8 year old frenchie, IVDD - surgery or not?

[PlayTheBastardAnyway]

My frenchie is 8 and suffering with IVDD. Vet isn’t sure surgery would be the kindest way forward at his age. What would you do?

How bad is the condition and what’s the dogs health like aside from the condition? Why does your vet think perhaps it isn’t a good idea?

Benefits - find out likelihood of return to function?
Risks - anaesthetic risk higher in BOAS dogs, risk if complications of surgery, cost implications, recovery time
Alternatives - is conservative treatment an option or is PTS the alternative.
Instinct/Intuition - what’s your gut about what is right for your dog?
Nothing - what happens if you don’t make a decision in a certain timeframe - can dog walk? Urinate?

I’m a first opinion vet and this is a referral level surgery, so if an owner was considering surgery and wasn’t sure I’d arrange a consultation with an orthopaedic surgeon who is regularly doing the procedure. You should be able to do this without committing to surgery but I’d expect to pay about £200 for this consultation.

Do you know what grade of IVDD they have? IVDD is terrible isn't it?