diabetes? hind leg weakness, weak bladder- husky- also does the "drunk" staggering

kitkat · 04-10-2007, 08:31 PM

someone mentioned diabetes on here.

my dog does that "drunk" thing someone mentioned sometimes when she gets too excited...kind of staggers for a bit then falls...i have to gently help her down when she starts to stagger in case she hits her head on the pavement (its when she gets excited when she sees other dogs on her walks) then her legs look like shes running on her side...its hard to tell if shes conscious or not, since i walk her at night (to avoid other dogs, actually). she usually gets up, shakes, and is fine, sometimes a bit slow after.

anyway. someone mentioned feeding her before her walk? or giving her some kind of glucose...that it could be low blood sugar?

I also noticed that her back legs are weak and she kind of pivots on them when turning around, instead of taking steps.

When she goes upstairs in the night to wake someone up to go to the bathroom (she urinates often, and often on the floor) her legs kind of give out, and she ends up peeing right on the floor...lying down.

Im so confused by this plethora of problems. she has had heart xrays, normal. blood tests- kidney enzymes a little low. other xrays came out fine. she eats a lot, drinks normally. other than that is good, happy and her feces are normal..someone have any ideas?!

mom to lil buddy · 04-11-2007, 08:37 AM

With all that workup I'm sure you had a vet panel. What was the glucose level? How old is your dog? My dog lived with diabetes for 5 yrs and it can be a worrysome journey. She died at 15 with total system failure. Unfortunately, vets get very little training on diabetes. Dogs rarely can be regulated on only one shot/day but many vets still try. I would strongly reccommend home testing for anyone dealing with diabetes, it will save a lot of money and stress in the long run. The secret to successful diabetes management is balance between, food, insulin and exercise and maintaining a rigid schedule in so far as possible.

Good luck, Sounds like you have been working on this for a while. Virginia

Just thought of something else, does your dog act like it is having a seizure? I had a cocker once that frequently had seizures when she got excited. Virginia

kitkat · 04-11-2007, 03:58 PM

we have had so many trips to the vet...my mom says she remembers the vet doing a test for diabetes and it came back negative...i dont remember this. but how can i test at home?

and yes it does look like shes having seizures...three vets i have used cant figure out what it is...obviously its neurologic somehow, after all the tests shes had.

does it sound like diabetes to you? i have done some research, and she has some symptoms and not others...what are the main ones?

icepaws20 · 04-12-2007, 11:44 AM

Hi ya,
What a worrying time for you,i had an English bull Terrier with diabetes,all though this was some years ago.
I remember his water intake being massive,and so obviously his urine output was huge,but he never had a weak bladder.
He also aquired terrible cataracts after time. Luckily,it was controllable 99% of the time with Insulin and diet. Although near the end we had terrible times with hypoglycemia.
I don't want to scare monger you but it kinda sounds almost like a stroke?
if you thought about it in human terms,if not,definately sounds neurological,possibly epilepsy?
I hope its neither of these,and i hope you are not upset by what i have written,im no expert.

Good luck and update us as soon as you know anything.

Kirsty and Koda xx

bearlasmom · 04-12-2007, 01:41 PM

hey hon, is there a chance the poor thing is getting into antifreeze?

kitkat · 04-12-2007, 11:32 PM

eek. no i dont think so. at least i dont know any possible situation where she could have ingested any. why? would the symptoms be similar to mine?

icepaws20 · 04-13-2007, 02:37 AM

Would there not be evidence of that in blood tests? as i would imagine it would have had some effect on internal organs if it has been going on for a while?

Kirsty and koda xx

lovemygreys · 04-13-2007, 01:41 PM

The hind end weakness makes me think of lumbosacral stenosis as a possible diagnosis. It won't necessarily show up on an x-ray. Shaking, weakness, loss of bladder/bowel control are all symptoms - as are shuffling the feet or their back feet "knuckling" under or dragging. It occasionally pops up in greyhounds, though it is more common in GSDs from what I understand.

Here's a good website with a diagnosis method (manual manipulation) and treatment. The depo-medrol shot is inexpensive and has been an amazing solution for our grey with LSS: Link

oreopete · 04-14-2007, 10:49 PM

Hi, I hate to say it but it might be kidney disease. My dog Oreo a Husky, has it. He was a stray and had it before we got him although we did not find out for 6 months. He was walking weird and would every once in a while fall down. He was dripping all the time and would have accidents in the house. He was given a prognosis of just a few months. Your vet would be able to figure this out if your dog has it but alot of the symptoms are also considered part of other health problems.

There are several ways a dog can get it the most common for dogs who get loose alot or have been strays is drinking standing water. If they drink from a puddle that say a squirl walked by and pooped in before the puddle filled they can get it that way.

Hope all goes well. I hope your puppy feels better.