Difficult Decisions - Page 4

Clc, I think we're talking apples and oranges here. You're talking sudden onset paralysis. This is something that has developed slowly over time, and has just now reached a tipping point, but not one that I haven't seen coming.

He has arthritis in his spine. I know from my nursing training that gentle exercise is the best way to preserve movement. He also has loss of nerve function and sensation. Exercise will help strengthen the muscles that are still working and allow him to stay active longer. Yes, he must have some pain. But he scarfs down his food in 20 seconds flat, then wants to play ball, so it can't be all that bad. 

I'm letting him call the shots here. The day he doesn't scramble to his feet with his eyes sparkling when I pick up his leash will be the day I know it's time to just let him rest.

We will all be here for you when that hard day comes.  I think you are right though.  Let his life continue and enjoy every day.  He will tell you when he is ready for rest.

Extra hug to you today.

Sunny, like Fawnda just wrote, he will let you know, and we will be here for you.

As to the "up one day, down the next" thing, I went through that too, with Vida;

and I am beginning to see such things with Taz now.  I do not think this sort of

thing is uncommon as they age, whether they have full-blown Arthritis or the

onset of DM;  we are lucky they get into their teens in the first place.

Linda.  xxx 

It developed slowly (as you say)  but got worse suddenly or when he slipped it got worse (as you say) . Thus you may have 2 issues going on there.  Something long term and short term. . ...... especially if the steroids and aspirin  helped I think there is some inflammation around some nerves.   Inflammation cause by what. That would be the question I would ask. 

 Swimming is always good for keeping muscle tone on older dogs. 

 I had an older dog who did move so unfortunately that he was in major pain and could not move very well. My vet gave him steroids . I do not care for steroids too much and told that to my vet. My vet said there there is place for steroids. To knock down inflammation so that the swelling which cases the inflammation can subside. My dog was fine in 3 weeks...and lived few more years after that . 

Yes I have also experienced the older guys having a good day then a bad day;  even several bad days in a row, my special girl was almost 15 years old.  I took that into consideration when she would have a bad day;  you can call this whatever you want, but in reality most older dogs especially these buy guys structure starts to break down on them making it very difficult to treat and to diagnois.  But as long as you feel he is doing his best and still enjoying his life and still able to get up and take care of business on his own and is eating then it sounds to me like that is what you are going to get for now.

I did find the strengthening exercises for older dogs and for DM dogs (they don't have to have DM for the benefits) to be extremely helpful for my older girl;  helped to strengthen her steadiness and gate and she was very amblatory until the day she died.  Personally I want these older guys able to get up and move and if and when the time comes they cannot that would be my message.  I also took her on walks every day or every other day up and down hills and driveways;  up and down helped to strengthen her also as well as resistance training.  Best of luck with you big guy,  Nan

Sun:  I also used a product that you can take a look at on VetionX.com;  there liquid for arthritis and also the pain med:  Proximyl (SP??).  Both are excellent and I just added dosage on food and the pain med when I knew my girl was hurting or if she would slip and strain something;  also put her on a soft bed in her crate which she did not like at first but learned to use it and that also really helped her comfort level. 

Arthritis med daily 2 X's per day at first then l Xper day and really only had to use pain stuff on occasion but also a natural antiflammatory which really seemed to be effective (all natural).  Good luck  Nan

Now that the hot weather is here, Ranger prefers to lie stretched out on the bare floor! So, I am not going to be spending money on special dog beds. Went that route once before, and my geriatric (and very bony!) dog absolutely REFUSED to even look at it!    When I blocked her access to the kitchen and its tile floor, to try to get her to at least sleep on the nice, soft, rug beside my bed, she went and laid on the cold, hard, tile floor in the bathroom!.

What can you do? LOL!

I am not going to experiment with meds until the steroids are done. Too much risk of an bad interaction. Steroids have enough nasty side effects of their own, without possibly adding to the problem. Also, many of the things mentioned here by people from the States may not be available in Canada, because they are not licensed for use here.

SS, I wasn't suggesting you should do surgery whatsoever, that was just my experience with why I had no option but to use them; my point in posting was to say don't accept the DM diagnosis right off the bat. I don't know how it is in your area but around here, every GSD who trips once in their lives is diagnosed w/DM or HD. My second point was be very very careful w/the steroids and esp. in a combo w/something that affects nerves, like gabapentin. MRIs are wonderful if you have a vet where you can get one done at a reasonable price. 

I HATE steroids for longterm or habitual, regular use but they are an unfortunate necessity in certain cases, like when you must get swelling down before you can operate. Caleb had a very treatable back issue. Problem was, they couldn't operate around a spinal cord until the swelling was gone. NSAIDs weren't going to work on that. It was either leave him that way, with (acceptable to most due to his age, unacceptable to me, as I would not want to live with my legs half numb and tingling/prickly if something could be done) or remove the fragments if once the swelling was down, he regained full coordination and the tingling stopped (my choice, as he was not slowing down one bit, was in fantastic condition, and had always been 100% healthy). And it worked.  After several days, he was climbing like a champ again and jumping my 6' fence like a 2yr old......3 hours before he died. It looked like surgery would restore him to darn near 100%, if not 100%. 

Steroids have their place; I firmly believe it was the combo that killed him. A friend lost hers after the same amount of time on the exact same combo, same situation. For a very aged dog, it might be worth the risk if it alleviates major pain, but for a younger dog who is not terminal or chronically in pain, I would avoid that combo at all costs. 

Sorry for the detour...

I am currently using Phycox for Rose and Baron.  My vet recommended it for Rose after she just did not commpletly recover from what ever she did to her hip last year.  It seems to be helping very well.  I put Baron on it this last winter, as I started noticing he was favoring his front leg more and more (he is 7 and as bouncy as a border collie ).  It seems to help him too.   I recommend waiting until you are done with the doctor's meds though.

Here is some lable info.  I get it though Revival.com and it does not require a vet rx.     Canine Joint Support - help reduce inflammation and discomfort due to normal activity.

Phycox

Glucosamine HCI

Methylsulfonylmethane

Creatine Monohydrate

Flaxseed Oil

minerals

Turmeric

EPA

DHA

Boron

Selenium

Vit E

Jenni, as I had mentioned surgery as an option in my first post, I just wanted to confirm I was no longer considering it. Never thought you were suggesting it, not at all...

One unfortunate side effect of the steroids...came home to a big puddle of pee on the floor! My bad...I considered letting the dogs out before I left, but was in too much of a hurry, and also knew they'd know I was leaving, and try to make a break for the car as soon as I let them back in. (They saw me pick up my keys, then take beer bottles out to the car, and they are VERY good at putting 2+2 together! )

So, not want to deal with the hassle of having to tell them 'no, you're not coming' means I now have to wash some bedding and clean up a big puddle! (Whacks self with rolled up newspaper...)

So, the steroids have taken awhile to kick in, but the old boy is at last feeling better. So much better that he actually tried to hump Star this afternoon!!     (He's neutered, and so is she!)

He is now going up and down the stairs with no hesitation at all. He is even doing the old, decaying stairs to the back deck, which are made out of barn beams stacked on top of one another. The second top step is broken in the middle, where it collapsed underneath me a couple of weeks ago!  (Carpenter or skilled handyperson badly needed to totally replace that staircase!)

I know the steriods are not a cure. It has only bought us some more time, and made him feel better. But I'm happy with that...

We have started to do some walks around the property on the grass, and he's tolerating them well. When I throw the ball, he is still able to run after it (bunny hopping) and gives a growl of protest when Star grabs it first.

I can see why the vet felt his front end was being affected. When you feel his shoulderblades, all you can feel is bone!    So, she may be right. We may be dealing with both arthritis and DM.