Weakness In The Hindquarters?

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Hi everyone. Spencer just turned 8 y/o and I noticed today that he seems to be having trouble with his hindquarters. It appears he can't stand very well on tile and keeps his back legs splayed out for balance. He does this on carpet as well although not quite as noticeably. He also seems wobbly. Other than that he's acting normally and is happy and eating fine. About a month ago, August, he had this problem as well and the vet took an x-ray and nothing showed up in his hips or spine. So I'm going to take him into the vet again but I wondered if anyone else has had a similar experience and what I should ask the vet?

 

[IndyandHollyluv]

Hello there. After lurking for years, I finally joined. And while composing my first reply, poof! it magically disappeared, so I will try again (sigh). Here's the Reader's Digest version: For several years, my now 10 yr old male hound exhibited the same as Spencer. X-rays negative. On Get Up and Go supplements. Vet could offer no more other than anti-inflammatories and referral to a neurologist. I suspected LS, so in February 2008, off we went to the neurologist - even though I swore I wasn't going to flip for a very, very expensive MRI (the gold standard) or subject Indy to back surgery. Well, of course, I agreed to the $3000 MRI (and spinal tap), which confirmed mild to moderate lumbosacral stenosis and mild disk protrusion. I really didn't need to spend that kind of money to figure it out. What can I say? Neurologist prescribed a course of Prednisone, which gave Indy nothing but a bloody, steroid-induced UTI. What a miserable few weeks.

 

Anyway, because Indy did not respond well to the steroids and there was no appreciable improvement, the vet didn't recommend surgery (which is just as expensive as the MRI - and no guarantees; not to mention the risk.). The vet offered a three-drug cocktail to reduce inflammation and pain; however, after reading possible side effects - I decided to give meds only as needed (currently Metacam and Tramadol).

 

Indy will be 11 in December. He is in good health, great spirits and we still walk (to tolerance) and he romps around the yard. I purchased a doggy ramp - which my houndz have not quite embraced, but we are practicing. Indy is not yet incontinent (although I'm sure the time will come), but occasionally I find a urine drop or two on the kitchen lino. I realize this is progressive, but as long as Indy's quality of life is good, then it's a good day. Hope that helps. Happy to answer any other Qs you may have.

 

 

[Guest Greensleeves]

It might be Lumbo-sacral stenosis, which is fairly common in greyhounds. The treatment for it is an injection of depo-medrol near the spine. Some dogs respond better than others, but it worked really well for Whistler.

 

This article has some great information, as well as diagnostic and treatment guidelines:

http://greythealth.com/lumbosacral.htm

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Hello there. After lurking for years, I finally joined. And while composing my first reply, poof! it magically disappeared, so I will try again (sigh). Here's the Reader's Digest version: For several years, my now 10 yr old male hound exhibited the same as Spencer. X-rays negative. On Get Up and Go supplements. Vet could offer no more other than anti-inflammatories and referral to a neurologist. I suspected LS, so in February 2008, off we went to the neurologist - even though I swore I wasn't going to flip for a very, very expensive MRI (the gold standard) or subject Indy to back surgery. Well, of course, I agreed to the $3000 MRI (and spinal tap), which confirmed mild to moderate lumbosacral stenosis and mild disk protrusion. I really didn't need to spend that kind of money to figure it out. What can I say? Neurologist prescribed a course of Prednisone, which gave Indy nothing but a bloody, steroid-induced UTI. What a miserable few weeks.

 

Anyway, because Indy did not respond well to the steroids and there was no appreciable improvement, the vet didn't recommend surgery (which is just as expensive as the MRI - and no guarantees; not to mention the risk.). The vet offered a three-drug cocktail to reduce inflammation and pain; however, after reading possible side effects - I decided to give meds only as needed (currently Metacam and Tramadol).

 

Indy will be 11 in December. He is in good health, great spirits and we still walk (to tolerance) and he romps around the yard. I purchased a doggy ramp - which my houndz have not quite embraced, but we are practicing. Indy is not yet incontinent (although I'm sure the time will come), but occasionally I find a urine drop or two on the kitchen lino. I realize this is progressive, but as long as Indy's quality of life is good, then it's a good day. Hope that helps. Happy to answer any other Qs you may have.

 

Wow thank you so much! Now that you mention it the vet did mention stenosis but I didn't really understand what he was saying and he did prescribe prednisone and tramadol. At the time Spencer was having some other health issues so I thought the medication was for that. He doesn't seem to be in any sort of pain. I also have a doggie ramp for the car. I bought that the minute I brought Spencer home because I didn't want any damage to his back from leaping out of the SUV. So he's good on the ramp. Spencer just started having incontinence. I took him in last week for that and he doesn't have a UTI or diabetes so vet put him on Proin or something like that which seems to be working just fine. Poor Spencer I swear he has had so many "mystery" health problems this year. Thank you so much again for the information. It is extremely helpful!

 

 

It might be Lumbo-sacral stenosis, which is fairly common in greyhounds. The treatment for it is an injection of depo-medrol near the spine. Some dogs respond better than others, but it worked really well for Whistler.

 

This article has some great information, as well as diagnostic and treatment guidelines:

http://greythealth.com/lumbosacral.htm

 

Thank you so much for this article. I will bring it with me to the vet. He had mentioned stenosis to me and I just didn't process it in my brain. I'll be paying more attention now! Do you know if the injection will take care of the weakness in his hindquarters or does it do something else?

[silverfish]

Eight is a bit young to be getting weak in the hindquarters, so I'd suspect something like lumbo-sacral stenosis, too. But I would get it investigated, because it isn't the only thing which can cause weakness. I'd want to know exactly what we were dealing with so I could make an informed decision.

 

I have to say, I might choose - like IndyAndHollyLuv - to do nothing. But what if it were a tumour? or a severe disc protrusion which caused severe pain and was likely to get worse, maybe causing double incontinence? I'd just like to know.

 

Other people might be more helpful on this, but I wonder if chiropractic might be useful with lumbo-sacral stenosis? It's not an option here in the UK so I have no experience at all to offer on that one.

[Guest LindsaySF]

I was thinking LS too. Chiropractic adjustments and water therapy are supposed to help with that.

 

Just make sure he is a healthy weight, so there isn't any extra pressure on the joints.

[Remolacha]

Sugar developed back end weakness a year ago, and it was *not* LS, but treated very much the same. Acupuncture and Tramadol helped her quite a bit. She also got Adequan injections, maybe that's the same thing as depo-medrol? At any rate, when she passed this summer from kidney failure, her back end was still working. She was 12.5 though.

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Thank you everyone for all your help! Spencer is worse tonight, he really can't even walk now and when he does he folds his feet under. He still doesn't seem to be in any pain. My vet is going to see him tomorrow and I'll be bringing along all the information you have given me and medications that were mentioned. Spencer is a his ideal weight so that shouldn't hurt his joints. He's my baby boy and I'm very worried about him!

 

[silverfish]

Oh gosh ... you could also ask about FCE. I think this usually comes on quite suddenly (ie, as if the dog has been pole-axed) but I'm not sure if that's always the case. If it is FCE, it needs immediate specialist treatment.

 

Good luck! Goodluck

[IndyandHollyluv]

Oh, I am so sorry - I hope they can help Spencer. Indy has never demonstrated quite like that - not yet anyway. Sounds neurological. I forgot to mention - part of the reason I agreed to an MRI for Indy was probably for peace of mind, or confirmation, that I had not overlooked anything, rule out a tumor, etc. Unfortunately, such diagnostic tools are expensive. I may look into acupuncture, but there a only a few vets in my area who offer such service. Also I did ask about the Depo injection, but the vet said that was a last resort. Neurologist didn't even mention it as an option. My only regret is that I didn't introduce a dog ramp sooner. I think jumping in and out of the vehicle has not helped matters. Sending well wishes for Spencer.

 

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Oh, I am so sorry - I hope they can help Spencer. Indy has never demonstrated quite like that - not yet anyway. Sounds neurological. I forgot to mention - part of the reason I agreed to an MRI for Indy was probably for peace of mind, or confirmation, that I had not overlooked anything, rule out a tumor, etc. Unfortunately, such diagnostic tools are expensive. I may look into acupuncture, but there a only a few vets in my area who offer such service. Also I did ask about the Depo injection, but the vet said that was a last resort. Neurologist didn't even mention it as an option. My only regret is that I didn't introduce a dog ramp sooner. I think jumping in and out of the vehicle has not helped matters. Sending well wishes for Spencer.

 

Thank you so much! I'm definitely not a happy camper right now. I'll post back to this thread after I get back from the vet today.

 

[RobinM]

My Beau has this too. He has not been dx with LS BUT there is something going on in the hip area where we see weakness in his hind end. Sometims the right side, sometimes the left side and sometimes there is tripoding.

 

He does go for acupcture which has really helped. The last really had episode he had was in July where he had actually knocked his knee of place somehow.

 

Just yesterday was the 1st time in 2.5 months that he showed a weakness in his hind quaters. We just figured this was because we were going away to the PA house (bad joke). Today he is a little better.

 

Beau is only 4 and this has been going on for a year already. I don't know if there is the beginning of LS but something is definitely going on here.

[Guest ss556]

My grey has rear end wobbliness/weakness for a while now. He stumbles everyday when he walks. He used to knuckle as well, but acupuncture earlier this year has helped him with that. He was never given a definite diagnosis except that it appears to be a neurological disorder. Xrays didn't show much and he's not a candidate to be put under for an MRI. Good luck - looking for an update.

[Guest gdogclothing]

What is the name of your vet in Scottsdale..

 

I have tried many different vets for all my dogs, and I have realized that there is one vet in Phx that is the best one of them all. He has been practicing for over 50 years, and has been the only one that I really could ever trust.. (All my dogs end up with him after all the other vets-seriously) He really knows what he is doing..If you want a second opinion.. the name is Orangewood Animal Hospital, Dr. Clark, 7147 N 7th St, Phx 85020 602-9976313

 

I hope everything works out with Spencer

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

What is the name of your vet in Scottsdale..

 

I have tried many different vets for all my dogs, and I have realized that there is one vet in Phx that is the best one of them all. He has been practicing for over 50 years, and has been the only one that I really could ever trust.. (All my dogs end up with him after all the other vets-seriously) He really knows what he is doing..If you want a second opinion.. the name is Orangewood Animal Hospital, Dr. Clark, 7147 N 7th St, Phx 85020 602-9976313

 

I hope everything works out with Spencer

 

Thanks for the vet information. I use Scottsdale Ranch Animal Hospital, Dr. Stolper. He sees quite a few Greyhounds and one of his vet techs owns a couple of Greyhounds so I feel comfortable with him.

 

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

**** UPDATE ****

 

The vet listed out 4 things that could be wrong with Spencer:

 

1. Disc compression (herniated disc or bulging disc)

2. Fibrocartilagenous Embolism (FCE)

3. Lumbosacral Stenosis (LS)

4. Spinal cord tumor

 

He says it's very rare for a spinal tumor so unless other options don't work then he will come back to it. Because Spencer's lameness is more on his right rear leg than is left, the vet is thinking more along the lines of FCE because the other 3 would compress the spinal cord more completely instead of to one side although of course this isn't to say it can't happen. The vet also said, as someone mentioned in this thread, that one really can't be sure which exactly is the problem without an MRI or CT scan. But the top 3 are products of inflamation so he thinks we should treat it with Prednisone to see if it helps. If not, then it's back to the drawing board and possibly an MRI. So for now Spencer is on Prednisone and we'll see how that works. He's pretty much incontinent right now probably more due to him not being able to walk very well than actual physical incontinence. He was very excited for his dinner and is now sleeping. I'm hoping the steroids help him. I love him so much!

 

Thanks again for all your ideas and thoughts! I ran every one of them by my vet.

[patricia]

Sending prayers that the Pred helps. He may have some accidents (initially) when starting the Pred...you'll also notice he will drink more. Hug Spencer for me.

[Remolacha]

I hope the pred helps. When Sugar would have a flare-up, she would go on a course of pred to get her "right". If it does help, I would recommend acupuncture, so that you don't have to keep him on pred long term.

[Guest MZH]

If it''s any consolation, we've had 2 dogs with bad hind ends by the age if 8. They were pretty wild and may have had microfractures in the hind end. I believe they're mentioned in the Care of the Racing Greyhound (the first book).

 

Does he have both femoral pulses? Could be a clot back there. One of my vets taught me to check for this every time Tucker had apparent back troubles. She was very concerned about clots.

 

Another possibility, admittedly "way out there", is major trouble in or around the kidney. This also happened to Tucker. It wasn't his hind end after all. He even splayed the time he went down. It wasn't dxd until the necropsy. Trying not to be a downer, but if looking at these two areas instead of the usual suspects might be useful, I'll be a downer if it helps! His kidney values did start to go down hill about then. If the values are good, don't worry about my "out there" thought!

 

Marcia in SC

[Guest siamanti]

 

Hello,

 

I am so sorry to hear about your boys problem. My boy Jupp a 7 year old greyhound, displayed the same symptoms as your dog. It got progressively worse so I opted for an MRI scan. The scan showed a disc problem. As Jupp was already incontinent ,and the vet, a specialist in the UK told me that he had a very good chance of a recovery, I opted for the surgery. Jupp got through the operation ok but within two weeks of the surgery he slipped another disc and had to be put to sleep. The surgery had just put too much stress on the other discs in his vertebra. Although the vet here assured me that Jupp was extremely unlucky, I just have to say, as long as your dog seems happy and has a good quality of life, I would continue with the conventional treatment. The surgeon operating on my boy was one of the leading specialists in Europe, yet it did not work our for my boy.

 

I really really hope that your dog will make a full recovery. If you would like to find out more about the surgery involved, please do not hesitate to pm me.

 

Sending lots of positive thoughts your way!

 

Siamanti

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Hello,

 

I am so sorry to hear about your boys problem. My boy Jupp a 7 year old greyhound, displayed the same symptoms as your dog. It got progressively worse so I opted for an MRI scan. The scan showed a disc problem. As Jupp was already incontinent ,and the vet, a specialist in the UK told me that he had a very good chance of a recovery, I opted for the surgery. Jupp got through the operation ok but within two weeks of the surgery he slipped another disc and had to be put to sleep. The surgery had just put too much stress on the other discs in his vertebra. Although the vet here assured me that Jupp was extremely unlucky, I just have to say, as long as your dog seems happy and has a good quality of life, I would continue with the conventional treatment. The surgeon operating on my boy was one of the leading specialists in Europe, yet it did not work our for my boy.

 

I really really hope that your dog will make a full recovery. If you would like to find out more about the surgery involved, please do not hesitate to pm me.

 

Sending lots of positive thoughts your way!

 

Siamanti

 

I'm so sorry about Jupp! Surgery would be a last resort for me. And since Spencer is not in any pain I don't think I can justify it really. I'm hoping that the steroids do the trick. If not then my baby boy will be in diapers for the rest of his life.

 

[Guest siamanti]

Thank you for your kind comment. I think you are doing the right thing and once again, I really hope that your boy gets better soon.

 

Siamanti