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Spinal abscess or Pinched nerve
Hi everyone,
I have 8 years old Mini Pinscher. He has been sick for 2 months. I took him to 6 different hospitals and spent a lot of money for visits and medicine. First, they told me he had a pinched nerve on his med-back, between the shoulders, if I can say it like that. They put him on prednisolone. It didn’t help. He was paralyzing slowly in crucial pain, especially partial paralyses on his rear paws but still has sensation. I took him to other hospital and they told me he needs surgery. The test and surgery cost around $4700, which I couldn’t afford it. I looked for, called and wrote to different pets organizations, asking for financial aid. No one replied.
The next day after I went to the neurosurgery hospital, I took him to another hospital (my old vet) and he shot him with Dexamethasone Inj, Depo Medrol Inj, Vit B-12 Inj, and Pen –G Inj. My vet also prescribed Amoxy-Baytril antibiotic twice (2) a day by mouth. He showed a big improvement and started to walk (no sign of pain) after the first day. It passed around 10 days and he started to have pain and couldn’t walk again. He curls his paws in and then settles onto the floor. He has still a swollen spot on his med-back. I gave him Tramadol the last night.
I can’t figure this out, is this pinched nerve or spinal abscess cause by bacteria and compresses the nerve? And, if my dog was on antibiotic for 10 days, why didn’t help him? Why his med-back is still swollen? What should I do? I can’t afford $2500 for MR test and etc. Is it a good idea to keep him on steroids the whole time?
Please help! I don’t know what to do anymore.
I have 8 years old Mini Pinscher. He has been sick for 2 months. I took him to 6 different hospitals and spent a lot of money for visits and medicine. First, they told me he had a pinched nerve on his med-back, between the shoulders, if I can say it like that. They put him on prednisolone. It didn’t help. He was paralyzing slowly in crucial pain, especially partial paralyses on his rear paws but still has sensation. I took him to other hospital and they told me he needs surgery. The test and surgery cost around $4700, which I couldn’t afford it. I looked for, called and wrote to different pets organizations, asking for financial aid. No one replied.
The next day after I went to the neurosurgery hospital, I took him to another hospital (my old vet) and he shot him with Dexamethasone Inj, Depo Medrol Inj, Vit B-12 Inj, and Pen –G Inj. My vet also prescribed Amoxy-Baytril antibiotic twice (2) a day by mouth. He showed a big improvement and started to walk (no sign of pain) after the first day. It passed around 10 days and he started to have pain and couldn’t walk again. He curls his paws in and then settles onto the floor. He has still a swollen spot on his med-back. I gave him Tramadol the last night.
I can’t figure this out, is this pinched nerve or spinal abscess cause by bacteria and compresses the nerve? And, if my dog was on antibiotic for 10 days, why didn’t help him? Why his med-back is still swollen? What should I do? I can’t afford $2500 for MR test and etc. Is it a good idea to keep him on steroids the whole time?
Please help! I don’t know what to do anymore.
My dog Snoopy also has had this exact problem on-and-off for months. He is almost 1 year old. He will be perfectly fine, then all of a sudden scream and fall in pain, usually pooping and/or peeing himself in that moment. This happened yesterday morning for the 4th time and he is still unable to walk. When I pick him up to try and place him on his feet, they turn under and he is unable to support himself.
I took him to the DMV the last time this happened, and as I cannot afford an MRI, the doctor took an X-ray. It was obvious that he has some compression on his spinal chord, but she said it could also be an infection in his brain, maybe his cerebellum.
The last time he fell, he was VERY wobbly when he first started walking again (A week after he fell) and he could not walk on smooth surfaces, like wood floor, or tile, because his paws would just slide out. We covered the house in rugs, and the vet put him on prednizone. We have been weaning him off for over a month now, and I am unsure as to whether it was the prednizone that helped him recover slightly or if he would have recovered on his own, because even now as he is still on the prednizone, he cannot stand up.
He is, however, eating and drinking if I feed him by hand.
But, he keeps peeing and pooping on his bed because he cannot stand up.
He is fully mentally aware and alert.
I took him to the DMV the last time this happened, and as I cannot afford an MRI, the doctor took an X-ray. It was obvious that he has some compression on his spinal chord, but she said it could also be an infection in his brain, maybe his cerebellum.
The last time he fell, he was VERY wobbly when he first started walking again (A week after he fell) and he could not walk on smooth surfaces, like wood floor, or tile, because his paws would just slide out. We covered the house in rugs, and the vet put him on prednizone. We have been weaning him off for over a month now, and I am unsure as to whether it was the prednizone that helped him recover slightly or if he would have recovered on his own, because even now as he is still on the prednizone, he cannot stand up.
He is, however, eating and drinking if I feed him by hand.
But, he keeps peeing and pooping on his bed because he cannot stand up.
He is fully mentally aware and alert.
My chinese crested is having the same issue. The xrays showed some compomised space between vertebrae but nothing huge. He has been on antibiotics and rimadyl and was getting better. Today he is much worse and back to the vet they put him on prednisone 20mg. This is crazy!
my american bulldog was in the yard leg turned wrong made a horrifying scream then was immediately paralyzed below the hips both legs took to vet they kept for a days gave 20 mg pretzone and methocarbarnol 500 mg
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
I am sorry to hear that your little guy isn't doing much better, but I am happy to hear that the second veterinarian seems to be taking an interest in the case.
In my experience, using a NSAID and steroid concurrently was something that our hospitals avoided. HOWEVER, since I am not a veterinarian, I don't want to speak out of turn. Again, this is a great question for our DVMs over in the Ask A Vet Expert section.
Please keep us posted as to his progress...
In my experience, using a NSAID and steroid concurrently was something that our hospitals avoided. HOWEVER, since I am not a veterinarian, I don't want to speak out of turn. Again, this is a great question for our DVMs over in the Ask A Vet Expert section.
Please keep us posted as to his progress...
Hello,
Thanks for replying. No, they didn’t. They just moved his head around and he cried when they moved it back and forth.
I took my doggy to a different vet today, because he couldn’t stand up and walk anymore. He curls his front paws, but he still got sensation. He became sicker and cries out in pain, can’t walk, arches his back and his neck twitching. He falls down, can’t go to bathroom any more.
The vet reviewed the X-Rays that I brought and told/show me that the swollen spot is between cervical C5 and C6 and the problem could be C5-6-or 7. He advised me that acupuncture might help. He also prescribed 1/3 once a day Deramaxx 25mm (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) for pain and inflammation and he shot my doggy with steroids. I was concerned about the steroids because they can destroy his liver and kidneys. He told me we can try like that because I don’t have money for MRI test and surgery. The vet also told me to apply hot pack (not cold) for 3min x 3 times a day for 3 weeks. Now my concern is, can we mix steroids and NSAID? Isn’t this too much for 12 pound doggy?
Thanks for replying. No, they didn’t. They just moved his head around and he cried when they moved it back and forth.
I took my doggy to a different vet today, because he couldn’t stand up and walk anymore. He curls his front paws, but he still got sensation. He became sicker and cries out in pain, can’t walk, arches his back and his neck twitching. He falls down, can’t go to bathroom any more.
The vet reviewed the X-Rays that I brought and told/show me that the swollen spot is between cervical C5 and C6 and the problem could be C5-6-or 7. He advised me that acupuncture might help. He also prescribed 1/3 once a day Deramaxx 25mm (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) for pain and inflammation and he shot my doggy with steroids. I was concerned about the steroids because they can destroy his liver and kidneys. He told me we can try like that because I don’t have money for MRI test and surgery. The vet also told me to apply hot pack (not cold) for 3min x 3 times a day for 3 weeks. Now my concern is, can we mix steroids and NSAID? Isn’t this too much for 12 pound doggy?
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Good morning to you and I am sorry to hear about the problems your little Mini Pin is experiencing. It's SO frustrating when getting a clear cut answer is difficult.
Has any done x-rays of the cervical (neck) spine? If so, what were the results and were they evaluated by a board certified veterinary surgeon?
To answer your question about antibiotics not helping, it could simply be that the dosage was used long enough or that the antibiotic is not the right type to clear enough of the bacteria so that they body can kill the rest.
Two things come to mind for me...first, this is a question that could find some answers in our Ask A Vet Expert forum here at MedHelp. You should post as much information about all of his veterinary visits for this situation and our veterinarians here might be able to come up with some answers for you.
Second...have you tried applying for a grant from the American Animal Hospital Association's Helping Pets Fund? They can be found at aahahelpingpets.org. The only catch is that your veterinarian will need to apply on your behalf.
Good luck to you...keep us posted on his progress.
Has any done x-rays of the cervical (neck) spine? If so, what were the results and were they evaluated by a board certified veterinary surgeon?
To answer your question about antibiotics not helping, it could simply be that the dosage was used long enough or that the antibiotic is not the right type to clear enough of the bacteria so that they body can kill the rest.
Two things come to mind for me...first, this is a question that could find some answers in our Ask A Vet Expert forum here at MedHelp. You should post as much information about all of his veterinary visits for this situation and our veterinarians here might be able to come up with some answers for you.
Second...have you tried applying for a grant from the American Animal Hospital Association's Helping Pets Fund? They can be found at aahahelpingpets.org. The only catch is that your veterinarian will need to apply on your behalf.
Good luck to you...keep us posted on his progress.
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