Hi all. Found your website whilst trying to look for solutions to a terrible problem which has occurred to our 8 yr old Jack Russell, Alfie. He suddenly became very motionless last week, unable to stand on his back legs. Up until then Alfie has been a very active and fun dog and it was a shock to see him like this. We can`t pinpoint any kind of accident or "bad landing" to cause any injury. We took him to the vets on Friday and they have diagnosed a slipped disc in his spine. He returned to the vets today for blood tests and x-rays and this has been confirmed, the blood tests ruling out any kind of internal organ problem or stroke etc. Alfie has been prescribed Tramadol, and a solution to re-hydrate him, as after having to pay nearly £400 this weekend we couldn`t manage the extra £120 the vet wanted to put him on a saline drip. They are recommending an MRI scan to confirm but this cannot go ahead as it is a further £2000. Can i just stress that this isn`t a begging message in any way. Alfie has to go back on Tuesday to see how he is managing on the pain relief, but the vet did say that if she thinks Alfie`s quality of life isn`t going to improve then she would recommend having him put down. We are all beside ourselves here, it`s been the worst week for all of us. The point of writing to you is to ask your advice and if you know of any similar cases where Jacks have been able to carry on with the limited mobility and/or any aids that could help him with his movement. You may have guessed that we didn`t have Pet Insurance, something which we obviously regret now but wish we had taken out. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance, John R
Most important! Has your vet told you to keep your Jack as still as possible. Ideally, he should be restricted to a crate, and may need to be in it for some weeks, only being taken out to relieve himself. You should use something like a towel, underneath him as a sling, to give him support while he does this. I can't advise on your particular case, you need to know just how much impact the disc is having on his spinal cord to gauge his chance of recovery without an operation - unfortunately also an expensive procedure. I have had a small dog recover with medication and a month's cage rest, but he was prolapse due to impact, and was arched and still able to stand, but with no traction. I do sympathise about the money as I don't insure either. I wish you the best possible outcome.
