Has anyone had a dog with a past spinal injury and how have you managed it? I ask as one of ours was paraylised for some days after an attack, a disc ruptured just behind his shoulders and affected his spinal column. Since being found on his feet one morning and a lengthy period of rest he has done well - back to full fitness. I ask as wonder what effect it has had in later years and is there anything you have done to help. I know he is 7 and everyone talks about him as if he was collecting his pension but in the last couple of weeks I am getting concerned, head held low, lethargic, will only crawl along when out for a walk - if I can call it that. Many thanks.

Here is a site where disc disease is discussed in dachshunds[my breed],you may read something useful there as it can be applied to other breeds too.

http://www.dodgerslist.com/index.htm

They used to advocate high doses of Vit C [Ester C] for dogs with such problems but this can lead to urine stones if the acid/alkali balance is wrong in the urine so this isn't mentioned much these days.

Poor boy. Head held low can be a sign of back pain. If he were mine I would be taking him to the Vet and getting him checked over. The fact that he has already had one ruptured disc, makes me very suspicious that the next disc could becoming unstable. If that is the case, he should be under very strict cage rest, with absolutely no jumping or running.

My girl made a full recovery after her first ruptured disc, but then had further problems later on in life. It was very important to pick up the early signs (low head carriage, change in gait, proprioceptive deficit (knuckling under, standing back foot on piece of paper and slowly sliding it to the side, etc). When she displayed any of these symptoms, it was a case of cage rest, anti inflammatories, then gradually returning her to excercise. With careful management we managed to prevent any further severe episodes, but over time a number of her vertebrae fused together.

Thank you both for your replies. He has seen his vet who feels that as the problem has been going on for a couple of weeks it is more likely to be a disc problem than musular, he responded to spinal examination some way down his back away from the original injury. So continued rest and back in a week. Head carriage is improving, back legs are no longer tucked forward, fortunately no signs of proprioceptive deficit (had to look that one up!),eyes not so hungover and no signs of numbness. So quiet time, to continue.  As the breed is known for back concerns we have always been careful, they have regular checks (as advised) by a chiropractor who has done wonders in the past but on this occasion feel quilty that I turned there first. Fingers crossed that he continues to improve, best wishes

Can i suggest swimming. I have known of three Dachshunds that were unable to walk and all three owners were told that they needed to be put to sleep.

Not only did all three walk again (recovery time - ranging from 3 to 8 months), but they all recovered enough to start running again. One of them popped their back as the owner forgot about the fact it used to have a spinal injury and thought they could treat the dog the same as before.

Another suggestion is a new harness from a company based in the UK called Dogaids. This has an immediate impact and allows you to walk your dog again. Hope everything works out but defiantly try the swimming. Good luck, i really wish you the best as this is so distressing.

Will keep fingers crossed for you. Over time you will learn to pick up on the early warning signs, and hopefully be able to avoid any more severe setbacks. Probably the most important piece of advice I could give, would be not to try ANYTHING without your vet's say so and follow his instructions implicitly. Don't rush things, given the correct amount of rest, back problems can be managed and a reasonable quality of life achieved.