Possible slipped disc

[StiggyZardust]

My dog ran up the garden this evening, as she always does, and let out a massive yelp and now can't use her back legs.
We've just returned from an emergency vet appointment and she thinks it might be a slipped disc. Poor Stiggydog is heavily drug up at the moment. We're back to the vet in the morning for reassessment and hopefully a referral to a neuro vet.
Stiggydog is a mixed breed rescue, part staffie, part lab with short legs! She's 9 and generally in good health. I'm hoping it isn't too serious and can be fixed. She is insured but I'm sure any surgery will be over their limit.
At least she isn't in pain at the moment.

A few years back they thought BiteyDog might have done something similar. He could bunny hop but he wouldn't straighten his paws up when they pointed his feet down so he clearly had neuro signs suggesting spinal issue. He also didn't appear in pain as he was happy to do a very odd looking waddle about.

We were referred to a specialist vet hospital but he suddenly started to make a recovery within 48 hours so they decided to put him on rest and he never did need surgery. However we did look up the cost and it would have been over £5000 for a disc and this was a few years back.

Here's hoping your girl is ok

She hasn't had a very good night. DH slept on the sofa next to her. We have pain meds but she really isn't keen on taking them, even hidden in cheese.
Back to the vet in an hour, hopefully she's found a neuro person who can look at her today.

Poor Stiggydog. My old Lab had something called FCE or spinal stroke which is when a tiny piece of disc blocks blood flow through the spine. It was a bit like this as she gave a sudden cry then collapsed. She was able to walk after a few weeks but always had a limp.

Best wishes for StiggyDog this morning Please come back and let us all know how he gets on?

*she! Sorry...!

BTW there is no surgery for the FCE but we had to pay for an MRI to diagnose it as there are some other conditions it could be, and those might need an op. But if it is FCE you just need to do some physio and hydrotherapy is good.

Good luck 🤞

We're off to see the TV vet Noel Fitzpatrick. His surgery is the only one nearby with neuro emergency staff this weekend. Estimated cost is £6 - 7000.

Good luck I've always said I'd like to meet Noel, but not if it means my dog is sick x

Old Stinky Dog was referred there by my vet after his cruciate snapped. I was very happy until I realised that my insurance didn't cover that much, bah! Good luck with her op and best wishes for a happy outcome and very waggy tail!! Looking forward to updates!

We didn't meet the great man, but saw a lovely young chap instead. Stiggydog has had an MRI and it shows a prolapsed disc and some degeneration. The spinal cord is being compressed.
She's having surgery as we speak. It's going to be a long haul, but the thought of putting her to sleep when she has a fighting chance wasn't an option for us. I'm hoping the insurance will cover some of the cost but who knows?

Really hoping the surgery works and she makes a speedy recovery.

Wishing stiggydog all the best♥️

Wishing StiggyDog all the best. There's a good chance she'll do pretty well.

My standard dachshund had a slipped/compressed disc last year, had surgery and he's made pretty good recovery despite being 14 at the time. We were given a long rubber tube to support his back end with for taking him out to toilet initially. Obviously they're meant to rest up for several weeks - if you don't have a crate you may need to get one.

The good thing is that vets get on with it so fast, which I think helps enormously. Our dog's back end went on a Saturday evening, emergency vet dosed him up with metacam, we saw our own vet on the Sunday morning who referred him to a specialist... we asked when (expecting some time the following week) and the answer was 'as soon as you can get him there'. CAT scan and operated on by the evening.

Our insurance covered most of it - because of his age I think we have to pay 20% - but iirc the total bill even with weekend surcharge was around 3K so our share wasn't too bad.

We didn't do physio with him after because of his age - he was already not really wanting to do long walks. But this summer when DD was home, willing and able to carry him if needbe, we took him to some nice gardens a few times, he did about 5km which is pretty impressive for a 15yo I reckon!

Call from the vet today. Stiggydog is doing well as far as pain and alertness are concerned. No movement in her legs yet but it's early days.
The house is so strange without her.

I'm sure she's being well looked after, I've never met a vet nurse who wasn't lovely.

She's coming home!
The vet called and there's a little movement in her legs. She's had physio and hydrotherapy and it's helped. We're going to have to do physio and take her in the garden using a sling for her back legs, but she improving slowly. It'll be 6 months before she's back to near normal.
I can't believe it, I really thought it was the end for her.

That's good news, glad she's making progress and can come home.