Alternative Therapies - can you reccommend?

MillyMollyMandy

MillyMollyMandy

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14 December 2010
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My poor dog is on 3 legs & the vets say they can't find what's wrong (despite exhausting the insurance policy AND happily taking more of our money for other 'investigations'!).

This has been going on intermittently for years and we just can't bear to see her in pain anymore. Has anyone had experience with alternative therapies?

I should mention she is an active 5yr old Old English and the problem is in her back leg (which are very skinny for her build - they are impossible to get some muscle on).

We're at the end of our tether and desperate for new ideas! Any help MUCH appreciated - thank you.
 
Have you tried more than one vet? More than two? Has she had referrals?
Have you spoken to her breeder to see if it might be hereditary/her parents/siblings experiencing anything similar?
 
Having clipped off more OES than I care to remember I have always been surprised by their lack of hind end muscling.HD is a problem in the breed though,get an orthopaedic referal I think.
 
Hi CaveCanem,

Thanks for your reply. Yes we have had her referred to a specialist who did a lot of poking and prodding and then said he'd have to operate to find out more - not something that we want to put her through. We are more 'quality of life' rather than 'quality of life' and at the time it just wasn't right for her, and we still wouldn't want to put her through that for no guaruntee of a positive result.

She's seen several vets but all within the same practice. I'm not sure about her siblings, but her parents are both fine. I've just tried massaging her leg & found what feels like a knotted muscle next to a bit of bone (sorry ... my terminology isn't good!!), and the leg kept completely giving way ... have you had any experience of tight muscles and what works for them?
 
Hi EastKent,

Sorry only just seen your reply! She was referred to an orthopeadic specialist who said he'd have to operate to see if he could find out what was wrong ... not a route we wish to go down!

Interesting that you say OES's are usually skinny behind ... Molly is a powerhouse at the front and has twiglet-like back legs despite our attempts to keep the weight off & build the muscle up so I suppose it's reassuring to know she's not the only one!
 
Has she had her hips and spine x-rayed? With hips, was she laid out properly and were the hips assessed or scored?
EK, never clipped one but seen them clipped out and agree!
 
These mega wonderful digital scanners should sort out the problem,maybe he meant knocking her out to investigate but not actually opening and ferreting about? I do hope so!
 
I believe she was, yes. It was actually my Mum that dealt with all of this and she is in pieces this evening as she just doesn't know what to do next! I don't know exact details but I can guarantee she will have made sure it was thorough!

If I remember rightly, they said her hips were OK but she had early arthritic signs in one of the joints ... I guess this does have something to do with her pain but it obviously wasn't enough for them to suggest a course of treatment.

If they are weak in the hind can the lack of muscle allow for irregular joint movements??
 
Hi
Well call me a "wafftie" if you like but if you want something totally altenative I would suggest you look at Soul2Soul therapy web site, and make your own mind up. Alternatively why not find a reiki practition in your area, the treatment is not invasive and will certainly not go against any treatment you may be receiving from your vet.
What ever you decide best of luck to you and woof
 
Not at all Dort, we're willing to look into every option so thanks for that!

I think I'll try and get Mum to take her to the vet for some pain relief tomorrow and I'll ask her to mention about the digital scans too.

Thanks for that, good old H&H members come through again!
 
Well, just to say our GSD x (now 5 yo) had been on and off lame for several months - we just put it down to her pulling/tweaking something somewhere as she hooned about. However, last year she went really quite lame in what seemed to be her shoulder which was worse if she had been lying down etc. It didn't improve even after the 2 weeks of lead walking and a course of anti inflammatories.

The vets said she really was too young for it to be arthritis or cancer really and assumed a damaged ligament. We continued with the steady walking etc but eventually resorted to having to have her x-rayed. They found nothing!

We decided to try the McTimoney guy who we have do our horses (he does dogs as well and we've had him treat our older dog previously). Well, he saw her and said, although she was showing lameness in her foreleg she had actually damaged her back (sacroilliac area I believe) so he worked on her for an hour - I think she yelped a bit (my mum took her) so he obviously hit the spot. Amazingly the day after she was sound and has been ever since!!! I would certainly do it again.

Funnily, before she had treatment I myself thought she seemed very tight all across her shoulders so had an inkling she may have some muscular problems.
 
I have also had good results with a McTimoney practitioner. My nearly 8 year old working type lab is long in the back and started to get stiff and creaky about 2 years ago. He's been on Seraquin since then, has massage therapy every 6 weeks or so (manual and laser) and when required he goes to see the chiropractor. I know when he needs this as he starts 'crabbing' and going on two tracks when you watch him from behind. After McTimoney treatment he is straight again. The weak spots in his back are just in front of his pelvis and he also has an old injury in one shoulder. I have been really happy with this regime which has so far (fingers crossed) avoided any medication. He is still very active, does low level agility, Dock Dogs etc etc. Good luck with your dog.
 
I swear by Bowen therapy for Horse, Dog and Human!! I have seen amazing results in all 3. It treats the whole body. I also have little faith in vets for all but very routine things. The most recent reason being that WE had to tell the vet about something regarding rabies vaccination. An argument resulted, we asked they confirm, they checked with the vaccine maker and surprise surprise, we were right. One of a few examples. No apology of course for the rude and dismissive tone we got when we questioned them.
 
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