Hello Dr. Krista, my 3,5 year old shiz-poo, male got paralyzed on March 29, just playing at home with another dog. Next day we went to EI and we were told that his injury is (slipped disc) at T13-L3, based on xray. Surgery would have been 10.000 $, with 50/50 chance of recovery according to doctor, no chance with steroids. We couldn’t afford the surgery. Our home doctor gave us little hope and Shadow has been on steroids since March 31. After 7 days there was no improvement,doctor recommended euthanasia but with minimum chance we asked for 7 more days of meds. He has very weak deep pain sensation. His back legs are paralyzed, he poops and pees without control, has good appetite and when let out of cage he wants to run on his front legs dragging the back. I just ran across your videos on youtube, not to give up on those dogs, but i am not sure if a miracle can really happen. Is it really possible that he would walk again? I dont want him to suffer but not sure what to do. Could you please let me know your opinion about it, thank you so much! We are desperate…Anita

8 year old Shih-tzu Maltese diagnosed with a bulging disc 🙁

Hi, thank you for making all of the videos on youtube. I have found them very helpful with my little guy Benson…it’s nice to see a vet that goes the extra mile for their patients. Our vet clinic is also caring and affordable as well, which is hard to find these days.

Benson is a miracle dog. He has already survived a grade 2 mast cell inguinal tumor so Cornell and our local vet love him and call him their miracle dog (this was 2.5 years ago)

Now for his most recent issue which is why I’m writing; For a week, he was dragging his front left paw. We took him to our vet (on Monday, March 19th) and she diagnosed him with arthritis….things got worse throughout the week to the point where he would knuckle his front left paw. Our vet had only told us to limit his activity and no jumping so we didn’t restrict him to a crate. By Sunday morning (March 25th) (and he was on 5mg of prednisone since Monday) his back left paw was now knuckling and he was getting worse to the point where he could barely stand up.
We took him back to the vet and they did x-rays and found a bulging disc right around his shoulder blades. He has been on 10mg of prednisone, Methocarbamol, gabapentin and in a crate 24/7 ever since Sunday the 25th. Luckily, he is really only affected on his left side of his body.

We are seeing a little bit of improvement at times and at other times, he is still just as bad as he was on Sunday.

He has never lost the ability to pee or defecate (thankfully) annnnd Benny loves to eat (or drink) so that will never be an issue haha…

However what worries me is the fact that he is ALWAYS as stiff as a board in the morning when we get up or when he gets stressed/excited. It’s as if he re-injures himself because he can’t walk and can barely stand. It takes him at least an hour to recover, stop panting and then relax again until it seems like he is not in pain anymore….

Is there anything we can do to prevent the “morning/excited episodes” or is it all just part of the process? I thought the muscle relaxer would help but it isn’t. I have even gone so far as to put signs on our front door asking visitors to not knock or ring the doorbell.

Last question-do you have an opinion about a dog chiropractor?

Any advice you could give, we would appreciate! We love our little guy-he has such a personality and adds so much fun to our lives.

Thanks so much,
Megan and Missy

My beagle is 2 weeks post op from her 2nd IVDD surgery. Despite steroids and pain meds, she still yelps when picked up and sometimes when she repositions herself. I don’t recall her yelping after her first surgery, but I know this procedure was more delicate because of spinal cord maniplulation (removal of calcification from first surgery) along with nerve root issue, but is it reasonable to expect she’d still be in pain after 14 days post op? Her vet is continuing steroids and pain meds. So discouraging when she goes almost 24 hrs with no audible signs of pain only to end up yelping on a routine potty break. Truly feels like one step forward, two steps back.

I have a 1year and four month old chihuahua mix. She is 8 lb full grown, not over weight, and eats a grain free natural diet. Last night as I was petting her, I noticed this red bump. I am scared to death and am going to make a vet apt when they open today, but for now…anyone know what this bump could be? It is red, moveable, topical (doesn’t feel like it is attached to deep tissue at all), and is not causing pain. She is eating and drinking normally. should I be worried? Anyone have any ideas as to what it may be?

Hi pawbly friends…
It was a snowy, no school day here. Try as I might, I could not get the dogs to stay in while the kids were out playing in the snow, and all that running and horse play took a toll on our 12 year old GSD Butch. He just fell going down the stairs…. not the whole stair case, the stepto get onto the landing. My husband picked him up and rather than having him try to use the stairs tonight, we brought him round the outside way to use the hill instead. He seems fine on his walk just now, but slow going. My question is this: he’s got rimadyl that we give him sparingly for pain from his arthritis. Should I give him some tonight, or wait til morning when he will probably be really stiff, or give tonight and tomorrow? Thanks for anyand all advice!

My cat seems to have an ulcer on his neck, this is the second one he’s had the first was on his shoulder blade it’s clean and there’s no hair around he’s eaten today but it worries me, he doesn’t seem to be in pain or even notice it but it’s gooey and smells odd should I rush him to the vet?

My cat was hit by a car and broke her pelvis. The vet suggested surgery which is very expensive. Is surgery the only way to treat her? or is there any other alternative? So far she can urinate on her own but having problem pooping. I think she’s in pain. The vet prescribed Tramadol and lactulose for her. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

My Boston terrier is in a lot of pain. His jaw is swollen and he keeps tilting his head sideways. I don’t know what happened,if he was maybe kicked or bit by a spider or if it is a tooth or ear infection? I live in a small rural town and the closest 24 hour emergency vet is 2 hour drive away. What can I do to help him. Do u have any suggestions or advice you can give me?

Has anyone had a kitty that developed an autoimmune disease where their body attacks the plaque on the teeth causing extreme pain and inability to eat? I have 2 now that have developed it and have had to have all their teeth extracted. I’m having such a difficult time making sure they get the nutrition they need. Looking for sugggetikns and possibly an explanation as to why this happens to cats. I just want to make sure I’m not doing anything that caused it.

1 year old cat left home alone for one day (not unusual for her). When owners camehome she was very clingy and needed to sleep in primary owners lap. As she would sleep her head would suddenly drop down and she seemed to have slower heavier breathing. After sleeping off and on for a few hours she began to get very aggressive especially towards male owner. Has also been moving head erratically and seems to shake head when moving it. Will only eat if food is on the floor and out of the bowl and has shown irregular signs of back pain sometimes being sensitive and sometimes not at all.