River has a slipped disc and narrowed nerve root canals in her lower back.  Chronic problems, been there for years.  Not severe enough for surgery and she is fully mobile, just starting to scrap her back feet occasionally now, nearly 4 years after diagnosis.

At present, she is on 100mg of slow release tramadol and golden paste (tuermic, coconut oil, black pepper - highly potent anti inflammatory) three times a day, but I think the time is rapidly approaching when I will need to add something else in.

Gapabentin has already been tried and does not touch her at any dose.  The tramadol has been the most effective so far but she's 10 now, and as these things do, it's all slowly progressing; she also has arthritis in her front toes due to deformity which is getting worse too.

I jsut wondered if anyone could offer any suggestions.  She saw a physio when she was first diagnosed but for whatever reason, the woman was not keen to recommend anything in particular besides gapabentin (she was a vet so could have).  Had the same issue when Paige was diagnosed with a slipped disc too, so no point asking her.  My vets don't appear to be hugely experienced with this sort of issue so I thought I'd ask here.

I'm only after ideas - not dosages etc, just names of things that might work that I can then take to the vet to be looked into.  Nerve pain is the main issue.  Thanks.

Not pain meds as such but good for bones: Riaflex Advance/Yumove Plus , both have glucosamine, chondriotine and green lipped mussel in.  You could also try ringing Helios or Ainsworths to see what homeopathic remedies they can suggest.   I'd also make sure you tell your vet about the GP, and check yourself, as there are some negative interactions with some pain meds.

Also, I asked a homeopathic vet in india and he suggested one tablespoon of gently warmed, cold pressed, virgin rape seed oil daily. It has helped my boy a lot as he refuses coconut oil in every shape or form.

Other things that have helped are (if you can stomach them) Raw chicken paws and beef/sheep trachea.  They provide lubrication and oily fish. I know thy won't help with the pain but may ease the issue a little?

Those things may help her front feet, yes, and I've got a list of things to start trying for that (with things now added, thank you).  The main issue though is the back pain, which is coming from double pressure on her nerves from both the prolapsed disc and the narrowed nerve root canals.

I have heard a lot of good things about McTimoney practitioners, something like chiropractors.

She's seen one in the past, before the disc was diagnosed - she was of immense help but the physio warned me off having it done, once we knew about the disc.  But I am going to book her in again, she's got more than that going on and the misalignments from compensations with gait change will really need sorting out now.  I'm trying to find her an acupuncturist as well but the cost is absurd.

FWIW.  When our hound went off his back legs at around 8 years of age and was x-rayed, spondylitis was diagnosed and at that point my vet was all for ending it with him as he was in significant pain.   However even if this was a trusted vet I'd been with for years, I wasn't ready to let him go and didn't feel it was anywhere near time as long as we could get the pain stabilized.   She prescribed PLT tablets which were little more than miracle tablets for him.   Yes, drug but fact is he was no longer in pain and so we kept him going.   He never lost complete control of his back end, but needed help (via a big towel under his tum) to get outside.   Over time this started to hurt MY back, never mind his - he was over 80 lbs - and it got to the point where I thought enough was enough.   Phoned my vet to book an appointment after surgery hours that day.   He was in the room and after I put the phone down, sat up on his bench bed, licked himself and STOOD UP.   This boy was, I swear, sombody I'd known before in another (human?) form and clearly realised he'd played the scene long enough.   He walked.   Not as before - very roached.    Yes there were days when he was feeling some discomfort so it was out with the PLT again but that lad lived to be over 14 before old age claimed him.

PLT (Prednoleucotropin) tablets might be worth considering?

ps   We did try Ben in a K-cart but he was having none of it.    Also a former vet practice we used down here had one vet who used alternative medicine along with conventional treatments.   She did some acupuncture on another of our hounds, two courses, and it wasn't expensive at all.  And appeared to help.

The nearest acupuncturist I've found charges nearly £60 a session - it's just too much for me.  I can ust about manage the chiroprator in a few weeks.

I'll look into the PLT, thanks.  I've used it before with Saffi, who had severe arthritis, but not used it in a number of years as she couldn't tolerate NSAIDs in the end.  No idea how well it might work for nerve pain but I will look at anything!

Is hydrotherapy a possibility (with a qualified canine hydrotherapist)? To strengthen her back muscles without pressure.  My 10-year-old (he of the hypothyroid ) also has spondylosis and has benefitted from hydrotherapy.  I have also noticed that when he is swimming his flexes his digits with an open-and-close motion of the paws, and I wonder if this would help River's toes.

I don't know if there's a facility near enough to you, nor what they would charge, but we pay £23 for a half-hour session.  You would probably need a vet referral.  We were able to claim (the first 10 sessions) against his insurance.

Not swimming, not with her disc.  Worst thing possible because of the way it's prolapsed (upwards) and the location (lumbar) - swimming squeezes the prolapsed material and aggravates it.  unfortunately, she had 4 months of hydro before diagnosis - at the time she'd been diagnosed just with HD and it was only after she didn't improve at all that I pushed for an MRI.

She could have been treadmilled, had the people at the hydro place not put her straight in a treadmill and filled it halfway with no preparation, just to assess her gait: it frightened her and she won't go near one now.  Plus, the bloke disregarded instructions during her swimming, rested her on the ramp (she didn't enjoy the swimming so on the ramp would be digging in with her front claws from stress, hurting her wonky toes) and when she tried to get out, pulled her back down by her tail.  So hydro was not a good experience for her in any way, unfortunately.

Oh poor River, and poor you, what a horrible experience!  I hope those awful people are not still working with dogs.

I do hope you find the right treatment for her very soon.  Best wishes.

Unfortunately they are.  I didn't say anything at the time - too stunned, really, and I knew the bloke wouldn't listen anyway (arrogant) - but when I raised it with his OH, she was very blaze about it.  She did apologise but an ex-friend was still going with her dogs and it turned out that they were discussing me and River, and didn't believe there was anything wrong with her at all - or that the bloke had done what I'd seen him do, because I didn't say anything when it happened.

I took great pleasure in calling them apparently out of the blue to "update" them and tell them about the slipped disc.  The woman at least had the grace to sound a little sheepish!

Are they members of the Canine Hydrotherapy Association?  If so, and if it were me, I would report them to the CHA.  Anyone who pulls a dog which needs therapy by the tail or tries to force it into the water when it is afraid should not be working with dogs.  Encouraging a fearful dog gently and with easy steps, yes; forcing, dragging etc definitely not.

They were when we were going, they aren't any more.