I'm not gonna say she's better, because I don't want to jinx her. But when Dr. Putt did the neck maneuver Rox growled instead of cried. She was also able to manipulate her head further than 10 days ago. Apparently that means improvement. Yea!
We switched from Tramadol for pain to Valium for muscle relaxation and Rox has mellowed out! Actually we are seeing a return of our wiggly girl slowly but surely. She will talk to us again. We're clapping each time she "woo-woo's" and "rah-roooooooo's" She even wanted up on the bed last night. (Sorry Babe, those days are ovah!)
At this point we have two more weeks of enforced rest. No walks, no Bob-bed, no running. This is going to be harder now because before now she limited herself. She felt bad and didn't want to run or go for walks. Now....... now she is coasting on the valium and with the accompanying improvement in how she feels, she is ready to resume her old lifestyle. And she's not healed yet.
The hugely increased steroid appetite is pitiful for her and us. She is hungry! And with her weight problem we can't give in. She's only gained (much to our surprise) 11 ounces - from 29 lbs to 29 lb, 11 oz. Not to bad for steroids. Green beans have been the mail stay. She gets cooked green beans, and sometimes cooked carrots for her snacks. She wants to "snack" all day.... another sneaky trick is to give her the glucosamine as a treat, and even the vitamin as a treat. She thinks they're good.
The weight loss becomes even more of an issue, as it seems Rox will never be allowed to go up and down stairs again. She'll be using the people elevator from now on. This is just one more reason I can't wait to move to a ranch style home - her neck and our knees. Sigh.......
Right now she's laying out on the sun room, having found her patch of solar heat. It's good that she's feeling better. We hate, hate, hate it when she's not.
Showing posts with label Neck Problems. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Neck Problems. Show all posts
25 May 2008
23 May 2008
The Saga Continues
Rox is still having problems. We started her on Valium yesterday to see if that makes a difference. It's becoming obvious that this problem is not a temporary stiff neck or muscle pull.
I stopped by the doggie neurologist's office yesterday. It's a new facility near us, and also has a 24 hr vet ER. I wanted to get prices and find out what we might be in for, as Dr. Putt suggested the next move would be a referral to a neurologist.
Imagine my surprise when I walked in and the lobby was filled with dachshund art and statures. The vet I talked with about prices, etc had a Germanic accent. He and the receptionist were pleased to talk with me, very friendly. I mentioned the dachshund statue and they commented that they were 'dachshund city' there. As I mentally slapped myself on the forehead, it came to me. Of course they loved dachsies, they are one of the breeds most afflicted with neurology issues and disc problems. It's chicken or the egg time.
I left thinking many things: 1) it's going to be very expensive to have CT with contrast or MRI to diagnose problem, 2) they seemed very experienced in what Rox may have to go through, 3) they seemed very, very nice, and 4) I feel comfortable that Rox will be treated well there. I got the feeling they would love her like we do.
Other thoughts, in random order... if she has to have testing then surgery, it will be painful for her. I'm hoping and will insist on very adequate pain control. It breaks our heart to think we will have to put her through some painful surgery and won't be able to explain to her the reasons.
She's only 5 years old, so maybe this would be a one-time thing, she'd have the surgery, get better and never have problems again. We can afford the cost (sort of) and after crying over the cost issue, I just said, 'shit, shit, shit - no more worrying about this. We are going to do it if necessary, we're going to buck up and make the best of it'. (I tend to swear in a non-ladylike manner when stressed- not one of my most redeeming qualities. Sorry)
And so, how's she doing today? OK. Just ok. We have a vet appointment for follow-up at 4 pm today. The Valium seemed to help yesterday afternoon, but this morning she seemed tentative again. Mornings are hard. The 6 am Valium didn't seem to help as much as yesterday's dose.
We'll see. It doesn't help that this seems to be at least her second occurrence. We didn't know that she'd had a bad spell at home #3. Combined knowledge leads to speculation that this is more serious than we originally thought.
We have one more week on the tapering prednisilone, and enough Valium for 5 days total. More later, as it develops.
I stopped by the doggie neurologist's office yesterday. It's a new facility near us, and also has a 24 hr vet ER. I wanted to get prices and find out what we might be in for, as Dr. Putt suggested the next move would be a referral to a neurologist.
Imagine my surprise when I walked in and the lobby was filled with dachshund art and statures. The vet I talked with about prices, etc had a Germanic accent. He and the receptionist were pleased to talk with me, very friendly. I mentioned the dachshund statue and they commented that they were 'dachshund city' there. As I mentally slapped myself on the forehead, it came to me. Of course they loved dachsies, they are one of the breeds most afflicted with neurology issues and disc problems. It's chicken or the egg time.
I left thinking many things: 1) it's going to be very expensive to have CT with contrast or MRI to diagnose problem, 2) they seemed very experienced in what Rox may have to go through, 3) they seemed very, very nice, and 4) I feel comfortable that Rox will be treated well there. I got the feeling they would love her like we do.
Other thoughts, in random order... if she has to have testing then surgery, it will be painful for her. I'm hoping and will insist on very adequate pain control. It breaks our heart to think we will have to put her through some painful surgery and won't be able to explain to her the reasons.
She's only 5 years old, so maybe this would be a one-time thing, she'd have the surgery, get better and never have problems again. We can afford the cost (sort of) and after crying over the cost issue, I just said, 'shit, shit, shit - no more worrying about this. We are going to do it if necessary, we're going to buck up and make the best of it'. (I tend to swear in a non-ladylike manner when stressed- not one of my most redeeming qualities. Sorry)
And so, how's she doing today? OK. Just ok. We have a vet appointment for follow-up at 4 pm today. The Valium seemed to help yesterday afternoon, but this morning she seemed tentative again. Mornings are hard. The 6 am Valium didn't seem to help as much as yesterday's dose.
We'll see. It doesn't help that this seems to be at least her second occurrence. We didn't know that she'd had a bad spell at home #3. Combined knowledge leads to speculation that this is more serious than we originally thought.
We have one more week on the tapering prednisilone, and enough Valium for 5 days total. More later, as it develops.
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