear that.
You are right getting to the vet is the best advice. My girl is doing fine now. She is not allowed on the bed. And we working on losing weight. She has lost 1 lb and hope to keep her on track
My dog Misty had back problems back in July. Trying to get on the couch she yelped and later that day couldn't move her hind legs at all. We went to the emergency and they said either surgery or put her down. We decided to wait and the Dr said she would have 60% chance of recovering. Since then she has been able to get back on her feet, she walks, and even runs but her right leg is still stiff and she is still wobbly and hops. I am worried that now the winter is coming she will get even stiffer and I am looking for some kind of supplement to help her. Patience is very important. It is going to take time to see any improvements. Also, I recommend getting the Bottom's up leash to help them do their business.
I have a 6 year old dachshund and was wondering if anyone has had there dachshund lose control of back legs and bladder, and if they have recovered from this problem with out surgery? The vet said I could take him to specialist to do surgery, which would cost between 3 and 4 thousand dollars, and that they probably wouldn't guarantee 100 %. I wish I could have it done, but can not pay that, so he put him on predizone, but still have not seen much change if any. I have diapers on him now. I started him on glucossamine, but does anyone have any other remedies that I could try.
My daschund, Bean, is 10 1/2, he started having problems with his back about 2 months ago. The vet took xrays and it showed disk problems. They took fluid from his back, ran all kinds of tests too and then gave him a shot of prednisone and muscle relaxers. The next day he was ripping around again, not jumping just being his old frisky self. 2 days later he was arched and barely walking.
I called the vet they told me to put him a dose of preds for 2 weeks and to keep him inactive. They wanted me to cage him for 3 weeks, only to be let out to go to the bathroom. I felt horrible thinking my god if this poor guy only lives a few weeks he will have spent it locked up in a cage thinking that he was a bad dog. I didn't cage him but I did keep his activity down to a minimum, no jumping, no stairs, etc. He was fine after that.
It is now Jan 2, 2009 and as of last night he is dragging his back legs and can barely walk. The vet had told me before that it probably would come back in time and that they could send him to a spec. that would operate for $5,000.00 but could not guarantee that it wouldn't come back in a different area of his spine. Also the operation could have a positive note for 2 weeks or 2 months, they aren't sure.
The sad thing is the poor guy is suffering so bad, he had to lean against something to support himself to pee and wound up going all over himself. There is no way I can afford $5,000.00 for this operation. i feel like I am letting him down. He is my constant shadow.
I have a 10 yr. old longhair doxie PEPPER he can't stand up he drags his little back legs it started 2 days ago and a 1 1/2 yr. ago I had a episode with him I took him to Dr. Hill this morning and he gave him 2 prednisone shots and antibiotic to boost immune system he said he feels deep pain which is a good sign but needs to see a surgeon I am taking him to U.C. DAVIS ANIMAL HOSPITAL Mon. but the prognosis isn't good it is another hard decision in my life and I am 61 I've been blessed having PEPPER for 7 yrs, and have given him a happy life and my family and friends love him my heart is broken but I want the best for him. Please Jesus help him
Help I'm desperate! About 6 weeks ago my precious coco who is 5 years old starting having back problems. She drags her feet and screams if you try to pick her up.We have took her to the vet 3 times now they gave her a steroid shot and she got worse. She is a little over weight so I have her on the weight control dog food but since she barely moves its going slow. Our vet has suggest that if she doesn't show improvement in 3 weeks to put her down. She has always went every where with me and is the joy of my life. I found hope when I found this site. Can anyone explain to me about crating and what else i can do to help her.
I have a 4 year Dashund named max and just one day he started walking stiff and 12 hours later he was dragging his hind legs. I took him to a vet and they sent me to a specialist. He said that he needed surgery imediately and max would have 80-90% chance of gaining all movement and control. It took me about 3 days to round up the $3500 for the surgery but when we went back his chances dropped to 20-30%. We did the surgery and now 4 months later he is walking(wobbling) but he can't control his bowel or urine movments. At this point I do not know what to do. My advice is to do the surgery a soon as possible or do not do it at all. Max is not in any pain, but it is like we have and infant that will never grow up.
Hi everyone, I am just in the midst of back problems with my little mini - I am blogging on my experience if anyone is interested. Good luck with your doxies! Just love my little guy and pray he gets well soon!
minidaschund.blogspot.com/
My dachshund/pom mix had back problems in February 2004. I took him to the vet and we gave him the usual antibiotic and prednisone but it didn't help much. We thought about putting him down but our love for him was so great that we decided to just let him drag himself around the house. But he developed sores on his legs and belly. He was unable to urinate on his own so we had to squeeze him to urinate. He has never gotten any better, although he has feeling in his legs and tail. My son made him a set of wheels from an old baby carriage and he runs around the house on his wheels. He is his usual happy self. He doesn't seem to know the difference between legs or wheels. It has been over 5 years and he is doing fine.
Hi, I have a 4 year old mini, Miika. About 3 weeks ago we had noticed that she was not doing some of her "normal' things. We watched her and catered to her every move, she never showed signs of being uncomfortable. About 2 weeks into this we decided to get a professional opinion, we were told she may have injured her back and were given an anti-inflammatory.
On Tuesday she was taken to the vet because her legs were becoming wobbly. We were referred to a specialist who told us she had a 85%-90% chance of a positive recovery. Although the surgery was expensive, I wanted the best for her. Prior to surgery she still had deep tissue feeling, and the day after. On Thursday morning I got my morning update, saying that she was not responding to pain that she was paralyzed. They discussed all the options and possibilities for the sudden change in her condition.
They wanted to do another CT scan and possible surgery. Which I had to turn down due to high cost of the procedure. She still has no feeling, only a day later. I know that I need to be patient, but I am desperate! I took her today to see if she was a candidate for laser therapy, and she did have her first session! I am horribly heartbroken and looking for someone who has dealt with a similar situation to please give me hope!
Hi, it was about a month ago when my 7 year old male doxie Denali had strained his back. I have 2 females who were in heat about 2 weeks apart so he was very busy with the girls. I had went out to feed them when I had noticed that something was wrong with him. I told my husband to come outside and look he would not move his back legs, he was dragging hisself and it was hard for him to walk.
We picked him up and checked him out. We were very worried thought he may have been bitten we really did not know so we called the vet. and we went to the vet at 9:30 at night. when we got there he said it looked like he had a herniaided disk in his back. The vet checked his reflexes they were good he still had some feeling so he said that is a good sign so he gave denali some pain shots a muscle relaxer and a shot of prednisone and he stayed at the vets for 4 days trying to recover.
We were able to pick him up and bring him home but, the vet told us prior to all of the treatment that there was a possiblity that denali would have to have surgery and it was very costly and we were up for it. the instructions were to bring him home crate confine him and he could not stress that enough and give him 2 prednisones morning/night for 14 days and he wanted to see Denali if any problems he wanted to avoid the surgery if all possible he had to drain his bladder for the first day then he was able to urine on his own denali was eating good and drinking lots of water due to the prednisone then we went back to the vet for a follow up on his meds and they said everything was looking good right now but, he still was not sure if Denali was not going to need the surgery we are still not out of the woods yet.
So we started the prednisone again only 1 a day for 14 days. at this time we had let denali out of his crate for a little while to work up the muscles and he was going to the bathroom just fine all by hisself and eating good still drinking lots of water. then it was time for him to take his last prednisone i had to take him to the vet. for overnight boarding i was working out of town that day and my husband was working late we had not choice but, to make sure he was taken care of. they had given him his last pill that day to finish off that run of the 14 days. The next day after work we had picked him up and they were wanting to wing him off the prednisone to every other day that was on Monday Feb. 15th and it is Sunday Feb 21st. He will not eat but, he is still drinking lots of water. He has taken a turn for the worst, bearly gets around have to make him get up and go outside to use the bathroom.
It is very said to see my little Denali up one day and down the next and as I have seen this is how it happens. the prednisone is a very mean and powerful drug it causes some bad side effects for your dogs I really was not aware of. today I called the vet. I really don't think that there is anything that can be done for my little Denali we will meet him out there this evening and I think we are going to have to put him down.
Our vet has done everything that they can to make him better. This is and has been a very hard decision that my husband and I had to have you see we cant have any kids so these are our kids but, we love him and I cant see him suffer anymore. I know that this is not him he was a very playful and loving dog I have so many good memories of him. He is very thin and weak now so I know what all of you are going through when you say my dog is worth every penny to me Denali is to. I just don't want him to think that daddy and mommy are giving up and quitting on him because every time I will look outside and see my girls I will think of him and miss him so much. So good luck to all and all the little doxie out there.
Sure hope he's feeling better. He probably needs to go fishing.
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