Last year I wrote here about Snowie screaming in pain when leaping out of a lake. My regular vet suspected a slipped disc in the neck because he refused to move his entire body during that incident. Although a clicking in his leg made her wonder if problems with hips. He was sometimes reluctant to climb steps, jump into the car, or jump out of the swimming pool. Blood tests showed he was in the toxic range for Potassium Bromide, which he is on for epilepsy (we halved the dose immediately). KBr can cause hind quarter weakness, so the jury was out for what was causing his problems. A few weeks ago Snowie was reluctant to climb the stairs again, but he insists on sleeping with us, so after a while he climbed up to the landing and then whimpered and would not go up or down. I gave him a couple of Rimadyl and sat with him and massaged his back. He fell asleep. A half hour later he came up, and the next morning, right as rain leapt onto the bed. But I made an appointment with the orthopaedic specialist, needed to get the bottom of this. The worst was that he was not allowed to eat from 10pm the night before the appointment! The specialist checked him out and suspected a bulging disc in the lumbar spine. He pressed all along the spine and asked Snowie to tell him where it hurt. As in: crying out in pain. My heart couldn't take it when he cried in pain at a particular point. He also checked hips and elbows and Snowie did cry a little for one elbow. He said his neck was fine, he moved his head all over the place and Snowie showed no discomfort. (I am always amazed what vets do to dogs and trust they won't bite them! Not that Snowie would bite anyone, he's the gentlest of boys, but I wouldn't try what he did on a dog I didn't know!) Next were a complete set of x-rays and an MRI of the lumbar region. X-rays showed perfect hips and elbows! But arthritis at the Lumbar 7-Sacral joint (I didn't know dogs have two more lumbar vertebrae than humans). And also calcification across three thoracic vertebrae (the vet said this was inconsequential and the body's way of stabilising an area, nothing to worry about). The MRI showed a bulging disc at the L7-S joint. Which means that after excessive exercise, inflammation would be caused and press on the nerves, causing pain. Rest would bring down the inflammation and the pain would disappear. The stiffness that we see when Snowie rises from sleep is probably not stiffness at all, but unwillingness to move his legs cos of the pain. The vet said it was premature to do surgery unless he was in the screaming pain every week. He also commented that out of every 5 ops they do, they discover that on average 2 weren't helpful or necessary. For now we must manage it with lifestyle changes and pain meds. Lifestyle changes mean no extreme sports, no explosive games like ball throwing (oh, he loves his ball!), and no wild playing with other dogs (good thing he has got older and not as wild as he used to be). Also minimise stairs, although our house has stairs everywhere, so he suggested minimising as much as we can and no wild running down stairs (thankfully he doesn't, he's very calm on ascent and descent). Meds means Rimadyl -- can give up two tablets per day with no ill effects, 75mg in morning, 75 mg in evening. But only if he is showing pain, not to give otherwise. He said an episode every 1-3 months was acceptable, more than that he should be reassessed for surgery. Of course there is the danger of the disc herniating to the extent that it causes paralysis. I was rather shaken and emotional last Friday, I can tell you that!!!!! Thankfully his bone mineralisation is totally fine and the vet was happy for us to continue with his raw meat-bone diet (some vets are anti this diet, want you to feed pellets). The vet isn't convinced by supplements (he's a conventional vet) but said it wouldn't hurt to give Mobiflex, I can decide either to give or not to give, so I will continue with Mobiflex. What caused the bulging disc? Vet doesn't know. Snowie was wild as a puppy and jumped down ravines that stopped my heart and amazed me he survived... so maybe he got injured then? I have sometimes grabbed him by the tail when he's been playing wildly with other dogs and I needed to get him under control but couldn't catch him. Vet said I mustn't do this now that we know he has the bulging disc, but he doubts that caused the problem. I hope not, I feel too awful. I have read that the L7-S joint is a weak spot in the spine cos it gets pressure from the pelvis. Anyway, we continue as is. Must exercise, vet said old school said to rest. Now they recommend consistent exercise, walking and running, but limit to 1 hour at a time, and nothing extreme or jolting. Snowie is now four years old and I am pretty shattered that he has a bulging disc at this age. Does anyone know if a bulging disc can heal? I did tell the vet I would have a million questions for him after I left! At the time my mind was rendered blank. (Thankfully I did take written notes!)
I am so sorry to read of Snowies awful troubles , it must be incredibly hard to keep an enthusiastic four year old under tight control . I`m sorry that I cant offer any advice re the disc healing , but just wanted to offer a little support and very good wishes that he can be kept pain free and as happy as possible .
Oh my goodness, many sympathies to you. At least you know now what is the cause of Snowy's pain, and can plan accordingly. No more wild throwing ball games - but you can still let him have fun using his nose to search for balls in the long grass, and I expect that memory retrieves will be ok too. Don't worry too much; now you know what to avoid, you can make sure he still has a happy and fulfilled life.
Thanks Karen. Memory games are a great idea and he does love to find his ball and toss it back to you -- great idea, thank you. When he was younger I'd take him to the park more often (now I prefer longer walks on the mountain or beach) and I'd amaze the kids in the park with a dog who could play hide 'n seek (they weren't particularly socialised with trained dogs). They loved hiding his ball and then telling him to go find it, and some would even give him verbal clues, the innocence, it was so sweet.
Sorry to hear of Snowies problem but your specialist sounds very good and practical. You will find an exercise regime which keeps him happy and also controls his condition without extra stress.
What a worrying time for you. I don't have any advice to give I'm afraid, but just want to wish you good luck.
When I worked for a vet many moons ago, we used traction on dogs who had a bulging disc and this mostly had very good results.
Poor chap. So sorry to hear this. I don't have any experience of the veterinary side, but from a human point of view, surgery is avoided if possible (unless symptoms are very acute and looking like they are causing permanent damage to the cord and spinal nerves). I don't think this is totally NHS money-saving , but involves weighing up the risks and benefits, and also correlating symptoms and signs with scan results - mostly surgery isn't done for back pain, but could be done for leg/nerve pain - but of course you can't ask you dog that! There is a useful Cochrane Review that might help, but I'm not sure how well this correlates with dogs. Upshot if I recall is that after 2 years (in humans) pain levels and outcomes are about the same whether no-surgery or surgery. This would suggest an ability for spontaneous resolution/improvement. Might be worth looking at physio input or hydrotherapy. Anyway, all this relates to humans and NOT dogs, but might give you some food for thought and stuff to chat to your vet about. jac
Sorry that Snowie has a back problem. Poor man. Over time the vertebrae may fuse around the joint and stabilise it a bit. At least that is what happened with my old doggie who had a bad neck injury from a young age. We did a bit of physio with him, guided by a dog physiotherapist. We also managed it with Metacam when needed. He has to wear a neck brace sometimes too. We found it important to keep him warm in winter, especially when he was old (10 or so and onwards). Our dog lived a long and happy life and I'm sure that Snowie will too.
Sorry I can't offer any advice, just wanted to say how really sorry I am to hear about poor Snowies health problems. Sending you best wishes.
So sorry to read that Snowy has a bulging disk! I know in how much pain he has, for Euan had the same problem, which started by climbing stairs when we were on a vacation weekend. He had to climb one staircase, we haven't learn our dogs to climb stairs for they are not allowed in the bedrooms! There he cried out in total agony! To make a long story short, the MRI showed an impingement of the bulging disk together with a tailbone into his spinal cord. He had to be operated to prevent him for becoming paralyzed. So we went along with the operation. After the operation he became never the old Euan again. He altered very quickly. After approximately 6 months he started having pain again. He screamed again and he didn't want to come out of his bed. He also didn't lift his head. I thought we had to say goodbye..... He got opiates (tramadol 50mg 2x per day), and he already had carprodyl. He became groggy, but after 1 week he was without opiates again, but very fragile. When you ask me if we would do it again, I mean with the operation I would say no! It didn't help..... But again, you can only tell afterwards. Last Monday Euan started to scream again. He is now on opiates again, together with carprodyl. He pants the whole day. The dog walker told me that after a while Euan drags his hind legs, he hasn't got the energy or strength to walk normally. Is it because of the pain, is it because his heart isn't pumping right (panting) we don't know. There is one thing I am afraid of and that is that he is not going to be old. I hope I helped you with our story. For your Snowy is so young to have those problems already. With our Euan it started when he was almost 9. I know that in the humane world a bulging disk can resolve again. Perhaps you can try to put him on a treadmill for dogs. For humans it is not good to rest, but a bit of exercise will do wonders. Of course no heavy stuff! I think that for dogs it will be the same! Annemarie
Thank you Rachael, that is very reassuring. The x-rays showed calcification across three thoracic vertebrae, which the vet said was the body's way of stabilising an area that might've been unstable. So hopefully the same will happen where the bulging disc is. Only thing is, I've read that the L7-S joint is particularly unstable because the sacrum is a long fused area articulating with the last of the movable vertebrae, the seventh lumbar vertebra, so I wonder if the body can stabilise this joint by itself after such an injury? It might require surgery. Anyway, I live in hope (among the worry!). And will consult a holistic vet who does acupuncture. I have read that acupuncture increases blood circulation and speeds up recovery (if the disc can indeed recover, although I have read that it can put down scar tissue to stabilise the bulging disc -- yes, all from reading, need to get back to the orthopaedic vet to discuss all this). My regular vet, who is a conventional vet, said she has seen great results from acupuncture from clients who could not afford the surgery so went the acupuncture route. I'm not sure whether acupuncture is good just for pain relief or whether it can indeed contribute to healing and recovery.
Hi Annemarie. I am so sorry for you and Euan, I can hear how devastated you are and I am so sad for you. Reading your post filled me with terrible anxiety for Snowie. But we can only learn from each other and I appreciate your telling me your story no matter how hard it is to read. Do you know which joint it was? Also the L7-S joint? And what does it mean "a tailbone into his spinal cord"? A vertebra? I have read that a bulging disc will occur at a site of degeneration that has happened over time. So while the event might appear to come out of the blue, that area was susceptible from either previous injury or degeneration. In Snowie's case, I wonder if it was because he had to jump into our pool in a very difficult way (the steps aren't accessible) and I would often think he was jarring his back as he landed on the seat inside the pool. We have subsequently made makeshift steps in the pool (plastic crates filled with rocks) so that he can get in and out more easily, although soon to be replaced by sandbags as the crates are breaking. I have also read that panting is a sign of pain. I am so sorry for Euan and I desperately hope we will be able to avoid Snowie being in as much pain as Euan. Do you think Euan might be dragging his legs on his walks because the nerves are being compressed and paralysing him? Have you considered acupuncture for pain relief? It is something I am considering and will let you know the effects of it if we go that route.
Thank you for posting that link to the review, which I look forward to reading. I definitely will be looking into physio, need to explore all avenues to recovery.
Thank you everyone for your kind wishes and words of support. They mean a LOT! It's so comforting to know that I can retreat here into cyberspace and find all of your kind support, very much appreciated. It's been a week since we saw the specialist vet and got the diagnosis. At least now we know what we're dealing with. Although in retrospect I am not impressed with the vet the way he gave me the results: a simple phone call. I have not seen the MRI or x-rays so I don't know the detail and the feedback was all so rushed. I was so upset then that I didn't think to question this. But now I think he should've taken us into his rooms and show us the slides and discussed various avenues to recovery. I shall deal with this next week, needed this past week to process everything. As for Snowie, he's in top form! Who would know he's a walking list of dog ailments (allergies, epilepsy, bulging disc). He is a very happy chappy and has such a zest for life. Which of course makes it worse for me to consider that he could become paralysed. Hence I will be doing all I can to find a way to minimise degeneration of this disc. One interesting bit that the vet said was that all the chewing that Snowie had been doing to his backside and knees could've been pins and needles from a pinched nerve and not itchiness. However, it doesn't explain the itchiness elsewhere (rubbing his chin, scratching his elbows and sides, chewing his front pads).
