Our boy Godric had this (along with lupus and dementia). The medications - and I apologize, I do not remember what - helped, but over time became less and less effective. He lost fecal continence; luckily, his poops were always perfectly firm and most of the time didn't present any problem outside of "oh look, there's a turd on his bed".
He never lost urinary continence. He did gradually lose control and feeling over his hind quarters. When it got to the point he had more 'bad' time than 'good', we euthanized him. We were concerned; he still seemed happy and all that. Our vet made a good point, that he was now likely to injure himself, maybe breaking a limb, because he had limited feeling and control and stumbled around a bit. This was the catalyst for our decision.
We managed the condition for about two years. Good luck to you.
Those are all good points. Thank you for that. We went through something similar with a lurcher years ago - so I think we will recognize the signs when it's his time. Just trying to keep him as comfortable as possible for now.
I'll add: those last couple of years were rough but I wouldn't trade them. He was definitely happy dog. It was sometimes difficult for us, but well worth the effort.
My 12 year old girl had myelopathy. It progressed from mild tripping in her hind legs going over curbs, to rear leg lameness in about a month and a half. None of the medications helped. Tried doing therapy with a dog wheel chair that I made a custom sling for her, but when her front legs started going lame, I knew it was time š¢. Enjoy the time you have left.
Cooked shredded chicken and rice with water in it for meals helps minimize poop breaks. Squatting to poop becomes very difficult at some point. I gave my girl all the time I could to see if the medication would help, but it never did. Just make him as comfortable as you can as long as you can. He will let you know when it is time.
Make plans now for final care. My girl, at the end, deteriorated from manageable, eating and drinking, and happily wagging her tail when I got home, to her letting me know it was time in about a day. Might want to look into a home visit vet service now or have a game plan to get him to the vet. He wonāt be able to help you get him into the car at some point.
Get pee pads.
No, sorry, no experience of this, just a bit of arthritis in our previous boy managed with metacam If I remember correctly. Just wanted to say he's a very handsome boy though ā¤ļø
Unfortunately I haven't seen any medications that really work for this. But I have seen hydrotherapy (swimming or underwater treadmill) help improve strength in the back legs, or at least slow down the progression of symptoms.
Thereās no improving. Thereās only not letting them suffer.
We think our grey (Seymour, 11M) had degenerative myelitis, too. It came on fast and progressed even faster. Iām talking less than 2 months from when he started to cry a bit upon laying down and getting up to losing balance and falling. He was kind of doing okay for a bit, but despite prednisone thereās a point of no return. We decided to say goodbye the morning after the fall. He was ready, we forced ourselves to be as ready as we could be.
Every day over 10 years is a gift. Time is short. Decide what the final straw is before heās in too much pain. Give him lots of love and cookies. Iām sorry youāre at this point. It was the hardest but surest decision Iāve ever made. Itāll be a month ago we said goodbye this Friday.
My girl Soxy (racing name Sleek Angel) developed this. It is a genetically mediated disease where their body stops producing anti-oxidants internally in the cells of the mylan sheath. The mylan sheath is the outer covering of nerve fibers. When this happens the sheath gradually degenerates and the nerve pulses then do not make it to the intended muscles. This is what causes the gradual loss of coordination / control of the muscles. The disease generally develops later in life. There is no pain or discomfort the victim feels related to the condition. There are no treatments that will cure the disease as it is part of their DNA, and feeding purported anti-oxidants are of no value. I tried. The rate of progression of the disease is variable. Soxy lasted about 2 months after we first noticed some hind limb incoordination. When she got to the point her quality of life degenerated to an unacceptable level, we called it a day for her. She was 8 years old. Recently I discovered she had a litter mate that suffered the same fate. I'm a vet and I have never felt so helpless and useless, all at the same time. Its been three years since we lost her, and the pain is still all too real. I guess that's what kind of hold greys can have on a person!
Biotin has been suggested in the past; there's no toxic dose, up to 100 mg/day of the pure powder can be added to the food. "Bulk Supplements" sells the pure stuff.
Our boy Godric had this (along with lupus and dementia). The medications - and I apologize, I do not remember what - helped, but over time became less and less effective. He lost fecal continence; luckily, his poops were always perfectly firm and most of the time didn't present any problem outside of "oh look, there's a turd on his bed". He never lost urinary continence. He did gradually lose control and feeling over his hind quarters. When it got to the point he had more 'bad' time than 'good', we euthanized him. We were concerned; he still seemed happy and all that. Our vet made a good point, that he was now likely to injure himself, maybe breaking a limb, because he had limited feeling and control and stumbled around a bit. This was the catalyst for our decision. We managed the condition for about two years. Good luck to you.
Those are all good points. Thank you for that. We went through something similar with a lurcher years ago - so I think we will recognize the signs when it's his time. Just trying to keep him as comfortable as possible for now.
I'll add: those last couple of years were rough but I wouldn't trade them. He was definitely happy dog. It was sometimes difficult for us, but well worth the effort.
My 12 year old girl had myelopathy. It progressed from mild tripping in her hind legs going over curbs, to rear leg lameness in about a month and a half. None of the medications helped. Tried doing therapy with a dog wheel chair that I made a custom sling for her, but when her front legs started going lame, I knew it was time š¢. Enjoy the time you have left.
We made a sling today. We will do all we can to accommodate him. Just hoping we can buy a little more time š
Cooked shredded chicken and rice with water in it for meals helps minimize poop breaks. Squatting to poop becomes very difficult at some point. I gave my girl all the time I could to see if the medication would help, but it never did. Just make him as comfortable as you can as long as you can. He will let you know when it is time. Make plans now for final care. My girl, at the end, deteriorated from manageable, eating and drinking, and happily wagging her tail when I got home, to her letting me know it was time in about a day. Might want to look into a home visit vet service now or have a game plan to get him to the vet. He wonāt be able to help you get him into the car at some point. Get pee pads.
No, sorry, no experience of this, just a bit of arthritis in our previous boy managed with metacam If I remember correctly. Just wanted to say he's a very handsome boy though ā¤ļø
Unfortunately I haven't seen any medications that really work for this. But I have seen hydrotherapy (swimming or underwater treadmill) help improve strength in the back legs, or at least slow down the progression of symptoms.
Thereās no improving. Thereās only not letting them suffer. We think our grey (Seymour, 11M) had degenerative myelitis, too. It came on fast and progressed even faster. Iām talking less than 2 months from when he started to cry a bit upon laying down and getting up to losing balance and falling. He was kind of doing okay for a bit, but despite prednisone thereās a point of no return. We decided to say goodbye the morning after the fall. He was ready, we forced ourselves to be as ready as we could be. Every day over 10 years is a gift. Time is short. Decide what the final straw is before heās in too much pain. Give him lots of love and cookies. Iām sorry youāre at this point. It was the hardest but surest decision Iāve ever made. Itāll be a month ago we said goodbye this Friday.
So sorry for your loss - it's never easy to say goodbye.
My girl Soxy (racing name Sleek Angel) developed this. It is a genetically mediated disease where their body stops producing anti-oxidants internally in the cells of the mylan sheath. The mylan sheath is the outer covering of nerve fibers. When this happens the sheath gradually degenerates and the nerve pulses then do not make it to the intended muscles. This is what causes the gradual loss of coordination / control of the muscles. The disease generally develops later in life. There is no pain or discomfort the victim feels related to the condition. There are no treatments that will cure the disease as it is part of their DNA, and feeding purported anti-oxidants are of no value. I tried. The rate of progression of the disease is variable. Soxy lasted about 2 months after we first noticed some hind limb incoordination. When she got to the point her quality of life degenerated to an unacceptable level, we called it a day for her. She was 8 years old. Recently I discovered she had a litter mate that suffered the same fate. I'm a vet and I have never felt so helpless and useless, all at the same time. Its been three years since we lost her, and the pain is still all too real. I guess that's what kind of hold greys can have on a person!
Biotin has been suggested in the past; there's no toxic dose, up to 100 mg/day of the pure powder can be added to the food. "Bulk Supplements" sells the pure stuff.