My male dog might have DM - Page 1

Our GS has been having problems with arthritis for the last 2 years (but this winter we noticed a big change; difficulty getting up and dragging his right paw but the nails are still okay.  Our vet recommended injections of Cartrophen. We did and didn't see any improvement. So that's why we brought him back last week to the vet.  She did the regular test, bring his paw upside down and the left was okay but the right took 2 seconds. She immediately diagnosed him with DM.  I have to admit that we were really upset about this.  Our dog is healthy as a horse and is very lean; it's all muscles.  He is 10 years old and weighs 112 pounds.  We're looking to get a second opinion and see what tests we can do.  My husband contacted Dr. Clemmons and he suggested a few things but before trying anything, we need to know if it's really DM.  Is an X-ray the best test to do in order to eliminate DM?

Thank you....

I thought my male did too, he was standing on the top of both back feet and wouldn't flip them over and couldn't wag his tail. Went to the vet didn't see anything on x-ray was given prednisone and sent out the door. We did the pred which helped him feel better but didn't help symptoms at all. Their only other suggestion was to go to the neurologist and have expensive MRI and Myelogram done well I couldn't afford those so we ended up having him treated by the chiropractor that I work for and within a week he was more stable in the back legs and was wagging his tail!!! He has continued care since then and comes in once a month now and is doing amazing! This all happened just before his 10th birthday and he is just about to turn 12 in June! It was amazing how fast and great it worked for Arco and might be worth checking into! I have also done acupuncture and massage on my other GSDs and had great results!! You can still here him drag the tips of his middle back toes but otherwise he can jump on the furniture, play and go for walks which we do lots of! Good luck with your boy!!

Thank you for your support and suggestions!  We really appreciate that.  We love our dog, he's my little boy and we want to do what's best for him.  I have a funny question...when you mention chiro, did you bring him to a chiro for people or for animals?

Hi frisco,
  Sorry to hear that, I hope he doesn't.
 I am testing my dogs throught the OFA with their DNA test they have for it.
Your dog can be Normal, carrier or affected.
The test is $65 and is a swab of the cheek.
 Probably would be worth doing in your case, then take it from there,
http://www.caninegeneticdiseases.net/DM/basicDM.htm 

   Good Luck,
          Paula

I'm so sorry to hear about your boy. My girl was recently diagnosed with DM through a blood test. According to my vet, the blood test for DM is more accurate than the cheek swab. It took three weeks to get the results. I would definitely have your dog tested, whether it's the cheek swab or the blood test.  Our vet originally took x-rays of the hips and spine to see if there was something going on, but all was fine. FYI One thing I've heard about myelograms, is that the procedure can make the DM worse. 
 
Our girl is on Dr. Clemmons' meds and supplements. She is also getting acupuncture and laser therapy, as well as "at home" physical therapy and massage therapy. I think she is in a holding stage right now. If your dog does have DM the most important thing is to keep him reasonably active. That means a minimum of 10-15 minute walks three-four times a day along with some physical therapy. If he can comfortably and willingly do more,that is great. It all depends on what he is used to and what he can tolerate. As mindhunt mentioned, swimming is excellent if your dog enjoys it.  Do not let your dog lie in a crate or kennel for any period of time.  If you have a rehab vet in your area it would be well worth the money to go at least one time so they could show you PT exercises for your dog and give you other information. Another thing is some dogs need to be on pain meds. The DM itself doesn't directly cause pain but due to the dog trying to compensate with the rest of his body to move, muscle soreness can occur. My girl tends to get sore in the shoulder area. I hope this info helps, but hopefully your boy doesn't have DM. Please keep us posted.

We thought our Wolfie had DM, but it turned out to be an old spinal injury that had developed arthritis. He could wag his tail, even though he was toeing over on his hind leg. Excersize helped, with some pain meds. Good luck, hope it's not DM. jackie harris

I took him to a human chiropractor(luckily I work for him) that does a motion palpation technique which is really great. We have Arco lay down on the floor and Dr. Keilman runs his hands along the spine and pelvis checking for joints that aren't moving properly and when he finds them those are the areas that are adjusted. For Arco it is usually his pelvis and his lumbar regions! Arco doesn't appreciate the actual adjustment but he feels so great after that he jumps up off the floor and runs up and down the hallway and is just so relieved from any discomfort he was having. I learned about chiropractic and dogs many years ago from a breeder I got my first shepherd from about 15yrs ago and she always took her GSD to the chiropractor before and after shows and he performed so much better.  We have recently started working on a toy poodle and he is also doing fantastic with the treatments! Since the poodle is so small Dr. Keilman uses an activator to do the adjustments, on Arco's last visit we did use the activator on him and he actually did better with that than when Dr. Keilman uses his hands.

Other than the adjustments I have not changed anything with Arco's diet or exercise amounts. He gets daily exercise usually at least a mile once or twice a day whenever we take the baby for a walk he goes with us. The chiropractic care has helped so much on its own I chose to not persue finding out if he had DM or not. He is happy and not getting worse so I am happy with where he is for an almost 12yr old. He is not on any pain medication or anti inflamatories as I don't care for those types of medications. I worked in a veterinary clinic for about 12yrs and they do help but don't care for the side effects they can cause, so if I can treat him naturally that is what I will do first. I do keep some Deramaxx at home just in case but haven't had to use it for over a year and a half. I really prefer the meloxicam that comes in a liquid or you can get it from a human pharmacy in tablets which is so much cheaper and it seems that my shepherds have always tolerated it best!

Hope that information helps if your interested I could ask Dr. Keilman if he knows any chiropractors in your area for you to call and talk to.

We have decided to consult a chiro.  My husband's chiro might take our dog for treatment.  He has taken all the documentation to read and he's going to search on the internet for this disease. He will give us an answer probably this week. We really hope that he will treat him. Our only concern is that we don't want our dog to be in pain.  We will do whatever we can to relieve the pain and give him a good quality of life.

Wanted to say DM is not painful to the dog.

I am very sorry to hear about your dog.  Commander, the best dog I ever
had died at 13 of cancer, but at 12 1/2 he could no longer walk due to DM
I learned then that DM does not cause pain. 

I kept him alive as long as he was happy, even after he could not walk or control his bowels, but I had to keep him very clean, (use rubber backed table cloths) under him and move him around.  Most folks won't do this, but he was happy for a time, not in pain.  I found massage really helped in addition to Clemmons protocall.  Sad when a magnificent healthy strong protector who never would back down from anything or anyone is felled by DM.  Still NOT painful to the dog. 

You can get a doggie wheelchair for the time he cannot walk but still is vital otherwise.  There is a website that even tells you how to make one yourself for large
breeds, as the manufactured ones are quite costly.

PLEASE, folks, now that there is a test, don't breed without testing and don't buy unless the breeder tests for DM.  Breeders like von Gildaf test all of their dogs now.

Again, so very sorry, but try to focus on the many good years you had and give your dog the patience you might need yourself someday.