Bad news for Ma'ii....

[Shakou]

Over the course of the last few weeks, we've noticed Ma'ii acting kind of strange. We'd open a door and he'd cry out in pain, like he had been hit with the door, but would be standing like 5 feet away. At first we didn't think to much of it, but this began to increase. He'd jump off the couch and cry out, you'd go to remove a blanket or sweater out from under him and he'd cry out, Charlotte would knock into him by mistake and he'd cry out. This morning, he simply sat up and cried out in pain. This bothered me a lot. My childhood dog, Jake, had been euthanized when I was a senior in highschool as a result of spinal issues, and his symptoms had been the exact same in the very beginning. So I immediately made an appointment with the vet for today.

Took him into the vet, she ran some tests and took some x-rays, and sure enough, he has a calcified spinal disc. He's been prescribed a pain medication, and is scheduled to have some blood tests done in a couple weeks so we can get him on a specific anti-inflammatory.

Does anyone out there have any advice on this? Maybe someone with prior experience? A calcified disc is what Jake had, but by the time we found out what was wrong, it was too late and he needed to be put down because the calcification was pinching nerves. Therefore, not much research was done on it. Any information/advice/experience/positive vibes are appreciated.

[Renee750il]

I don't know anything, but I can send some ~~~~~vibes~~~~~~ <3

[adojrts]

Sorry no I don't but hoping you can help him. Good luck

[ChristineB]

Wow I'm sending lots of good health vibes his way. Its sounds a lot like Ankylosing Spondylitis that occurs in humans. Poor doggie. ~_~,

[spiffy]

Calcified spinal disc is a common intervertebral disc disease in dogs. In between vertebrae are fibrocartilaginous cushions that function as shock absorbers and allow easy movement. But the jelly-like material at the center of these cushions can calcify and harden so that the shock absorbing capacity is diminished. The animal would find it difficult to move because the nerves are pinched. To relieve pressure, decompression surgery can be done. Physical therapy just as what is done to humans can be a part of the treatment.

Sending vibes to Ma'ii.

[Barb04]

Lots of healing vibes sent.

[Doberluv]

I hope there's a treatment that can help him. Poor boy. I send you my best wishes for some relief for your boy.

[AdrianneIsabel]

I hope you find an answer!

[Shakou]

Thank you everyone for your well wishes. The good news is we caught it early enough to where we can manage his pain and help him not further wreck his spine. Ultimately, his back is just going to deteriorate with time and his pain will get worse and worse, but atleast we can slow that process down and hopefully prolong his quality of life.

The hardest part I think is we're going to have to make him tone it down activity wise. This is a Cattle Dog, and you can guess how high energy they are. I'm not quite sure how we're going to manage that.

[Renee750il]

Will keeping his back muscles strong help support his spine and alleviate some of the pain?