[Abby'sDad]

Hey everyone,

I'm here for any kind of help or support I can get. In the span of 36 hours Abby went from perfectly normal to being without feeling in her lower body. I immediately took her to the vet after she showed signs of something wrong and the vet says she has a pinched nerve in her back from a bulging disc. The treatment began and includes strict crate rest and steroids administered to attempt to reduce swelling of the disc. I'm having trouble with potty time. Her paralysis has left her with no control of her bowels or bladder. I still can't get her to express her bowels and I wake up and am so heartbroken that she had to lay in urine in the night even after urinating before bedtime. Im looking for someone who's had IVDD paralysis in their basset that has recovered from this. I need hope. I have no idea how long this is supposed to last and no idea what's next. Any contribution will be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[Mikey T]

http://www.basset.net/boards/introd...llo-has-anyone-had-happen-their-basset-2.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/introduce-yourself-here/44730-new-desperate.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/introd...9-basset-hound-11-years-old-ivdd-surgery.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/general-basset-hound-discussion/38489-frida-not-doing-so-well.html

 

[Mikey T]

it took 2-4 weeks for melody to gain any semblance of bladder or colon control and to this day it is not perfect. In that she does on always have enough warning to make it outside when she has to go but she AT the same time is not going on herself.

 

[Abby'sDad]

http://www.basset.net/boards/introd...llo-has-anyone-had-happen-their-basset-2.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/introduce-yourself-here/44730-new-desperate.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/introd...9-basset-hound-11-years-old-ivdd-surgery.html

http://www.basset.net/boards/general-basset-hound-discussion/38489-frida-not-doing-so-well.html

Thank you so much. I appreciate the effort.

 

[Soundtrack]

I have been lucky enough not to have to deal with inability to pee/poop so I would definitely discuss this with your vet to see what you can do to help her with this.

 

[Abby'sDad]

It sucks to say that I had to put my baby girl down just 2 weeks shy of her 7th birthday. It had been 4 weeks and there were zero signs of improvement after following each step of the conservative treatment. There was only so much we could do without her having the ability to control her bladder from day 1. It was 5-7 cleaning/changing sessions a day and 8-10 loads of laundry each day

For anyone who is new to IVDD or new to owning a basset hound I would like to hand out some knowledge that I gained through this terrible journey....

1. Limit your basset's jumping from day 1. I raised her in a college environment when I first got her and it was hard enough to properly potty train her and look out for the two of us. She did occasional jumping on a couch and daily jumping on my bed that was fairly low to the ground. I should have been firm on no jumping on couches and bought some stairs for the bed.

2. Know what IVDD is and what the early warning signs are. Take your basset to the vet immediately. Literally every hour counts.

3. Don't be poor. Surgery is the option I would choose if I had the money. This is very time sensitive. There is a sliding scale upon where your basset lands with this. The good end(1 out of 5) where your dog is simply lethargic and might have wobbly or drunk looking legs while walking- 90% success rate. The bad end(5 out of 5) is where my dog went to in 24 hours -20-60% success rate. The end result was complete and permanent paralysis of her legs with loss of bladder control. She still had what they call deep pain sensation when I first brought her into the vet. Once your basset loses deep pain sensation you have 24 hours to get the surgery done to achieve best results. The surgery costs from $3,000 to as much as $9,000 in some places. Most of the normal places in major cities cost around $3,500-$4,000. Your typical vet won't perform this surgery and most that are recommended are certified small animal neurologists

4. There are many folks who have had success with the conservative treatment(non-surgical). Do this if surgery isn't an option. It entails STRICT 24/7 crate rest plus some sort of steroid treatment. Basically you just set up your own customized "crib" . The most key element of this treatment is potty time. You really want your basset to be able to potty on their own. And you have to be really careful transporting from crib to potty and back. For most dogs it's a two person job.

5. A vet at Oklahoma State University developed a preventive treatment. It's spread and several places offer it now. The price range is $1,200-$1,600 and it has a high success rate.

 

[Soundtrack]

I'm so sorry she wasn't able to regain potty control. For me that would be a no-go as well. I've been fortunate to have had good luck with both surgery and conservative treatment, but I did have to let one go because we could not control her pain.

 

[Vectisvagrant]

Very very sorry to read your news, so sad. Best wishes.

 

[Roy]

On face book there is a page called Dodgers List. Its written for Dachshund owners but IVDD is IVDD no matter the breed. We had a doxie that had IVDD. Had him operated on and it was 8 months until he got up and was able to take steps and actually go potty on his own. We too had laundry every day and were thinking if we were going down a blinding path and just refusiing to admit that perhaps there was no chance of him ever being his old self. No one can say what the outcome of surgery or any other treatment will be but just talking to the Professor in charge of the Ortho / Neurology Dept at the Vet Teaching school at Auburn University, he stated that surgery is actually becoming a route of less used travel and other supportive means are being used like water therapy, steroids, cold laser and acupuncture and strict crate rest and the results are as good as surgery but may take longer to see the outcome and its also cheaper and non invasive. I thought that strange coming from a Professor that teaches the surgery, but not any of the other proceedures except when used and follow on supportive treatment after surgery.