spondylosis

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Never post in here to be honest, but I could do with some info from you dog experts. My lab is 12 now and has been generally a very fit healthy dog. She had a little arthritis diagnosed in her hips a year or so ago so has slowed down quite a lot. No longer comes to the yard with me and couldn't run around with the other dog (JRT) like she used to, but was happy bumbling around. She could get a little stiff if she over did it, and could no longer jump into the car, but stairs and steps were no problem.
Then yesterday morning we were woken by howls of pain. We rushed to the utility room where she sleeps at night to find her in a lot of pain, and she had made a lot of mess on her bed and floor.
She was reluctant to stand up, would not go out and would not/ could not go to the toilet. We of course took her straight to the vet, but she was so stressed out she could hardly be examined. she was given pain killers and we took her home to see if it settled her. She slept for about four hours, then woke and was very distressed with the pain, so we again lifted her into the car, and by this time she would not walk at all so had to be carried into the surgery. She was admitted straight away, given pain relief and anti inflammatory drugs, but to little effect. So she was sedated over night to make her rest.
This morning she was x rayed and vet phoned to say she has arthritic changes on her hips and spondylosis in the lumbersacril joint (excuse spelling)
So my question is
Has anyone else had a dog show such sudden intense pain with this and what is the long term prognosis for an old dog ???
Any info would be great as the vet isn't too full of information as he doesn't fully understand why she is in such pain. She is staying in again tonight with a muscle relaxant as she is now going into spasm whenever they try to exam her.
 
I think Spondylosis is another word for Cauda Equina which is fusing veterbra. The most painful part if it is where the bones fuse over the hips as they can trap and crush the nerves there. The fusing goes through stages of when it is happening and once it has calcified which can take some time. Supposedly once it has calcified it is less of a problem and less painful although the dog is less supple.

My dog has it. He is 9 1/2 now and has had it for several years. I like you was terribly worried about him and he was hopping lame in one leg behind when I took him to the vet. I thought before going to my current vet that I might have to put him down. As the first vet I went to diagnosed the problem but just treated the mild hip dysplasia he showed on X-ray as well when the pain re-appeared a year later my insurance refused to pay out any further. Luckily my current vet is a back and arthritis specialist and very old school he is an older vet so has years of experience and he also likes to keep costs down for his clients where he can. He will take the modern and expensive routes if your insurance will cover it to investigate further but otherwise he turns to the old fashioned treatments a lot of modern vets would not know about.

As my insurance would not pay for him to have a CAT Scan we took the old fashioned route. He was put on a high dose of Tramadol (a human back pain drug not the steroids most vets prescribe) at 6 capsules a day (he is 22 KG collie X) and I was told to walk him on the lead at a good walk for 10 minutes twice a day on the flat. This was built up over time as his muscles improved over his hips. He then walked for longer time periods and hill work was gradually introduced. A year later and he is back of the lead (although I should still do some walk work on the lead regularly) and I have cut his Tramadol down to 2 a day. He will probably always need some. The vet has told me to increase/ decrease the dose gradually depending on how he is.

The expensive route if your insurance will pay or you have the money is the CAT Scan to see exactly what is going on and where. There is then an operation that can be done to free the nerves. Apparently this sometimes only has a temporary affect as the nerves can grow back but as I could not afford this route I never looked into it too far.

If you want a second opinion on what your vet comes up with my vets details are as follows:

Chris Sargent
Total Pet Care Ltd
12 Weyhill
Haslemere
Surrey
GU27 1BX
01428 651300

I hope this helps you and that your dog makes a good recovery in time.
 
I forgot to add that for long term maintenance I also give my dog Arthri-Aid HA Powder at the highest dose recommended for his weight and Yumega Oils everday in his food. The Arthri-Aid HA provides high doses of Glucosamine, MSM, Chronditin and joint fluid and the Yumega gives him Omega 3 and 6 oils. All are supposed to be really good at easing arthritis and joint pain.

In the winter I also make sure he stays warm to stop him getting stiff and sore by rugging him. He has already worn a light rug on the cooler nights we had last week and by mid winter he will have a fleece on all day with the heating on and a thicker duet type rug on at night when we turn the heating off. If it is really cold we will also spread a fleece blanket over him at night when he is tucked up in bed. He also has waterproof warm rugs to wear when he is on his walks.
 
My old GSD Buffy had spondylosis, and used to have very painful episodes, though not as bad as you describe. She used to be hunched up and just try and hide in corners, the first time it happened and I took her to the vets she cried out as she tried to walk up the steps into the surgery. :( She was originally treated with tramadol and then once the pain had settled she was put on a course of cartrophen injections. She remained on cartrophen for the rest of her life, I had tramadol in the house in case of flare ups but she never had any. She was around 8 when she first showed symptoms and the cartrophen kept her painfree for nearly 3 years, sadly she had other problems too (CDRM) and was pts in July this year just short of her 11th birthday.
I hope the vet is able to make her more comfortable and you are able to have her home soon.
 
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