Spinal Osteoarthritis and calcification
 I just received an email from her new family (not so new) I am not familiar this so, I am looking for some advice to give them.... This is part of what he said..... " He did tests for spinal compression and that seemed to be ok, but also decided to xray her. He showed me the Xrays and said she has a very very bad back. Osteoarthritis and calcification around the lower three or four disks that have connected together. He said these disks were almost fused together. He used a term but I am sorry I don’t remember it. He also showed me where there was some prior pressure on the spinal cord some time in the past. What caused her the pain was it looked like part of the calcification around one of the disks that was connected broke apart." Any advice would be appreciated... They are now thinking she is quite a bit older than we were told. |
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| Arthritis in the lower spine is pretty common when they get older. All my dogs have had it at one point or another as they age. You start to notice them taking longer to go into a sit. Getting up isn't the hard part so much as sitting down is. My vet suggested what I considered a pretty "new age" treatment to try but I decided to forgo it for more than 1 reason.....not that I don't trust my vet either. Now if there was an injury earlier on that may be a different story. I had a mixed breed a long time ago that had a leasion on his spine from an accident of some kind that we were unaware of. Eventually it blocked the nerve conection from his brain to his front legs. He knew he wanted to move them but couldn't control them at all. He was about 13 years old at the time this happened. What is their vet suggesting? |
| Thanks Marilyn... Right now she is on Rimadyl. The thing is that she is only estimated to be around 3y/o. I had contact with the breeder so, I thought we knew her age. (With this condition the vet says she is probably 6 or 7.) This is a girl that was taken to animal control(by the breeder) after the other female in the house attacked her. (this happened approx 7-25-09) She had a lot of injuries from that.... (lacerations) She was spayed on 8-31-09 and was unusually painful but, I just assumed she had a lower tolerance for pain. Could an injury from 9 months ago have caused this? She has the most awesome family now and had such a crappy start that this just breaks my heart! |
| One of the dogs that was rescued from the same kennel as my Murphy has spinal problems, can't remember exactly what, but I will send Liz and email and ask her what it is and what treatment she is on. Gertie (the sheepie) is about 13 now and was diagonised with this problem last year and I do know that she is much better. I will let you know. |
| Thanks Bren! |
| I suppose it could be a part of it. When my mixed breed developed this lesion he was 13 years old. The ONLY time we could even think he might have sustained any kind of injury was back when he was about 4-5 years old & got loose one night & was gone for a little over 24 hours. Only time in our life anything like that happened. He was tied outside & there appeared to be no struggle & he didn't slip his collar so we think some neighbor kids let him loose. When he ambled home finally he was tuckered out & cold from being outside but he didn't act like he had been hurt. We never gave it another thought until years later when the vet mentioned this type of lesion generally developed over time & started from an accident or injury such as falling & twisting their back, being hit by a car or just being hit with anything. Another thing to consider is spondyliosis. I had an OES once that when her hips were x-rayed for & read by OFA they noted on her OFA certificate that her hips were a GOOD but there was indication of spondyliosis (which I understand means they noticed early signs of arthritis). Rimadyl can be very effective if used properly & tests on the liver & kidneys are done on a regular basis. Generally you see it used on a continuing basis more in an older dog to make the quality of their last few years better. I use it on occasion as an anti-inflammatory when my guys twist a knee or strain their neck etc. But then only for a few days. I also have Metacam on hand tho' I've never had need to use it. The vet gave it to me in case mine couldn't tolerate the rimadyl (as in upset tummies). I've never used it yet but I hear from other breeders that they have used it & they have raved about the results. Chances are you may never know exactly how old she is. Even the breeder may not really remember. All of these things combined could produce the situation you are describing. |
Ooooh no... sweet Breezy.  Was that new age treatment VOM, Marilyn? It looked soooo hokey but Panda moved easier after treatments for hip dysplasia. We had to make sure she didn't overdue it the first couple of days after treatment. The holistic vet (now retired) would use that VOM gun and click down her spine from her head to her stump. He then used I believe an infrared heat... it's been a while now. Here's an article that explains VOM- http://www.lbah.com/vom.htm# I don't know if this would help Breezy... might be worth checking into. |
| Hey Kathy, this is the response that I received from Liz. Hopes this helps. _____________________ What Gert has advanced spondalosis in that its the entire lower lumbar region that's affected. It is the same thing as described only it covers a larger area. Gert's vet recommended Deramaxx as a long term medication. She is on 1/4 tab a day right now. She's also on a daily glucosamine supplement and takes Tramadol for pain should she need it. http://www.deramaxx.com/home/default.asp?page=0_0 http://www.drugs.com/tramadol.html Gert is still kickin' it...though she can't get up off the floor by herself very much anymore. She's prone to losing her footing so we've had to block her from the stairs completely so she won't stumble and fall. Once on her feet though she pounces around like a puppy still. Her vet is a good friend of mine who lives close by. He pops in to see her from time to time and makes suggestions on what best to do to help her in terms of mobility. Weight loss was a huge factor in helping us manage this so she's always on a diet. Excersise is also a big thing too. Heat packs, massages, pet bowl stands and extra thick sleeping beds (to get her off the hardwood floors) are all good things. Water therapy is also good as there is virtually no stress on the joints or the spine. |
| Thanks ladies....I will pass this on! |
| Our vet, in addition to regular vetrinarian treatments, also offers holistic type of treatments. Unfortunately we've had two beloved sheepies who have suffered from hip dysplasia and arthritis. We have personal experience and can recommend the following treatments that have greatly improved their comfort and mobility: electro-accuscope treatments accupressure chiropractic adjustments on the spine and feet osteoarthritis nosodes Chondro-flex which is glucosamine and chrondoitin flex spur - These capsules prevent bone spurs. The reason this is important is because we had a beautiful sheepie and she got a bone spur that blew out her sciatica nerve which resulted in her leg dangling and becoming paralyzed ( yes, it's just as freaky and heartwrenching as it sounds). We are using it as a preventative measure hoping that doesn't happen to our sheepie Hannah. Had we known of this product we may have prevented that happening to our Katrina. These treatments are in addition to the use of standard vetrinary care. We have recently found it necessary to add tramadol as well for our diabetic/hip dysplastic sheepie Hannah. |
| Portage had this problem as well. We treated with pain meds, and I believe something for inflammation. It was heartbreaking, but we kept him comfortable for as long as possible, and got used to helping him get up and down whenever he needed it. As I recall, the vet advised exercise, and my hubby did three short walks with him every day. Our vet was extremely impressed with how long Portage remained active and comfortable. He was over ten when we found out, and was not quite twelve when we had to let him go. There were additional health concerns at play by that time. I'm so sorry to hear about Breezey. |
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