# Has anyone dealt with disc disease?



## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

So Tucker woke up on Sunday morning again crying. We had to go back to the emergency vet again. He has his yearly scheduled with his regular vet this Saturday. Since we just did x rays at the end of april the e vet didn't think it was necessary to do it again. 

They suspect he has the beginning stages of disc disease-as nothing showed up abnormal on the x rays (and they had a veterinary radiologist read them oo fancy  ). They gave me some hand out of it that was pretty scary to read. This doesn't mean it will ever get as bad as it can get...(so I'm told) and at least this episode was not as bad as the first. With the first, when he was in the most pain, I could see trembling in his back legs. We aren't near that at the moment.

We were given Tramadol for every 8-12 hours. He is only taking it for three days this time unless we see that he needs more. The doctor gave us a little extra in case he has another episode.

From what I am understanding, and I'll talk to my vet about this on Saturday-this is basically how you manage it? You just have to take them in when they are in pain like that and sometimes you will get x rays-or more to see if there is any progression or need for surgery? And it sounds like there is no one specific thing that may cause a flare up-but you will just have flare ups now and then?

I have used the ? symbol because I am not completely sure. I was hoping someone may have experience dealing with this and could advise more.

On a side note, Tucker is really entertaining when he's high on opiods. He is sort of in a 'lala' state of mind and when you take him outside he just enjoys the sunshine and sniffs the air and looks around at the sky. He's normally so intense that it's kind of funny


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## sherry (Jan 4, 2013)

Poor little guy! I hope he does well on the meds ( sounds like he likes them), and has no more episodes.


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## aprilb (Jul 9, 2010)

My Rose has it...she was given a steroid and a narcotic for pain..she was on crate rest for 2 weeks..she has had a couple of episodes since..3 discs in her back just behind the rib cage are affected..her spine is so tiny, and the vertebrae so close together, it doesn't take much to irritate that area...I no longer let her go up and down the stairs, I carry her instead..this has helped a lot..it is very important to keep them confined during an episode so the swelling will go down..it is also excrutiatingly painful. Are you crating Tucker? Treatment depends on how severe the symptoms are..surgery is usually not necessary unless there is paralysis..or an inability to defecate or urinate..my Rose gets pretty wobbly in her back legs..have you had x-rays? Do you know which disc is affected? Rose is doing well...she has not had an episode in a long time..I hope Tucker feels better...sorry, I see he did have x-rays..it is puzzling that nothing has showed up..


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

aprilb said:


> My Rose has it...she was given a steroid and a narcotic for pain..she was on crate rest for 2 weeks..she has had a couple of episodes since..3 discs in her back just behind the rib cage are affected..her spine is so tiny, and the vertebrae so close together, it doesn't take much to irritate that area...I no longer let her go up and down the stairs, I carry her instead..this has helped a lot..it is very important to keep them confined during an episode so the swelling will go down..it is also excrutiatingly painful. Are you crating Tucker? Treatment depends on how severe the symptoms are..surgery is usually not necessary unless there is paralysis..or an inability to defecate or urinate..my Rose gets pretty wobbly in her back legs..have you had x-rays? Do you know which disc is affected? Rose is doing well...she has not had an episode in a long time..I hope Tucker feels better...sorry, I see he did have x-rays..it is puzzling that nothing has showed up..


They did give him steroids the first round but not this second time. The vets were thinking it was not showing anything yet because it is a milder case? (Doesn't feel mild when he cries though) He does snap at them when they check his lower back.  He doesn't snap at me he just cried more which breaks my heart.

Thank you for sharing your experiences with this


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## Barb J (Sep 17, 2015)

Sorry to hear this.

You may find this site helpful as all they deal with is IVDD

Dodgerslist: canine back problems, all things IVDD


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

Sorry, I forgot to add, he is in a crate when we aren't around to dote on him. We try to carry him most places and he knows not to go up the stairs anymore. It's cute because he stops and checks with us before trying to go up. The main problem we have with him is his jumping onto the couch by himself, he likes to jump on couches, ottomans, and chairs and then will jump to the very back of the couch or chair which is a pretty big jump. We are doing our best to keep him from doing this but occasionally he still does it.

I just need some kind of papoose thing to strap him in so I'm always carrying him. Haha, funny image


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## Kathleen (Aug 4, 2011)

Oh Shelly, I am so sorry that Rocky is going through this. It is so awful to see them in pain.
My first Maltese, Molly, had disc disease. We were able to manage it for years and years. She would have pain once or twice a year, and we would give her either steriods or Rimadyl (which is a NSAID) depending on how bad it was. It would take a few weeks for her to recover.
Eventually she did have a disc rupture and became paralyzed and had to have emergency surgery. But I don't think that happens in most cases, and it just has to be managed as best as possible.
Also, after her surgery we started seeing a holistic vet, because I wanted to do everything I could proactively to help her avoid the pain. There are some good supplements that can help, and also an anti-inflammatory diet really seemed to help as well.
The dodgerlist list site that Barb posted is really helpful. Lots of good info.
One important thing I learned is to always hold them so that their spine is parallel to the gound (so no papoose!) Also, don't let him jump on and off of furniture. The neurologist who did Molly's surgery said that is probably what caused it - years of jumping on and off the couch. I also stopped letting her climb stairs, just to be safe.
I hope the medication will help, and Rocky will be feeling better soon!


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Shelly - I'm so sorry. It's so hard to watch them going through something painful.I don't have any advice for discs but for some reason I thought maybe Stacy (Bellarata) did with one of her dogs...maybe it was Lucy. I think she ended up needing surgery and did very well but why don't you reach out to her through PM or on FB if you're friends. I hope I got this right but I seem to remember her running down to southern CA for help. Maybe Pam (Pammy) made the recommendation. Good luck.


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## lydiatug (Feb 21, 2012)

Shelly, I'm so sorry Tucker isn't feeling well. I went through this with Lexie and we were able to manage it well with occasional metacam on flairups and low level laser the last couple of years. I did supplement her for several years with alfalfa tablets (hard to get now though), which seemed to reduce the inflammatory response and reduce the number of flare ups drastically. I would research, & discuss with your vet, some natural anti-inflammatories. Lexie hated any kind of pain med and vomitted almost instantly with tramadol, so that wasn't an option.


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## zooeysmom (Aug 1, 2011)

I'm so sorry for little Tucker! Zooey doesn't have disc disease, but I have pet steps and ramps for her on all the furniture so if I'm not able to lift her, she won't hurt herself by jumping.


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## edelweiss (Apr 23, 2010)

lydiatug said:


> Shelly, I'm so sorry Tucker isn't feeling well. I went through this with Lexie and we were able to manage it well with occasional metacam on flairups and low level laser the last couple of years. I did supplement her for several years with alfalfa tablets (hard to get now though), which seemed to reduce the inflammatory response and reduce the number of flare ups drastically. I would research, & discuss with your vet, some natural anti-inflammatories. Lexie hated any kind of pain med and vomitted almost instantly with tramadol, so that wasn't an option.


Lydia, I never heard of this so I researched it & it seems Amazon has it. I may start taking it myself! (Alfalfa)


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## wkomorow (Aug 26, 2011)

Sorry to hear this. I hope he does better. No experience myself.


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## Snowball Pie's Mommi (Oct 16, 2008)

Shelly, I am so sorry you and Tucker are experiencing this. I don't know much about disc disease. Are the doctors sure it is disc disease and not something else ... like maybe arthritis?

Have you considered a second opinion by an internist or neurologist? A neurologist can pick up exact locations of pain when often a regular doctor is not able to do so ... and, without x-rays. Just some thoughts in case you are ever unsure if it is disc disease.

Tramadol can be great as long as it is not used for long periods of time. (I am sure there are still doctors that might not agree) 

Please give sweet Tucker some gentle hugs from me.


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

My friends ship tzu has disc problems and does extremely well on DGP, essential fatty acids, acupuncture and chiropractic adjustments.


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## sherry (Jan 4, 2013)

edelweiss said:


> Lydia, I never heard of this so I researched it & it seems Amazon has it. I may start taking it myself! (Alfalfa)


Why not try alfalfa sprouts? I make my own sprouts, usually broccoli and bean or mixed, but if alfalfa has what you need sprouts are a great alternative.


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## kd1212 (Nov 5, 2013)

Sorry to hear this. My first dog had slipped discs a couple of times and put on the same meds. I know it's different. Wish you well with this!!!


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Having an MRI at our practice, I see a lot of medical management and surgical cases. For medical management they usually opt for an anti-inflammatory and gabapentin. They highly recommend getting into physical therapy. PT is key to helping prevent further episodes.


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## Finn (Feb 25, 2016)

Sorry for your little poor boy Tucker. Finn don't have this sign of disease but i leave this link to you it will help you! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc9yOL41nO8


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## lydiatug (Feb 21, 2012)

I don't think the volume would be sufficient to be of much use. I gave started with 1/4 tablet compressed alfalfa 2x daily with meals and graduated to 1/2. Beware of stomach upset, as some dogs don't have strong tummies. Lexie had an iron stomach, lol!



sherry said:


> Why not try alfalfa sprouts? I make my own sprouts, usually broccoli and bean or mixed, but if alfalfa has what you need sprouts are a great alternative.


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## Finn (Feb 25, 2016)

Hello how's your baby now? Is there any good sign for his improvement? Keep us update your always in my thoughts.


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