Hi all, Euan has the same problem again. The whole weekend he screamed in agony! He is in so much pain and can't lift his head. It started Friday morning, just before we headed of for the weekend in our vacation home. He got stuck between Finn, the front door and my OH by leaving the house for a quick wee. He twisted his back and started crying. As he is often in pain, we wanted to see how he was doing with restricted rest. We separated the two dogs, as for Finn is still boisterous. Euan couldn't handle this in this weekend. Finn is rather impressed by what is happening to Euan. He is quiet and takes care of Euan by cleaning his ears. This morning I phoned the vet for an appointment. She was filled for the day, I insisted to make a exception for he is in so much pain. Tonight at 19:30 we are going to see the vet. I keep you updated! Does someone have experience with acupuncture with this? Is this a real option for Euan? He is at the max of pain treatment. Annemarie
Annemarie, sorry I have no experience with acupuncture (human or canine) but just wanted to pass on hugs to you and lab licks from Ella to Euan xx
Oh I'm so sorry to read this.....I've only got human experience of acupuncture ( on me!) and whilst I won't dissmiss it I would never rely on it for pain management of a critical condition.Maybe it complemented my conventional medications but it certainly wouldn't have been sufficient on its own.....Your vet will be able to explore your options at your appointment .Please let us know how you get on....and I hope you can get some relief for Euan. Very Best wishes X
I don't have any help for you, but I didn't want to read and run. Poor Euan, I really hope the vet can help your boy.
My vet used to do acupuncture which used to help old dogs for a time but was never 100% effective. I don't think it would help Euan's problem but everything is worth a try. Poor boy, I feel for you both. I think the vet should have fitted you in as an emergency.
So sorry, this must be dreadfully difficult. I hope the vet can help, and advise you. That level of pain won't be helped by acupuncture. Even with mild pain levels it's hit and miss (I've had half a dozen sessions for a pinched nerve with no benefit...).
So sorry to hear this, hope you can keep him comfy until he is seen. I would agree with this. I haven't done this regularly for ages because of time constraints, but I did use acupuncture in my medical practice for a while, and it is absolutely NOT the first thing I would reach for in an acute pain situation. Some people respond, others don't, and my experience is that it can work well for some people at the beginning, then lose its effect too. Hope the vet gives him some effective oral pain meds. Let us know how you get on.
Oh poor boy. Hoping that the vet can work out a programme of pain relief for Euan that helps. Will be thinking of you at the vets this evening and sending our best wishes.
Oh poor boy. Hoping that the vet can work out a programme of pain relief for Euan that helps. Will be thinking of you at the vets this evening and sending our best wishes.
I am so sorry to read this. I always follow your posts with interest given that our dogs share a similar condition, and my heart sunk when I read this one. I hope you find something to help Euan's pain, it is just too awful hearing them scream. Snowie had acupuncture for his bulging disc in January. When we went back to the vet three weeks later, he said he could feel marked improvement (Snowie's back did not tighten up when he felt him, the muscles were relaxed). We don't, however, know if it was the acupuncture or everything else (restricted exercise, easier steps installed in our pool, no ball retrieves, no beach running, etc). Interestingly, though, the vet then recommended laser treatment over acupuncture for the next treatment as he said he sees better results with laser over acupuncture. (I need to ask him why he did acupuncture first, then!) My regular vet recommended the acupuncture vet because she'd seen good results not only in her own dog but in her clients' dogs. She said one client could not afford the operation for her dog's bulging disc so she went the acupuncture route, and the dog recovered very well. Her own dog had acupuncture, not for a disc, but for seized up muscles that caused agony in her neck, and she said her dog relaxed incredibly and came out of that pain. This, however, is probably different to the pain that Euan is experiencing -- I presume his nerves are being impacted by the disc rather than by tensed up muscles? I have found that by massaging Snowie around the painful area, he relaxes and becomes comfortable. Perhaps you can do this for Euan while you await the vet visit? You could also apply a warm compress to relax the muscles. I find that just gently massaging with my thumb in circles on a tensed muscle makes Snowie start to breathe deeply and fall fast asleep. I massage very lightly at first to see how much pressure he will take -- and sometimes he will take my hand in his mouth to say Stop. The acupuncture vet also sold me a Chinese spray called Yunnan Baiyoa. I get a very sore upper back (old injury) and I sprayed it on myself and it numbed the area and took away the pain! It feels a bit like Deep-Heat, where it freezes the area, too. There are no ingredients listed. (They are apparently held under lock and key by the Chinese military! Wikipedia offers an interesting story about the product's origins.) I know it sounds like clutching at straws -- acupuncture, spray -- but if you feel comfortable with this it might be worth trying something to give your boy relief. One last thing: yesterday I was chatting to a woman in the park about her Daschund that had a slipped disc last November. Had the operation (same surgeon who examined Snowie, he said Snowie did not need surgery now) and recovered, but goes for aquatherapy (running on a treadmill under water) to strengthen the core muscles -- she said this therapy is what she thinks has had the greatest benefit. This dog is 11 years old and is doing well, although she said he is very quiet, no longer bounces around as he once did. Best of luck at the vet and I am thinking of you and Euan and hoping he will find relief from the pain.
I'm so sad to read this, I've had bulging discs and they are agony poor Euan. Fingers crossed the vet can help this evening. Xx
Hi Claire -- what treatment did you have for your bulging discs? I take it you love Pilates! Did you take it up because of your discs?
Oh dear, so sorry to hear this. So distressing for all of you. Hugs to you and very gentle pats to Euan. Hope the vet can give you something that will help your boy with his pain. So sorry this happened just as you were getting ready for a vacation
Yes I did take it because of my discs, I had surgery as I became unable to walk and the nerves stopped working so I was unable to go to the toilet. I just feel so sorry for Euan, because he must be in so much pain. It makes me feel so very sad. When I was thinking of a user name I couldn't think of anything so my son said you once loved Pilates, then I accidentally missed the s off so I became Pilatelover
I am so sorry to hear how severe your bulging discs were. Are you fully recovered? And do you think the pilates contributed to your recovery? I wonder if running on an underwater treadmill for dogs is the equivalent to pilates? Because it is something I want to consider for Snowie. Yes, when you've been in that pain, you can understand what a poor dog is going through. And our Labs are so resilient, so when they scream you definitely know they're in pain. BTW I read your name as "pilates", didn't notice the missing S!
@MF yes I'm fully recovered it was about 13 years ago now so Im good. Pilates definitely helped with recovery. (Not sure about dogs as I'm not an expert but Pilates strengthens the core muscles which in turn supports the lower back amoungest other things) The other thing that seriously helped was swimming and Aqua Aerobics. I'm a great believer in using water as a means to heal the body. Mabel has hydrotherapy to help build muscle tone after her elbow surgery, which is working out very well. It's so difficult with our dogs though knowing what to do for the best. Through Mabel being diagnosed with ED Ive learnt to try and stay calm, don't take the vets comments as gospel and never be frightened to seek a second opinion. I hope you find something suitable for Snowie. X
