# Dog diagnosed with ivdd



## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

I just received some devastating news that my doxie sadie has ivdd. They said it is in the early stages so she is going to take predispose and tramadol. I was wondering if anyone has had their dog diagnosed with this. I was wondering what happens if you do not have the surgery do they lose just lose mobility in their legs. If they have surgery is it often successful. Sadie is 11 years old. They said she may never need surgery it is kind of a day by day thins. The surgery up here is about $6000 so I have thatnputbaway.mtge only way to see how extensive it is is through an MRI but that is $2000 and I would still need to do another one before the surgery. If the meds work and the inflammation goes down is it healing or just settled down. I did get a lot of info from my vet but I was hoping to get some personal experiences.


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## Rvent (Apr 15, 2012)

I am sorry for this terrible news you have received, unfortunately I can not offer any advice other than try your best


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## Fundog (Oct 25, 2012)

Good Grief, the things you're going through! First the dog with all the bad teeth, now this. My heart goes out to you.

What is IVDD?


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

Thank you. Ivdd is a back disease that effects a high number ofcdachunds. She is on. 8 week crate rest she will be taking prednisone and tramadol. It invertevertebral disk disease. it leads tomthe protusin or extrusion of the disks or disk material this puts pressure on the spine. it can lead to paralysis ofthe back legs. it can turn for the worst within hours it is kind of a ticking time bomb. the vet said it is a day by day waiting game. i could pay$2000 now for an mri to see gow bad it is but the treatment would be the same. it is going to take all my savings just for the surgery. She would néed surgery which here it will cost $6000. I know some people opt for no surgery some dogs walk again others will need a cart with wheels. The biggest risk of no surgery is if the are not able to come off of meds to reduce the pain and they stay in pain they would be put down.even if they have the surgery they may never walk again. If they do not walk you usually have to learn to express their bladder and their bowelsmany times because they cannot feel down there o know when to go sometimes the lose control of their bladder and bowel functions. Luckily because she is small this is supposed to not be difficult. All everyone tells me is every dog is different some respond to tnstreatment others rapidly get worse. Sorry if some f the info about exactly what the disease is off I have not slept much in the last two days I am so worried I am having information overload. The hardest part is keeping daisy and sadie away from each other they have never been spent a day apart in 11 years. For my puppy Linus I purchased health insurance if this happens to him I get full coverage. I pay a lot but this is usually a disease that affects younger dachshsund I thought I was out of the woods with sadie.


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## Herzo (Feb 5, 2011)

Good lord when it rains it pours. I'm so sorry about your girl. I wish I could help, Maddie doesn't have the best use of her back legs. The vet just thought it was a pinched nerve, I don't know if it is anything like yours or not.

It doesn't seem to hurt her nor does it slow her down much, she just makes some wild moves at times. Like if she is on the go, which is usually on a trot and she decides to stop quickly her back end will keep going. And she drags one hind foot more than the other.

This may sound bad but I'm not going to go any further with this. We have come to love her very much but she is around 13 and I have already put quite a bit of money into her taking out a tumor. She came through it very well but I sometimes can't see putting them through the surgery especially when it is that much without knowing if they will come out ok.

Good luck with what ever you decide to do.


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

If the only risk of not having surgery is loss of the use of her back legs she could get a kart. Problem with this is the pain it causes if they do not have the surgery and she does not respond to pain meds she would have very painful existence and would have to be put down. This is so scary that at any point it could become an emergency. I cannot stop constantly worrying. Thanks everyone for your kind words this has been a very tough week for both of my old girls


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## Khan (Jan 17, 2010)

Just wanted to let you know we are thinking about you! I have no knowledge about this and this may be way off base; but what about some type of Physical Therapy? I know we have one in our area that has done amazing things with dogs with back/nerve damage. Just may be worth at least looking into.


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

When she heals I am going to look into acupuncture and adequan injections. I know a lot of people do water therapy in their own tubs because dachshunds are so small. Sounds silly buy I ordered her s stroller it is like a crate on wheels so she can sit next to me when I am on the couch. Sometimes she just looks out the kennel and cries to come out. I know she is confused on why she can't be with us. It makes it even harder with the three other dogs being out. I am also not sure if chewing bones would put extra pressure on her neck and back I wonder if for these couple months she should have ground raw. Problem with that is I don't want her teeth to get gross then we will be facing a dental issue also. Another issue is I don't know if she is to old for this kind of extensive surgery she turned 11 in November .


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## tem_sat (Jun 20, 2010)

You need to join the Dodgers List support group here: Dodgerslist : IVDD support for your dog

They will help you and answer all questions and concerns you may have. One thing I would do immediately is to make sure you are giving Pepcid AC or some sort of stomach protectant while giving the Pred. Get approval from your vet.

Please keep us up to date with Sadie's progress.


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

I did join dodger list. I was told about the Pepcid so I am using it now. I guess the big concern is her age she will be 12 this year and going through a surgery like that. Around here with all the testing the the surgery probably $7000 I just don have that much money. I have read a lot of success stories on dodgerlist of dogs going the conservative approach. If she never walked again I would take care of all her needs getting a wheelchair expressing her bladder bowels, acupuncture. I have read about quite a few pain management things that are available. It is so hard saying surgery is out of my reach it makes me feel like a horrible mom. I love her so much. I know she may never go down but I am going to worry everyday now that she might. There are so many unknowns with this disease that it is so stressful. Thanks you everyone for all the support.


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## twotonelover (Jan 10, 2011)

From what I've heard, usually you go the conservative route (pred and extended crate rest) if there are no signs of nerve damage. But even if there is nerve damage you can have good results with conservative treatment. My beagle has herniated her back twice. Once when she was 8 and once when she was 12. The second time it happened she had mild nerve impairment (walking like she was drunk). Both times we did conservative treatment and she bounced back in a day or two. It was a pain in the ass keeping her quiet but she recovered well. She has arthritis in her back now, and sometimes her back is sensitive, but she's otherwise normal. I do laser and water therapy for her and we'll be starting acupuncture soon. She isn't allowed to go down stairs and I try my best to keep her from jumping on and off the couch, but shes a persistent old bugger 

I guess the problem with conservative treatment is that there's a higher change of recurrence later down the road.


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## tem_sat (Jun 20, 2010)

I can't recall where I read it, but also there is a very high steroid dose approach that has worked as yet another "conservative" type of treatment. It has been used by extremely well known Dachshund breeders with explicit instructions to copy to veterinarians. 

I have always put my Doxie on a "preventative" dose of Ester C at the advice of my vet. It's certainly not proven, but also doesn't hurt. I give about 250 milligrams per day.

I would not go with surgery unless my personal vet, who has tremendous experience with IVDD dogs, stated that I had no other choice. I definitely would elect to go conservative.


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

I wa wondering she is going to be 12 the surgery seems like it would be a lot for her. I know another riskis not being able to get the pain under control. I just miss holding her it is so sad I can tell she can barely use her legs. The crate rest is 8 weeks. She just turns in the cage. Breaks my heart. I do have a stroller coming so I can put it next to the couch. I never thought the day would come when I would buy a stroller. Surgery is not performed until the dog goes completely down because of the risks the surgery has one that they will lose bowel and bladder control. She still wags her tail and goes to the bathroom one her own I hold her back end up with a scarf.


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## barneysmom2510 (Oct 12, 2011)

She would go to a neurologist who specializes in this surgery. However she is going to be 12 this surgery looks like it would be to much. Right now she is on prednisone and tremedol. I am looking into aquedon injection and acupuncture. I did get her a supplement that was recommended verti disc. The only thing I would worry about if she did not have the surgery is getting the pain under control. I have no problem learning to express her bladder and bowels for her. She could also get one of those carts at her age she is so mellow she spends most of the day sleeping. I will check out the ester c .


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