Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Crossing our fingers and paws. Cougs took the depo-medral shot this evening. We should know this weekend if it will help with his hind-end shakiness from his LS. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3DogNite Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 :goodluck I hope you see great results! Quote lorinda, mom to the ever revolving door of Foster greyhounds Always in my heart: Teala (LC Sweet Dream) , Pepton, Darbee-Do (Hey Barb) , Rascal (Abitta Rascal), Power (Beyond the Power), and the miracle boy LAZER (2/21/14), Spirit (Bitter Almonds) 8/14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TLH0739 Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Hope it works! How did you found out he had LS. My Patrick has tremors and weakness of hind legs at times but thought it was arthritis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicocat Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Crossing our fingers and paws. Cougs took the depo-medral shot this evening. We should know this weekend if it will help with his hind-end shakiness from his LS. I hope it works for him. It's been a miracle drug for so many dogs with LS. Alpo was recently diagnosed with LS and I asked the vet (very savvy - used to own a race kennel) about the Depo shots. His reason for not recommending them is that it can cause loss of urinary control. (Just a heads up for you). He recommended for Alpo a combination of Dermaxx and Tramadol. Alpo has been taking it for about a week and I could tell a difference in his ability to get up and down right away. I also talked to a friend of mine who is a Vet and one of her greys has been taking Rimadyl for several years to successfully control his LS. It's good to know there are several options. Fingers crossed for Cougar! Quote Ann Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Keeping fingers and paws crossed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 All paws crossed here. Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 We think we are already seeing some improvement with the use of the back legs. The "knees" seem to bend more than they had. I just wished we would have tried it earlier before he lost so much muscle tone from the reduction in activity (not that he was all that active before), but with the surgery, chemo, corns, etc. we had other issues to deal with first. TLH0739 - From other posts I'd read. I began to wonder if it was LS and then my vet was able to do that little push on their back in just the right spot and he almost lost his legs out from under him so we have diagnosed it as LS. There's an article out there from OSU that I'll try to find later. I've got to run out for PTA in just a minute or I'd do it now. Chicocat - We are having a little trouble with urinary control. I hope that subsides, but I had purchased a belly band yesterday anyway since he has been dripping a little before. I thought that could be one sympton of LS and his oncologist said they had seen that a lot with prednisone use which we are now trying to wean him off. Did your vet indicate if it was a temporary loss or is this something we'll have to deal with long-term? This is the first comment I've seen on that side effect. The belly band is pretty cool, but the little panty-liner size things are a joke. I think I'm either going to have to get some super maxi-pads to put in there or convert a baby diaper to stick in there somehow. He seems to pee when he wakes up before he is able to get up. Of course, he's on a slew of meds so sometimes I'm surprised he can get up at all. Anyway, thanks for the good thoughts. I'll update after this weekend when we should know if it worked or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicocat Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Chicocat - We are having a little trouble with urinary control. I hope that subsides, but I had purchased a belly band yesterday anyway since he has been dripping a little before. I thought that could be one sympton of LS and his oncologist said they had seen that a lot with prednisone use which we are now trying to wean him off. Did your vet indicate if it was a temporary loss or is this something we'll have to deal with long-term? This is the first comment I've seen on that side effect. He didn't say if it was long term or not. I hadn't heard about that side effect either. In fact, I've always felt like the Depo shots would be my first choice for an LS dog. If it was anyone but this vet, I would have probably questioned him more about not using the Depo. I had Alpo checked out pretty quickly after I noticed he had started getting a little "dip" to his rear legs, so his muscle tone is still good. Within a couple of days it seemed to me he was standing a little straighter and was getting up and down better. You mentioned he had been on prednisone -- that caused muscle loss pretty quickly on one of my girls. BUT, she recovered muscle well after it was stopped. Glad to hear he is showing improvement! Quote Ann Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Oh, I'm glad you told me that about the pred and the muscle loss. I always thought it was a steroid so that it would help build muscle, but that could explain it. We'll starting weaning down 5 mg tomorrow. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greensleeves Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Prednisone can cause all kinds of weird effects! The strangest one Whistler had was very pink legs! Turns out that prednisone thins skin; thin skin = more visible blood vessels; visible blood vessels = pink limbs! Who knew? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicocat Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Prednisone can cause all kinds of weird effects! The strangest one Whistler had was very pink legs! Turns out that prednisone thins skin; thin skin = more visible blood vessels; visible blood vessels = pink limbs! Who knew? It's effect on the blood vessels is one of the reasons they use Pred for lupus/vasculitis issues. That's what they were trying to get under control with Cutie. The problem is it takes pretty large doses to have any effect. Some dogs can handle that better than others. Pred can be the perfect solution to a lot of problems, and even though Cutie had side effects quickly I would always consider it's use if it was recommended. Quote Ann Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 Tara, I have an unopened package of belly bands (I think 2 of them) that I bought earlier this year for Scout. I'd be glad to mail them to you. PM me with your mailing address if so. Sorry, can't help with the liner issue. Sending smoochies to Cougs and best wishes for continued improvement. Quote Ellen, with brindle Milo and the blonde ballerina, Gelsey remembering Eve, Baz, Scout, Romie, Nutmeg, and Jeter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonnaBehr Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 My senior boy (13) has LS and we have been treating him with Previcox and Tramadol. Seems to be doing the trick. Unfortunately, he now has some fecal incontinence on occasion, which is a side effect of the condition as they grow older, but thank goodness he's solid and I have laminate and hardwood on the first floor of the house. Quote Mom to Melly and Dani Greyhound Bridge Angels - Jessie, Brittne, Buddy, Red, Chica, Ford and Dodge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 (edited) Ellen - Thanks for the offer, but I think Cougar has finally overcome the bladder issues for now. Sadly, the shot was not the miracle cure we were looking for. While he initially did good the first few days, when I started weaning him off his prednisone, he went downhill very quickly. After upping the pred again, he did bounce back to where we were before with just a little bit less muscle tone now. Still shaky legs and the corn (I'm praying it's the corn) came back with a venegence only 3 days after we had it removed. We're scheduled to return Saturday for corn removal again. His appetite has returned and he has again became my 67 pound chubs. Edited November 27, 2009 by TaraCoachCougar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubcitypam Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 Sorry the shot didn't help him and glad he has his appetite back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicocat Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 After upping the pred again, he did bounce back to where we were before with just a little bit less muscle tone now. Pred can also cause loss of muscle tone - some dogs tolerate it better than others. I tried to use Pred for Cutie's Lupus and she started losing muscle pretty quickly on a dose of 40 mg/day. Sorry the Depo Medrol didn't work for your boy. Hope you find the right med that will help him. Quote Ann Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirthlesstroll Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 Yeah, those little pads would be great for a 4lb. Yorkie. I use those incontinence pads from the supermarket - Poise, Depends, all the brands seem equally good (embarassing to buy, though!) I hope Cougar is feeling better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest KennelMom Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 I'm sorry to hear the shot didn't help your boy When the shot stopped working for Caesar, we were abel to manage the pain effectively with tramadol for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 We're only on 10 mg of pred each morning so I guess we'll continue to go with that for now. We go back to the oncologist in a couple more weeks. He said to return for a check-up in 4 to 6 weeks. In the absence of any dramatic issues, I'm trying to stretch it to the 6 weeks as I'm sure they will do x-rays and ultrasounds $$$. We currently do 3 tramadols a day along with 2 gabapentins as well (and the leukeran which isn't pain related). 4 lb yorkie! And if we do regress to incontinence issues, one of those brands have Box Tops for Education on them so that my son's school could at least get some benefit from it. Always trying to find that silver lining. What does warm my heart is that Cougar is still very receptive to cockroaching. He may not can stand for long without getting wobbling (and thank goodness he can still do the steps on his own) but he can still relax and roach with the best of them! I posted a picture of him at his finest yesterday at the link below. Enjoy if the link will work for you! http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=8584...p;id=1316075151 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TaraCoachCougar Posted November 28, 2009 Share Posted November 28, 2009 Oh, dear. It seems I've jinxed us. At 2am Cougar fell going down the 4 stairs last night and ended up over against the garage way. He was so scared he turned around and went right back up the steps. His legs also gave out in the kitchen as well. I had to lift him because he hind legs were sprawled out wierd and I supported him back to the bed. He slept well and even cockroached this morning. He slept about an hour later than normal. When he finally did rise, he wasn't interested in eating, but when I took his bowl to the bed he did eat it all. He got up and we headed to the door to go out, but he started squatting to poop before we reached the door. I had the towel I planned to support him with so I was able to whip that underneath him real quick and avoid a mess. Afterward, he headed straight back to bed. He started licking so I told him he had to go out to pee. He just looked at me like I was crazy, but I told him we could do it with a little help from God. I had to repeat that we could do it a couple of times before he even considered getting up. When he got to the door, he hesitated but I wrapped the towel around him and determinedly pull on both his collar and his towel and supported him down the stairs. I'm glad I developed some confidence with that because he has never accepted assistance in the past and I was scared I wouldn't be able to get him out. He head to the vet in just a few hours for corn removal but I'll see if we have any other LS options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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