Hi I'm new here although I've been reading some posts for a little while now...I just need a bit of advice on this situation.

I have a German Shepherd who has just turned 9, which is not THAT old in my opinion, but my mother begs to differ...

He recently had a bout of vestibular syndrome and was given vivetonin and antibiotics, he recovered quickly, going back to his old self within a few days.

He's been fine for the last week but has suddenly started limping really bad in his left rear leg, it seems stiff and he can't put any weight on it, he can't even sit up.

The main problem is that we live in a flat and he have to take him up and down two flights of stairs every day three times a day in order for him to go to the toilet and excersise.

He's been finding it really difficult lately, stuggling to get up the stairs, losing balance and falling down them....its quite distressing to say the least, for example tonight he actually fell backwards down them which must have been quite painful.

I just don't know what to do about it...Its all been so sudden...I knew when we had to move into the flat a year ago that it was going to be hard on my dog , especially on his legs and hips (even though he has a low hip score)...would it be better to have him euthanised or moved into my gran's house where he wont have to go up and down the stairs?

I just dont know...I'm preparing myself for the worst

Any advice would be much appreciated
Laura

xx

I would take him to the vets it may be a dog of that age is suffering from Arthiritis? I dont know a great deal about GSD's but know of a couple of people who had them as I was growing up and remember them suffering from this. Perhaps the vet can give him some medication to ease his stiffness. For my old girl I use MSM powder this helps with stiffness, sprains, strains and mobility etc..you can get it from the hyperdrug/canine chemist website

Hi sorry to hear your lad is having problems,I would take him to the vets for a check up. He may have a condition commen to gsd's called DM it used to be called CDRM. You can get special slings to help you get your lad up and down stairs if it looks likely to be an on going condition rather than something simple.

Does your GSD drag his back legs at all, can you hear his claws rubbing on the ground?  I only ask as my 10 year old GSP had Degenerative Myelopathy and we had to have him PTS eight months ago as he had lost the use of his back legs completely.  It is a progressive disease with no cure although some dogs can go on for years with it.  We were unlucky as it is unusual in GSPs and there are not many places in this country that test for it.  We were referred to Claire Rusbridge in Wimbledon who did loads of tests and sent samples off to the USA for conclusive proof that this was what he had.  I don't know where abouts you are but your vet should be able to either test for it himself or get you referred to a specialist vet.  I am not suggesting this is what your GSD has but it might be worth at least ruling it out and then treating whatever is wrong with him, as you say it may be arthritis or something that can be treated with drugs.  Good luck with it. x

Sorry to read about your dog.  I cant offer any advice about your dogs problem, but just wanted to say, I have a 12 year old large gun dog who has had 1 rear leg amputated and I use on of these slings http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Walkabout-Sling_Harness-for-Dogs-Cats/productinfo/WALKABOUT/ to help carry her upstairs.  She is ok coming down on her own but using this sling is easier on me too rather than using a rolled up towel under her belly to help her up.

Thank you Justine for adding the link for the sling,it was early this morning when I replied to the OP and my brain does not function too well at that time of the day!

Thanks for your responses guys, he's going to the vet on Monday for a checkup, I'm just not sure I'm gonna like what they find :(

He's not dragging his back legs or scraping his feet, he just seems to have hurt his leg overnight because the previous morning he was trotting around just fine, and then suddenly he's limping...

Oh and as for the harness, my mum refuses to have anything like that...ever (stubborn lol) so if his legs started to go bad then that would be the end of it im afraid...

This morning he was a lot better, he managed to get up the stairs ok, just a bit slow.

I'm wondering if dogs can pick up viral infections from vet clinics because he also seems to have gotten ill since we brought him back from the PDSA clinic the other day, his nose has been dripping and he seems really lethargic and miserable. I don't like to jump to the worst conclusion but it is difficult not to...

About the DM...we have to take him to a PDSA clinic now because since my dad left we've had to move out of our house and into a council flat and can't afford pet insurance or vet bills, I appreciate what they do but they can't always do the expensive tests :(

I know it sounds selfish of me but I really hope he pulls through because not only would I find it difficult to live without him but I've also got my first year university exams coming up in a few weeks and I think the death of my dog is going to be a really huge distraction...I mean I cry just thinking about it already!

Thanks again for your replies!

Laura

xx

Try not to worry,he may well have pulled a muscle or ligament and a course of something like metacam will soon have him on four legs again. If you can try not to let him exercise too much as he will only do more damage to his leg. As he is not dragging or scraping his feet thats a good sign. Yes animals can and do pick up all sorts of things at the vets or indeed anywhere as do we if we go to the doctors or hospital(germ laden places yuk!). All you can do is make sure he's upto date with his vaccinations. Dont worry I doubt he is at deaths door just yet lol.

Thanks lol, its just that living with someone who thinks the apocalypse is coming whenever theres a dark cloud in the sky tends to affect the way you see things :)

I sure hope its just a leg injury, he's just been lying in the same spot all day, not moving, not looking interested in anything....he actually looks dead somtimes and I have to do a double take to see if he's actually breathing.

I have to take him out to go to the toilet soon and im dreading it....he cant even sit up! Damn living in flats!!! Having to move here is possibly the worst thing that could have happened to us. Horrible neighbors, vicious dogs, stairs...losing our rabbit, guinea pigs and hamsters becuase of it too!

I'm not a happy bunny at the moment. Excuse the pun lol.

Laura

p.s I REALLY hate flats!!!!!

grrr

Its got worse today. he really does look like he's on deaths door. He's not responding. I listened to his chest and his breathing sounds a little raspy in there but his heart is pounding away like he's just run a marathon.

We can't take him to the vet now because our car is gone and we have no money for a taxi, and busses are definatly not an option. 

We managed to get him down the stairs to go to the toilet, and then up again with a bit of difficulty but he just looks....dead. When we were walking him down the stairs he still had clear watery discharge dripping out of his nose.

I'm getting suspicious of the lump on his side now. The vet told us it was a fatty desposit, which are quite common apparantly, but this was just by feeling it, no biopsys or anything, so im wondering if maybe that lump was cancerous and he's got tumors in other places, like in his brain, which would have explained the sudden vestibular incident.

He's still eating though, which I take as a good sign.

This is only place I can get advice from now seeing as I'm stuck at home, I',m  going to try and convince my dad to take us to the vet but i doubt he will...

Laura

What does the Animal Welfare Act do?
It makes owners responsible for ensuring that their animals' welfare needs are met.
These include the need:
* to be protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease
Anyone who does not provide for its welfare needs
may be banned from owning animals, fined up to £20,000 and/or sent to prison.

Sorry if this sounds brutal but you MUST get a vet to see him and sooner not later!, have you rung PDSA and explained to them to see if they will come out

> I listened to his chest and his breathing sounds a little raspy in there but his heart is pounding away like he's just run a marathon.
>

This could be a heart problem but you can't just wait and let him suffer.
Chris

We used to be able to afford the best care for our pets, we spend thousands upon thousands on our animals, even making sure we never went on holiday without taking the dog with us, its not like we're some animal neglecting villians. Our lives have literally revolved around this dogs every need for the last 9 years.

Its just that recently, with everything thats gone on, we've had to get rid of everything and we're living in the bare minimum. We got rid of every animal we had (and that was difficult because I loved my animals to death) because we knew we weren't going to be able to look after them properly on our new budget and living conditions. Every animal expect ben, our dog, we couldnt let him go, but trust me, once he's gone, we know better than to bring another animal into our lives to suffer. He will definatly be the last because I know we can't afford another dog, we don't have the space and we dont have the resources to get them to the vet in an emergency.

Anyway, its my mum who is registered as the dogs owner so I have to wait until she gets home from work to do anything because with the psda the person on the certificate needs to bring in the animal in person with the letter and the reference number. The receptionist told us to bring him into the emergency clinic in Bow, which is to expensive for me to go to alone by taxi so I'm having to wait for my mum to get home from work to be able to do anything. I've been pestering her about it but she keeps telling me to leave it a few days and "see how he goes" which is infuriating.

Part of the reason I came here for advice is because I seem to be the only one really worried about it in this household.

Sorry if you think I'm neglecting my dog, its just not the case. Its not like he's been left there suffering for weeks on end, he's already been to the vet three times in the last two weeks with another appointment on monday and he's on anitbiotics and vivetonin. Its just the here and now which is really difficult because it was all so sudden.

Laura

I wasn't suggseting that you were neglecting Ben and you have my sympathy for your situation especially having to part with other pets. Perhaps you can show your mum the bit I copied in my post to persuade her that 'leave it a few days and "see how he goes' is not an option. Let us know how you get on.
Chris

As a temporary measure have you got or could you get a canvas/material shoulder bag & cut down the sides to make a sling? Might make things a tad easier up and down stairs for you both.

Might be worth finding out if the PDSA or other animal charities have animal ambulances to transport you & your dog.

um well ok I finally convinced my mum to take him to the vet, she got her friend to drive us in the end.

In typical dog fashion he got up and walked down the car like nothing was wrong, trotted into the vet and sat down. Vet checked him over and pulled his legs about a bit which made him cry a bit, checked his ears and all that and gave him anti inflammatories because she doesnt think its dysplasia.

We've left him at my nans now to recover so he doesnt have to go up and down the stairs. I'm gonna look into buying some good joint supplements and stuff for him when my next student loan goes through...I know I should be spending it on travel and uni costs but whatevera, I can always jump the train barriers (joke lol)

Why do animals always do this to me?! Act like theyre gonna die, lie there like theyre on deaths door, and make me worry out of my mind and start preparing myself for the worst only to have him get up and trot around like nothing was ever wrong. The limp has even dissapeared without a trace.

My nerves....god...

I might invest in a sling aswell if i can get one, just incase he hurts his legs in the future...damn vestibular and damn flats!

Laura

Got worse now....not eating, thick gloopy saliva coming out of his mouth.

Brilliant....

Laura

Have you checked in his mouth to make sure he has nothing lodged in it? If it were me I would ring the PDSA and see if they can give you some advice over the phone. Would it be possible for you to ring the vet that you used to go to before you had to change and ask them for advice - not sure what sort of relationship you had with your old veterinary practice but it couldn't hurt to ask.

Not sure if the RSPCA could help, might be worth a call.  Think i'd ring everyone who could possibly be able to give some advice.  Just pester your new vet and the old one, after all they are there to help animals arent they!!