Please Help!! Puppy in acute pain! - Page 1

I have a 4 month old puppy who has had a limp tail for the last 3 weeks but there was no pain. Then last week he was given his rabies vaccination after which he was fine. A day later he started yelping in pain and hasn't stopped. There appears to be no pain when he is standing but he cannot sit or sleep without crying in pain. Now, in addition to his tail being limp, his hind legs have also started to bend at the knees and his toes are splayed out. There is a constant involuntary twitching in his tail. His x-rays all seem fine and his CT scan is also clear. The vet is giving him a steroid 40 mg shot everyday for the last 3 days and also chloramphenacol (antibiotic) twice a day, in addition a capsule of neuribion and a probiotic. But there does not seem to be any improvement. He is in chronic pain and doesn’t stop crying. I was reading on the net and thought that the cauda equina condition seemed plausible. Could anyone please tell me if they have seen similar symptoms before and what treatment might be suitable. Thank you in advance.

PLEASE look at Wendy and Jack Volhards website...I just put a plug in for the raw diet prior to reading your post. They have extensive research and guidelines for vaccinations, effects of and possible txs. to reverse. You can e-mail them and I'm sure they'll get back to you w/in 24 hrs. as they did for me. Some pups/dogs react very badly if their immune system is compromised prior to vaccinating. They really could give you sound advise and are far more qualified. I'm so sorry for your pup...it is awful for both of you...please let me know how you make out...All the best!

The fact that you say the pup had a limp tail before being given a vaccination suggests that there was already some neurological or other medical issue present. It would be a rare situation that the pup was reacting to a vaccination, despite all the people who will immediately tell you this. Could the pup have hurt himself? When did the limp tail present and are you certain the tail really was limp rather than being held still because the dog is hurting. When dogs are hurting or fearful, often a tail will be held very limp. Was there any limping on one or more of the legs before in the weeks prior to this? What is the specialty of your vet? If the vet is a general vet, I might suggest trying to find a specialist immediately. There could be an infection, an injury or a broken or injured joint. There is pain relief available and the vet should be providing some assistance depending on the diagnosis. Inflammatory conditions should be helped by the steroid and often that relief is dramatic. Since there is no relief, I would worry that there is no inflammation. A pinched nerve would be painful and might show up this way. Cauda equina is a disease process that is normally seen only in old dogs. Something else is going on here. Go to a second vet if this vet can not figure out what is causing the problem. I can also tell you that in severe cases panosteitis can present and be confused with other problems. That is why I ask about limping in the past. I have had one rescue dog who cried sitting and lying down from panosteitis. Good luck and keep us posted.

Rabies is a neurological issue, Giving a Rabies vaccine on top of what might be a pre existing neuro issue could be disasterous ! I would contact a specialist ASAP Your pups survival may depend on it. Best of luck to you.

I would contact a homeopath. Adverse vaccine reactions are not as uncommon as people think. EchoMeadows is correct in thier assessement. The rabies vaccination is one THE worst vaccines out there. I have seen a puppy loose all ability to use thier legs due to a vaccine. Also saw it recover after homeopathic treatment. Sadly, your vet will not likley report this reaction to the vaccine, and thus the reason that so many think reactions are uncommon. My guess is that other vaccine were also given prior to the rabies vaccine.

I would contact a homeopath. Adverse vaccine reactions are not as uncommon as people think. EchoMeadows is correct in thier assessement. The rabies vaccination is one THE worst vaccines out there. I have seen a puppy loose all ability to use thier legs due to a vaccine. Also saw it recover after homeopathic treatment. Sadly, your vet will not likley report this reaction to the vaccine, and thus the reason that so many think reactions are uncommon. My guess is that other vaccine were also given prior to the rabies vaccine.

Thank you all so much for all your advice!! I am overwhelmed by your response!! Unfortunately, the puppy is not doing any better. To answer your questions first Hodie, the pup had no limping in any of his legs prior to the vaccine, the only symptom that was present previously was limpness in the tail. Also, unfortunately, where we live there is no vet neurologist who we can take our baby to and have to rely on the general vet. We are planning to take him for an MRI tomorrow in the hope that it may show us something. Thanks to all your advice, we have started him on some homeopathic medicines today and are crossing our fingers that it helps ease his pain. On reading your posts it seems plausible that he may have had a reaction to the rabies vaccine. Other than that, our vet has increased his steroid medicine to 40mg of Solu Medrol twice daily to tackle his pain. I also did consult with a vet neurologist over the phone and he suggested that the twitching/tremors in his tail may be symptomatic of distemper, but he has already been vaccinated for that...any thoughts?? Again, thank you all so much for all your help and advice, its a big help!! Please do let me know if you think of anything else.

I'm afraid more drugs such as the steroids could do even more harm to the pup in the long run.It is not a solution to a problem. Talk to a chiropractor in your area it sounds like the tail problem was first signs of nerve impingement or nerve damage. I hope the best for the both of you. Kevin

I think Kevin has the right Idea. When I need back surgery for some pinched nerves, I was going numb, and then followed by INTENCE pain. I too would recommend going to a Chiropractor, if nothing else, see what he has to say. You say nothing else is working, I suggest at least trying. Good luck, and keep us all updated. Krista Blue-Skye Kennels