Dog Arthritis 

For those of you who know me, this is old news. If you’re just getting to know me, here is the news: I have a special place in my heart for pets with special needs. If you’ve seen my book “Not Like the Others-Harley’s Story: Having a Pet with Special Needs”  the title might be your first clue. There is way too much to discuss to have only one blog posting about this subject so I’ve decided to split it up and you can expect more to come. If you have a particular pet special need subject you’d like to hear about please let me know by filling out the comment form below; diabetes and pet diets are already on the agenda.

Today, I’m going to talk about our latest rescue Shasta’s health problem.  He has just been diagnosed with Dog Arthritis.  Last week, in the early evening, he quite suddenly stopped using his left leg and his head was literally stuck/hanging to the left as well. This continued for about 20-30 minutes, much to my and my husband’s distress. The Nurse Practitioner takes over and I run though a list of differentials (potential diagnoses…although I wasn’t even sure if dog’s can obtain any of these particular diagnoses):

1. Stroke

2. Meningitis

3. Torticollis (In Latin: tortus=twisted, collis=neck)

4. did he sprain his leg (not sure how simply lying on the couch that would happen).

I also wondered if Lyme disease might be the culprit (symptoms include lameness, fever, swollen lymph nodes and joints) and his symptoms didn’t match Harley’s when he had Lyme. Shasta did have 2 ticks after a hike to Feather Falls (see photo) and one was attached for more than 48 hours (the time required for transmission).

After looking at www.petmd.com Rocky Mountain Spotted fever was included in tick problems but he did not have a fever, reduced appetite, vomiting or diarrhea, which also ruled out a few other tick born illnesses. Nothing made sense, as he improved slightly with only a slight limp, then appeared fully recovered by morning. I’m sure I drive my poor Vet nuts, considering I can’t help trying to diagnose. Regardless, a trip to our wonderful, supportive Vet was added to our busy Friday schedule.

After a careful exam by Dr. Colyer and x-rays of Shasta’s neck, he was diagnosed with Dog Arthritis also known as Intervertebral Disc Disease (IVDD) and provided with a short course of Prednisone for inflammation, Methocarbamol a muscle relaxant, and limited activity (I’ve never been great at accomplishing this. If you have ideas, outside of a crate…since Shasta would go out of his mind in a crate…please let me know). It never ceases to amaze me, the cross over between human and canine medical care, we use both medications in humans and animals, although in different doses. Dr. Colyer and I discuss the symptoms of Dog Arthritis:

• Unwillingness to jump
• Lameness/Limping
• Crying out in pain
• Anxious behavior
• Muscle spasms over back or neck
• Hunched back or neck with tense muscles
• Reduced appetite/activity level
• Loss of bowel (stool) or bladder (urine) control.

Not all symptoms have to be present and a few are specific to location, some are very serious and in those cases a CT, MRI, or Myelogram (where dye is injected) would be recommended. Since Shasta’s symptoms were now minimal (he re-started favoring his left leg but is walking) we decided to go ahead and treat conservatively and not plan to head for surgery and/or obtain an expensive MRI.

After returning home I returned to the website petmd.com to begin learning to live with, and manage, Dog Arthritis. Many dogs with mild cases will feel better and return to walking normally with conservative treatment. Having re-occurrences are common and expected. Certain breeds are more prone: Dashshund, Beagle, Basset Hound and Shih Tzu, but it can obviously happen to any breed as we think Shasta is a Yorkie/Schnauzer mix. So far, after 4 ½ days of treatment Shasta is as good as new. I’ll keep you posted on our progress!

How do you talk to your child about their newly diagnosed illness? How do you tell your child their pet has an illness like diabetes or arthritis? What can you do to explain that they will be loved unconditionally regardless of health issues? The answer is “Harley’s Story”.  Get an autographed copy!