<p>Another dog worry. DS’s pooch pulled his back out. He actually was having trouble walking, etc. DS took him immediately to the vet. He was examined, and given a prednisone shot. Within 40 minutes he was able to walk again. Vet expects a full recovery. BUT DS is worried because the pooch has been sleeping a lot. This all happened Monday afternoon. Pooch is eating, etc. but just moving slowly and sleeping a lot.</p>
<p>Any pearls of wisdom? When our kitty had a prednisone shot she slept a lot too! </p>
<p>Hoping this is just part of the pooch taking it easy while he mends.</p>
<p>I’m worried. DS absolutely adores this pooch…the pooch is about 6 years old, and a love.</p>
<p>I’m guessing that a doggy chiropractor or doggy massage therapist might also be able to teach your son some massage techniques he can use at home with his pet. Dogs really like getting massaged by their owners, and that could potentially help prevent the need for pain meds in the future.</p>
<p>I think our dog did that last month when he was trying to get through deep snow. It took a couple days and then he was back to normal. He, too, slept a lot. He was even snarly as it hurt. Just like people, it takes some time to heal. Hope he recovers fast. Ours acts like he never did it.</p>
<p>Our golden retriever wrenched her back trying to turn in a too-small space behind the bed (she refused to back up). I can’t recall what medicine she had, but the vet showed us a massage technique that worked (and still works wonders). We stand with her facing us (or laying down flat). Put a thumb on each side of her spinal column and massage gently from head to tail. She loves it. You can generally feel when there’s something out of alignment, and she will squirm a little when we find these spots. But it seems to help, esp. now that she is 13 and a bit weak in the back legs.</p>
<p>Pred can make him sleepy and animals have an innate way of knowing what their bodies need and know that rest is restorative. Your son might also want to look into acupuncture for his little buddy- I had a horse who had some back problems do to carrying his back wrong over spread fences and a combination of acupuncture and massage had him feeling great again!</p>
<p>thumper, has he spoken to the vet again? Maybe a call just to give him some peace of mind that this is how the dog should be reacting? Our dog who has had health issues for 2+ years is on high doses of prednisone and it definitely doesn’t make her sleepy. The exact opposite actually. Hope your pup is feeling better soon.</p>
<p>Always…I’m not sure. But the vet did say it would take some time to completely heal. I’m guessing the sleep is just the pooch’s way of mending. My guess is my son will call Monday if he is still not feeling better and improving.</p>
<p>Thumper - what is the breed? The reason I’m asking is that some breeds are very prone to IVDD, and no amount of chiropractic help is going to cure the dog if it what he began to develop. You can NOT diagnose IVDD unless you do one or both of a couple of expensive tests - MRI and myelogram. MRI is a sure fire thing to find out if the dog’s intervertebrate disks are pushing on the spinal cord thus making the dog lose ability to walk.</p>
<p>I do not want to scare you, but it is a possibility. Keeping fingers crossed that it is something NOT IVDD. The only “cure” for our dog was a spinal surgery. Hugs to you and the poor pup!</p>
<p>Yes, my daughter recently adopted a cat that needed antibiotics, and they couldn’t figure out how to get the medicine into the cat – I’m not particularly fond of cats, and yet here I am, worried about my poor grand-kitty.</p>
<p>BB, I was wondering that, too. One of my Ds has a beagle who has IVDD and has had the spinal surgery once, and occasionally has periods where she is in pain and needs some sort of medication to get through it.</p>
<p>I’m going to keep my fingers crossed. The pooch was able to walk about 40 minutes after seeing the vet and getting that prednisone shot. He is resting, and has been for short (5 minute) walks. He is eating. </p>
<p>But I will tell my son to call the vet if he is still worried on Monday, or if the pooch seems worse at any time.</p>
<p>I so hope this isn’t serious. This dog is so loved, and is a great companion.</p>
<p>Acupuncture has really helped our dachshund. You might want to google “veterinary acupuncture”. There is a professional society with certification, so it isn’t a crazy thing. Best of luck.</p>
<p>Sorry to hear this, thumper. My current beagle has not had this problem, but our first beagle did several years ago. I remember that he drank a lot of water when he was on the cortisone. Thankfully it was a one time only problem. My neighbor’s beagle mix has had this happen. Neighbor puts a harness rather than a regular collar on the dog for walks as it is less “pull” on the dog’s neck/back. </p>
<p>Acupuncture. When our vet recommended this I was HIGHLY suspicious. Our poor little chihuahua/jack russel mix was in agony. The day after the first treatment he was 50% better and after the second treatment he was all better. It was stunning.</p>
Hope your pup is feeling better soon.</p>