Dr. Andrew Isaacs, DVM Diplomate ACVIM (Neurology) Dogwood Veterinary Referral Center

His primary interests include intervertebral disc disease, seizure management, luxations/fractures of the spine, and surgery for brain tumors		 Spacer gif

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Conservative treatment (medical managment)
Sunday, January 29, 2012

Tacoma Wa writes: My 2 year old dachshund stopped jumping and seemed unsure if she could traverse steps. A couple of days later, she was barely walking, barely if at all eating or drinking (even her special food "chicken"). A couple of days later not moving by choice at all. If I put her on the floor, she mostly stays where I put her, waiting to be rescued, at times when I take her out to pee she will take some shaky steps to potty, then sits down as her legs are too shaky. A couple of days later as I was holding her she pooped runny all over my lap. Instead of peeing on the potty pad she has peed all around in very erratic ways. Her hind legs seem to get close together and she swings her bottom down. Yes, I know take her to the vet, but i can't.  I ashamed to say i don't have the resources. please give me any information you may have gained in your years of practice. Does it sound like a typical progression of dachshund disc problems, that given rest may likely heal on its own, or does it sound like a situation where it is only going to get worse, and not much hope at better, and I should simply suck it up and put her down, so she does not have to continue to suffer. Thank you in advance for any information you may share. 

 
By your description it does sound like your dog likely has intervertebral disk disease. Ideally, it would be best for you to go into a vet to get instructed on urinary bladder management and talk about potentially using steroids. Some dogs respond well to medical management and it would be worth giving it a try. In the meantime, it is very important to keep your dog strictly inactive so as not to get any worse. Dodger's list is a great resource for trying to manage intervertebral disk disease and helping improve your dog's quality of life.
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