I have a 4 year old Staffordshire Bull Terrier. He has recently been diagnosed with a slipped disc. We are not sure how to proceed with his treatment. Out Vet, who is not a specialist in this area,after taking x-rays is advising to keep him as rested as possible for the time being and give him painkillers and anti-inflamatory tablets. He has nerve damage in his legs and involountary spasms in his hind legs. Has anyone else had these sort of problems. Any advice would be helpful.

If your vet is admitting to not being a specialist in this area, you must get to one who is. If you are in the southwest then you must try & get to David Attleborough at Exeter, he IS a specialist in this, and has dogs come to him from all over the country. Good luck!

Hi, bad luck. I hope you can get him to a specialist as quickly as possible. If the vet has advised rest, that usually means in a confined space like a crate, so that he cannot jump around AR ALL, and out on the lead as short a distance as possible to relive himself every couple of hours. I know its terribly sad seeing a dog cooped up, but it really is necesary by the sound of it. Good luck, let us know what happens?

When I worked in a vets many years ago we had a dog who came in with a slipped disk. She was confined to a kennel and only allowed into the garden for the toilet then taken back to her kennel for complete rest. We did of course make a fuss of her whilst she was in the kennel just to keep her spirits up but there were times when she was very bad tempered. From memory I believe she was also on anti-inflammatory's. Anyway after about 7 days she went home looking and acting like a different dog. Like everyone says if you can get to a specialist all the better but strict rest seems like a good place to start.

Good Luck.