X Ray shows abnormal disc. Could big dog have hurt her?

babsdawn55 · 11-28-2007, 08:23 PM

I had to go out of town for a night and left Gracie with my friend, who has a big dog. I always thought it went well, and that Gracie and her dog got along okay.... but tonight when I came home (my friend brought Gracie back to the house and left her till I got home)... Gracie was happy to see me, and was crying ... but along with her happy cry was a hurting cry. It was obvious something is wrong. I took her directly to the vet... just got back. He didn't want to say that it was because of the dog hurting her... but the xray showed that several of her discs had some calcification?? and her back is arched up in a way that makes him believe it is a disc problem. He said she could have had a bad back all along, and a little rough play might have made it worse. We play with Gracie all the time, and she jumps high in the air and is very active with no pain.... so I am suspicious that the dog might have hurt her...??? They kept her all night and gave her pain meds. He also said she would probably always have off and on back problems now. I hope and pray Gracie gets okay. I can't stop crying. She was so happy to see me come home... and then I took her right up to the vet where she was muzzled and given an exam and xrays. It always makes me feel better to get on here and talk to someone who has had similar problems so I can better understand. What are the chances of paralysis?

007Dogs · 11-28-2007, 09:49 PM

It sounds like it was a prexsisting problem, but could have been aggrevated by rough play. I am sorry your poor doggy is having to go through this. You did not mention what breed of dog this is. Some breeds are just more prone to back issues than others. Also weight can be a factor in back issues.

KumoES · 11-28-2007, 09:49 PM

a big dog would likely play rougher than a human would. That's just part of being a dog. Calcification of the space between bones takes months. It is not a quick process at all, and is part of arthritis.

Paralysis is probably unlikely, but she will as time progresses get stiffer and more sore because of those osteophytes. they are there to imobilize the joint due to degradation of the hyalin cartilage.

Annamarie · 11-28-2007, 10:15 PM

calcification happens over a matter of months or years, it sounds like she has a bit of arthritis maybe, and that was aggrevated by some doggy play time.

look into some supplements like glucosamine and MSM, though they're more of a preventative than a cure they do help to slow down the process. there are some stronger joint supplements out there given by the vet (some injectable) that help the pain as well, your vet can give you more info.

in the meantime I would keep her warm and maybe put a heating pad (not too hot) on her bed. warmth always helps arthritis (I can attest to that!)

babsdawn55 · 11-28-2007, 10:16 PM

Gracie is a cockapoo... and weighs a little over 18 lb. What do you think about taking her to a chirpractor?

Annamarie · 11-29-2007, 01:31 AM

it probably wouldn't hurt, but i'd get the vet's okay first. just to be sure.

the thing with chiropractic is that you can't just go once for a quick fix. the body aligns itself in a certain way and the muscles and tendons adapt to wherever they are even if it's incorrect, so it takes a while for the body to become balanced again. in between visits the muscles and tendons will pull the vertebrae out of alignment.

i'm a big beleiver in chiropractic, after a car accident i could barely function but the chiropractor releived all of my back pain. the problem with chiro's for animals is that they aren't regulated and there are a lot of nutjobs out there. hopefully your vet has some good recommendations.