storm Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 (edited) My little yorkie who is 5yrs old has been diagnosised with Vestibular Syndrome. Quite scary to watch her as I though at first she was having a seizure. She cant stand and rolls on the floor, tilts her head to the right side and doesnt like me to touch her right side At the moment she is resting in her crate as the vet said there is no treatment and most dog do recover. Vet did suggest that most people just put the dog to sleep when diagnosed with this condition.. Anyone have a dog that has been through this? Looking for advice on how long it lasted until they were well again, any ongoing health problems eg head tilts, walking problems I have read a brief article that the web has but its pretty vague. Edited September 8, 2008 by storm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 A rescue Pug of mine suffered this, though not while she was with me so my knowledge is second hand. She has recovered almost 100%. She still has a slight head tilt but apart from that she is fine. I can't see why anyone would PTS with the condition. Humans suffer from it too and it causes no long term affects that I am aware of. It is all related to the fluid and balance in the inner ear from my knowledge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 My old dog got this when she was 15. Was very scary and when my mum first described it I thought that would be the end. But after a week she had recovered, was just a bit slower. Longer recovery the second time though. She lived to be 17. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted August 31, 2008 Author Share Posted August 31, 2008 Thanks Pugsrescue, With the little pug did they just do bed rest so to speak? I admit I freaked when he said the option was to put her to sleep as thats what most people do. She is my baby and if I can help her through this them by dog I will. Just seeing her so disorientated is heart breaking. I feel so useless and want to do something to make her better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 Thanks Pugsrescue, With the little pug did they just do bed rest so to speak? Yes, they needed to be mindful that she could fall down steps as well and other hazards as well until she recovered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted August 31, 2008 Author Share Posted August 31, 2008 Kavik Thanks, glad to hear your girl survived It is extremely hard to watch. At first I wasn't sure if it was a tick, stroke, seizure but figured it would be fixable with treatment. To have the vet say there is no treatment just wasn't what I wanted to hear, I wanted her fixed put her on a drip do something. Never felt so bloody helpless and frustrated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fifi Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 Storm, this must be so heartbreaking for you to see your girl like this. some vets will place the dog on fluids & AB's and/or anti-infamms, especially for younger dogs in case of infection being the catalyst. Other vets find crate rest to be sufficient. All but two of the younger dogs I've seen with this have somewhat recovered within a week, a couple did have residual slight head tilt though. I've not seen recovery in a geriatric sufferer. Your girl is only young, I'm hoping for a full recovery for you. remember to supervise her drinking & eating because of the choking risk with head tilt. fifi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormie Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 I've seen this many times. Our golden retriever had it at about 15yo. Usually the first 2-3 days are the worst, and then they start to improve. I have seen one or two be pts, but these dogs were VERY severe and suffered other health problems too, which contributed to the decision. Nursing is the best thing you can do. Keeping them quiet for the first couple of days can help, as they are often feeling quite sick from being so dizzy. I handfed our golden for the first few days until she was able to reach the food herself, but even then I had to hold her steady, as focusing on the food often made her lose balance. She never went back to being completely 100% - she still retained a slight head tilt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InspectorRex Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 I lost my 14 yo Collie to this- it is difficult to treat in older dogs .Our boy was borderline of a case of "is it a major stroke or vestibular disease?" Having suffered from vestibular problems for more then 20 years myself i can tell you that it is nit pleasant at all. PM Charles Kuntz about this as he is a superb Veterinary Specialist and what he does not know about these conditions he will find out for you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 I have had this with my sheltie Kell, she was about 13 and she was very severly affected. The vet said I can give you medication if you wish but the reality is only time will fix it. It took her quite some time to recover, 2-3mths and she always had a head tilt and was a bit unsteady on her feet as a result but she was just fine. She lived another 2yrs and died of something unrelated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavandra Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 Many of these "idiopathic" things can be caused by Vaccinosis, has she had annual shots, or the heartworm one? If so , you might consult a Holistic Vet to detox her & see if this is the cause.........Just a thought......she is so young! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted September 1, 2008 Author Share Posted September 1, 2008 I dont vaccinate every year, she was last vaccinated in 2006 and I dont do the heartworm injection for the yorkies either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted September 1, 2008 Author Share Posted September 1, 2008 I would like to Thank Charles Kuntz for answering all my questions and being so very helpful I truly do appreciate your time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InspectorRex Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Charles Kuntz is absolutely wonderful- we are very priviledged to have a man of his expertise on DOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 Quick update, Penny is looking a bit better and can actually hold her head up now. I can pick her up now and she doesn't do the death roll like she was a few days ago. That in its self is a relief as that was terrifying to watch/hold her I have been vitaminising her food which she is happy to be hand feed. She is drinking a egg nog mix of milk, glucose and egg and is happy to let me syringe her that.She doesn't have the balance to lap at the moment. Syringing her at least I can monitor how much fluid she is actually having daily. I still need to hold her when she goes out to the loo but she seems happier to let me do that now. At first she wasn't happy with me supporting her while she wee. So hopefully we are on the road to recovery and she will be back to her happy self soon. Penny is still crated and seems happy to just sleep. This is a horrible condition and hope I never see if again. Thanks to everyone for there support during this time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Great news Storm! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
storm Posted September 8, 2008 Author Share Posted September 8, 2008 Update on Penny Its been a week now and she is better in some ways. She has stopped the rolling and thrashing around. I have been hand feeding her and using a syringe for fluids. I offer her bowls with food and water but she refuses to eat or drink independently. Is this a skill she will have to relearn or will it just take longer before she is confident to eat independently? She will walk unaided for a bit now but her head is permanently tilted to the right. When she shakes she will fall over. She has figured out that to do poos she needs to learn against the fence for support. When I pick her up now she likes to be held really close to my body, this must give her security. Before she was very aloft about teh only good thing to come out of this illness she is she more cuddly and likes to be fussed over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madeleine Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Have you thought about going to an animal physio about this??? We see humans with this ALL the time and in the majority of cases it is highly treatable....If it's related to particles in the ear canals that control the dogs balance - I imagine it is treatable with certain positioning of the dogs head - as it is with humans. I couldn't recommend you see an animal physio more highly as they are the most likely to offer suitable recommendations - even on moving your dog. If the animal physio doesn't know anything - I'd call a vestibular physio in your area and ask them about it - they might give it a try! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted September 8, 2008 Share Posted September 8, 2008 Storm it was a long road to recovery for my girl. It took her 2-3mths to be able to safely walk, eat and drink and even then there were limits. She was never able to walk on lino again, always had a head tilt, hated getting picked up and was never 100% steady on her feet so stairs could be an issue. Having said that she had quality of life after a time, could get round by herself and loved her food. Just give your girl time, as long as there are improvements. I got Kell started eating herself again by mixing cat food to bind her food and putting it in a narrow but deepish container. I still had to hold it in the beginning but once she gained confidence there was no stopping her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now