kayla1

Thanks for the link. Possibly, though he doesn't have some of the other symptoms mentioned - no vomiting or eye movement, and he's eating well.

My older boy Coco has recently had a few episodes of what seems like loss of balance, where he will be standing still watching me and then suddenly fall over on his side. He gets up again straight away and doesn't lose consciousness. It has happened perhaps three times over the last couple of weeks. He has also developed a slight jerking movement, which may or may not be related (he shakes/shivers anyway, and has done this since I've had him). He has a high grade heart murmur but is not on medication as he has shown no symptoms. I took him to a vet where he had chest xrays and there was no sign of fluid build up. Blood tests are all ok except for a slightly higher liver value, which may be caused by recently being on dexamethasone. He has had issues with his back, earlier this year diagnosed with discospondylitis (now clear) and a major disc collapse (still a problem). He has been on various meds and is now on trocoxil, and is doing pretty well at the moment. The vet said unlikely to be his heart based on xrays, and unlikely to be neurological. He said it may be pain related and to rest him - but this seems different, when he falls there is no warning that I can see. He's booked in to see his regular chiro vet, but that's not for another week. So I'm wondering if there are any other causes of loss of balance?

Yep I get the same. 60 kilos of greyhound that take pillows and doona and I'm perched on the RHS holding on for grim death :laugh: As summer approaches Stan will bail and sleep on the lounge but Maddie will hang in there...after all that's when the fan comes out. Yep me too! Some nights I wake up with a westie in my back, about to go over the edge... Then the 3 am re-arrangement happens... Then we all go back to sleep until the alarm goes off... And then I get up to get Mac his pill ( 30 minutes before breakfast in a little cheese of course), and bring them all a snippet back to the bedroom as three sleepy westie heads emerge from the blankets... Not quite breakfast in bed but close enough.... I then have a shower and dress and then give them breakfast and go to work so I can support them in the style to which they've become far too accustomed... (where's rolly eyes when you need him!).... As I said before... The things we do... :) The rearrangement happens at 2am here! Annie starts out on top of the doona, then at 2am she gets up, has a shake, then taps me on the shoulder so I can lift up the doona so she can crawl under. This is generally when Maxie comes out from under the doona and curls up on a pillow. The other two don't even wake up...

If the dog was a shih tzu x then it's highly likely it will be rehomed to a good, permanent (and stable) home very quickly. Small fluffy dogs are popular so unlikely to remain in a shelter for long. Also remember that not all dogs would cope with the overseas travel and change in lifestyle that you are proposing.

I'm so sorry MsDani. Be kind to yourself and allow yourself time to grieve.

Sorry about the delay in answering kayla, I don't spend much time on DOL. I've basically taken two planks of wood, drilled 5 holes of about 15cm diameter along the tops of each one and glued bits of wood on the bottoms (for feet). I place the two planks parralel to each other, far enough so that I can place 5 broom sticks in the holes. I have made the one plank taller than the other so as to provide more of a challenge! I'm terrible at explaining things so I don't know if it makes sense! I had some photos but can't find them so will have to take more and show you. We also do excercises that stretch his spine. I spend about 15 minutes every morning doing exercises and every evening we go for a 40-60 minute walk. vicdrg, I am glad you have not given up on your dog. When Casper was diagnosed with DM, I joined a Yahoo Group for Degenerative Myelopathy. There was some useful information there and a lot of owners have purchased wheel chairs for their dogs to get around. A few of them also express their dogs bladders so that they are in control of when the dog goes to toilet. Perhaps this would help as your dog wouldn't need to go out in the night as often. There was one story that sticks in my mind a lot. One of the women on the list had her GSD in a wheelchair as the dog couldn't get around on his/her own. They then bought a huge property which had unever terrain, ie rocks, logs, etc. Over time the dog got so good at running around the property that he/she was able to do it without the wheels. Thanks White Shepherd mom. That's similar to how a vet was explaining it to me the other day, about getting them to lift their legs in order to build muscle. An obstacle course is a great idea.

That was so like our Sheltie, Shelley. She'd been very gradually deteriorating... but then came a look in her eyes. The essence that was Shelley was dimmed. It was so hard, but I then knew. Very true, too, that when they are given their wings, they stay always in our minds and forever in our hearts. Yes I remember the same look in the eyes of my siamese Sam many years ago, and I knew it was time. Thinking of you MsDani.

It's so hard when they are up and down all the time.

White Shepherd mom, what things do you use for your obstacle course?

I haven't taken on any new foster dogs for a while, but when I did I chose dogs that I knew had a better chance of fitting in here (based on age, sex, assessments etc). After an initial supervision period, which varied, nearly all of them were fine to be alone together. There was only one that I had to separate from mine, but she was only here short-term on her way to another carer.

Poor little boy. Hope you are both able to get some sleep tonight.

I just wanted to reply to this :) I found (and still do at times) this a bit annoying as well, not because they are common trialling breeds but because I think you have to teach a variety of dogs before you can really be a great trainer. In saying that, after a few sessions of instructing, you should get some experience with different breeds and know enough to at least have suggestions for those which may be more difficult to train. I instruct at my local club, and I always introduce myself to have both my Aussie (who is often crated off to the side of class) and my rescue mutt (who is asleep on his comfy bed at home), and point out that they are very different dogs to train so I do empathise with everyone, no matter what their training issue may be. Last session I taught was beginners, and in the last week (games week) I brought along my mutt and introduced him to everyone. I got a lot of positive feedback, especially from people with less traditional breeds, so I will make sure I do that again next time :) We have so many different breeds at our club, many owned by instructors. We have a jack russell x pug who has just entered her first obedience trial, so everyone is encouraged, no matter what their breed! I found that certain breeds, border collies in particular, seemed to get 'special treatment' in class. The instructors were drawn to them like a magnet and would frequently spend a considerable amount of class time giving them one on one training, to the detriment of the rest of the class. One of the reasons why I left (ETA a local club).

Reasons for no longer attending formal classes: - repetitive, boring - class sizes too large - off lead dogs - different instructor each week, and I'm sure one was only about 15 yrs old! - I had to work away from the group (reactive dog) and could not hear the instructor, and some weeks lost my group (too many groups and not segregated) - instructors spending extensive periods of time with certain dogs/handlers and ignoring others - for many weeks I tried unsuccessfully to get information on flyball - seemed nobody could help (perhaps I don't have the preferred breed of dog?) I would like to go back, but only where there are smaller class sizes, knowledgeable instructors etc.

Thanks, I'll ask my vet about robaxin. He does have muscle spasms occasionally but it's more that the spine hasn't fused since the disc collapse, so the slightest movement there can cause inflammation and pain. He has been getting frequent episodes of breakthrough pain on the previous meds, with the last episode being particularly bad, so hopefully trocoxil can stabilise it. Yes, if it provides quality of life then it's well worth it.

Same here. Kayla is black so her greys really stand out, and I've been getting the 'old' comments for years. It's never bothered me.

My dog had no side effects from tramadol, but then it didn't help his pain either. Hope your boy is doing ok this morning.

Our 13 year old has been on it for 6 months now. It has been fantastic, far more effective than Rimadyl. Prior to that we had done a course of Cartrophen injections, which seemed to have little impact, but hopefully will help delay the joint deterioration. We did bloods first to make sure her liver etc were OK? On a previous dog we had used the Cartrophen and Rimadyl which didn't make much difference. I would choose Trocoxyl over Rimadyl because it is making a drastic difference to her life. She has to have a month's break now, and I am dreading it. I'm glad to hear it's working for your girl. Did you notice any pain coming through towards the end of each month?

After six months, a one month break is needed so that the drug doesn't accumulate above a certain level. I do worry that it stays in the system so is more of a problem if there are side effects, and not that long ago I probably wouldn't have considered using it. But with my older boy having periods of severe back pain which various medications (carprieve, onsior, prednisolone, dexamethasone, tramadol) have been unable to control, there are few options left. I guess the advantage is Trocoxil provides more consistent anti-inflamm and is supposed to stop the breakthrough pain.

Great! Yes just take it day by day. :)

Does anyone have experience with the long lasting NSAID Trocoxil for pain relief? From my understanding it is safer than some of the older ones, but of course there may be issues with side effects and the drug staying in the system. Has anyone used it?

How is the little boy this morning?

I will also cross the road or change direction - though some people will then make a beeline for me despite my obvious attempts to avoid them. In those cases I usually just say the dogs are in training and need space. I'm a bit more wary of unknown dogs that are bull breeds - unfortunately most of the bad experiences I have had with rushing dogs, or dominant behaviour etc have been with unknown bull breeds. Despite this my dogs don't have a negative reaction to bull breeds, as they have good associations with a couple of staffies that I know well.

My older dogs have had back xrays with sedation, without sedation, and also with GA. The xrays with GA cost around $750 which included a dental, and fluids of course.

I've only seen Ray at Monash for chiro.

Your vet must have reasons for holding off on xrays, but when my dogs presented with back pain they were xrayed immediately (after a physical examination) so we knew what the issue was. They are both still on anti-inflammatory medication but have never had valium.