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What's is like living with an IVDD dog?

A lot of people who join Dodgers have that question. Particularly once their dog is off crate rest. They want to know if their dog"s life will be just as it was before. Or if it will have to live in “bubble wrap."

The answer is… Neither.

Neither life will be the same, nor will the dog have to live as if it were made of crystal.

Changes will have to be made to adapt to the fact that your dog has a disease. A disease that will most likely give it problems every now and then for the rest of your dog's life. However, if you make certain changes and adapt, eventually things will get easier. There will be a routine. And especially, you will know exactly what to look for if your dog's back is achy and know exactly what to do to prevent a herniation from getting worse.

Is it hard? At first it is, mainly because it's different. Like everything, there is a learning process. You have to learn to correctly carry your dog. You might also need to train it to use ramps or wait to be carried. You have to discourage jumping and stairs. You might have to train your dog to sleep in a crate. The more flexible WE are to changes, the faster we'll adapt. The dog will sense we are happy with the new things he's learned and will do them to please us. So sometimes it is harder for US humans to change and adapt than for our dogs.

Once you have your new routine established, it is not hard, nor does it take more time, nor is it a bother. Instead of just releasing the beasts to go potty in the mornings, you now have to gently let them out carrying them or encouraging using a ramp. Not bad! Many of us have been about to roll like snow balls down the stairs because our dogs constantly raced us. Estimated time it takes? Exactly the SAME it's always taken YOU to go down the stairs. Time wasted: NONE.

About crating your dog when you're not home. Is it REALLY a bad thing? 90% of the time dogs sleep when we're away. So really, you're just making sure the dog is asleep in ONE place, instead of it jumping on your bed or sofa, which could cause another herniation. If you're away from the house too long and the dog has to go potty in that time, set up an exercise pen around the crate with some potty pads. Is that hard? No. It's just different. It's making sure your dog cannot hurt itself while you're away. That's all. Estimated time it takes: 3 minutes.

Giving your dog supplements: the more you give them, the easier it gets. Some dogs love pills. They are like treats. Especially gel caps. Other dogs don't mind powders sprinkled on their food. Other dogs will vaccuum anything in their bowls. Others will spit pills further than volcanoes spit out lava. You will get to know your dog: what supplements are easy to give, and what supplements are not easy to give. You will start to look for alternatives (other presentations) and find what works best for your particular dog. Once you got it, it will take you a minute or less to give your dog its supplements.

Expressing. If your dog needs to be expressed, the more you do it, the easier it gets. If your dog is completely paralyzed, it's even easier. It usually takes 2 or 3 minutes max, which in average is less than the time it takes a healthy dog to sniff around and find that perfect spot to go potty. So if with a healthy dog you had to take it out for 5 minute walks to go… with a downed dog you actually save time!

Is it expensive? At first yes. Usually after the first herniation every time our dogs sneeze we run to the vet thinking our dog just had another herniation. Then, there is the arthritis, that sometimes kicks in a few months or even years after the herniation, that makes them sore, and that sometimes makes them limp a bit. That REALLY makes us nuts and run like crazy to the vet. Once WE get over our paranoia and learn how to tell a real herniation from just a muscle soreness, or a full anal gland, then we stop paying for quite a few unnecesary vet visits. Also, with time, we keep learning and react quickly to the early signs of a REAL back problem. If so, our dogs might dodge surgery and heal with crate rest and meds. There we just saved a bit of money too. If your dog is paralyzed, every now and then it might get some skin sores and infections in the bladder. But after a year or so, we become experts in preventing them too (with wraps and protective gear for the skin, and supplements and diligently expressing for the bladder). So again, as time passes, it all gets easier, faster, and it's no longer something overwhelming.

In ALLLL that time, our dog's kisses are the same, and its love for us grows and grows. And I can assure you that your bond with your dog will be closer and closer. It will be SO big that you won't see any "unky" walk anymore or any "deficits." Your dog will be PERFECT just the way it is. And you will enjoy it for many many years, loving every kiss, every time it welcomes you home, every devoted look on its face, and seeing those little whiskers move just a tiny little bit as he slowly breathes when it falls asleep.

Your baby will be the same gorgeous lovable baby it ever was. Just like you will always be its loving owner to him.

It's been 4 years sine my baby went down, and 2 since she lost both her eyes, and I can tell you, from the bottom of my heart, that today, I couldn't love her any more than I do now, and she is PERFECT the way she is, and if going through IVDD, Congestive Heart failure and blindness is what it would take to have her again, I would do it ALL again, in a second. No doubt. It IS worth it to fight for your baby. Don't ever doubt that. And if it gets a bit rough, blow some steam on the list. And then go with your baby and give it a kiss, and remember you chose it, and he is with you for a reason. You might not uderstand the reason now... but someone above does.

Hugs.

G. Rivera, Merlina, Chufa & Romy.
http://riveradogs.googlepages.com/merlina
http://www.dodgerslist.com
http://www.thedachshundnetwork.com/