dog looses power on back legs help?

spudep91 · Post by **spudep91** » Fri May 02, 2014 7:51 pm

Just wonder has anyone had a dog thats has had this or no someone that has. If so what is it like to live with a dog like that? My dog is only 2 1/2 years and this is happened as the vet says there a disc or 2 sliped and has had him a few days with no joy with getting them to work again and wants to put it down. We have looked up online and theres loads of storys like this and the owner has took the dog home and after few months witj working with the dog it starts to walk again. So think we might do that and see was just wondering has anyone els went through this. Thanks

Post by **Donald** » Fri May 02, 2014 8:00 pm

What do you mean by lose power?

As in lack of strength or total lack of movement?

mercutio · Post by **mercutio** » Fri May 02, 2014 9:14 pm

what type of dog is it

spudep91 · Post by **spudep91** » Fri May 02, 2014 11:35 pm

Lack of movement basically cant move his back feet.

Its a staffy cross with something ill show you a picture here he like a child to us because we don't have any kids yet lol.

spudep91 · Post by **spudep91** » Fri May 02, 2014 11:41 pm

[insta][/insta]

Post by **Donald** » Sat May 03, 2014 12:02 am

Well for most tasks you're going to need to support its rear end in order to restore some sort of psychological normality.

Something like a towel looped in front of the hips will allow you to raise him to a standing position.

For eating
Try to spread the area of the towel to support the weight evenly rather than using it like a thin strap directly in front of the hips as this will put pressure on the digestive organs and also create a pressure point on the spine. At this point for food and water bowls you'll want to raise them from the ground so less strain is put on the spine as a whole from bending the neck to the ground to eat/drink.

Toilet stuff
Obviously for toilet functions there's a bit more too it. Luckily staffies have quite the abdominal tuck so organs are easy to find. There will be no motion for leg cocking or squatting so this might cause some distress as he might not realise he can still go to the toilet, if that makes sense. You'll probably have to persuade a bowel movement until he gets used to what he/you're doing. For pissing, gentle pressure on the bladder area should do it. For shitting, find the apex of the rib cage and again, gentle pressure pushing towards the rear end should induce some sort of motion. If that fails, you're probably going to have to massage the anus. It sounds gross but it's like when they're puppies and the mother starts licking away. Since he's only 2.5 it should still be quite familiar. Use a wet wipe or wear a rubber glove or something, just wet the glove first, no going in dry.

Again with the bathroom stuff, diet will help. I'm not going to go into crazy detail as it's pretty gross but your vet should be able to give you a balanced diet tailored to your dog's weight and activity level so there wont be any problems there. It's likely that if you continue with your current diet and the dog's reduced mobility that you will start to see problems down the line.

Aside from helping him eat and pass waste, the rest is socialisation and making him comfortable. You know your dog so do what you think is appropriate really.

Obviously if anything I've said contradicts veterinary advice then ignore it, but I hope what I have posted helps.

It is a massive shame and obviously you don't want your dog to suffer, but IMO putting it down is a step too far. Vets are obliged to help where possible (it's written into legislation) and if this means performing an expensive operation to reduce suffering and outlining a payment plan for yourselves, then you are within your rights request that. Other than that, it's all about making the dog as comfortable as possible. You'll know when it's gone too far.

Post by **RattyMcClelland** » Sat May 03, 2014 12:17 am

One of those doggy trolleys.

Don't put him down. Is HE a happy dog?

spudep91 · Post by **spudep91** » Sat May 03, 2014 12:21 am

Thanks alot for thr advice pal.
Think when we assess when we get him back tomorrow we will be able to no more. The vet says he full of beans so just his normal self . Think we will do the rounds on all the different treatments first then decide as better to give him a chance than giving in. Wish us luck

spudep91 · Post by **spudep91** » Sat May 03, 2014 12:25 am

Yea the vet said he is full of beans and is so good natured. Thats the way he allways is so with him to be the same with not being able to control his back legs really says something about him I think

Therealjj91 · Post by **Therealjj91** » Sat May 03, 2014 2:49 am

My old dog had the same sort of issue and it turned out to be something wrong with one of his ears but he made a full recovery.