Guest Smiley Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 (edited) A week and a half ago, Smiley & I were playing at he was at it pretty hard-lots of spinning, stomping, etc. The next day he seemed sore (typical for him at 11 1/2 after playing hard), but over the next few days started limping on his front leg which has only gotten worse. At this point he is even dragging his foot a little. We took him in this past Wed. to the vet and he did an exam, but didn't give us any definitive info. other than it could be a pinched nerve, muscle spasms or a vertebral issue. He put him on: Robaxin, Dexamethasone and Famotidine telling us that we should see dramatic improvement if it's working in a few days. I've seen no improvement at all and it is killing me to see him uncomfortable. The next step on Monday will be x-rays if there is still no improvement. Of course, we asked about osteo and the vet said it doesn't typically present in the shoulder area, but rather further down the leg. I am still so worried that it could be osteo. It it's not, and is in fact some sort of nerve issue, what can I expect? Any suggestions on a more thorough diagnosis and/or treatment? The other thought I had is that with his toe amputation in late October, he obviously favored that leg for about 6 weeks and had more pressure on the other front leg to get around. Is it possible that the other leg he used to compensate to get around during recovery is just now presenting with some trauma? My poor bubby, he has just had so much in the last months. I just want him well and happy. Edited January 5, 2010 by Smiley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaisyDoodle Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 How much Dex is he getting? Daisy does have a neck problem and limps and she gets .5mgs of Dex twice a day the first week, then once a day for a week, then every other day for two weeks. She was also taking the muscle relaxants but was peeing in the house without even asking to go out. We are also doing acupuncture, Chinese herbs and chiropractic adjustments. Quote DonnaMolly the Border Collie & Poquita the American-born Podenga Bridge Babies: Daisy (Positive Delta) 8/7/2000 - 4/6/2115, Agnes--angel Sage's baby (Regall Rosario) 11/12/01 - 12/18/13, Lucky the mix (Found, w 10 puppies 8/96-Bridge 7/28/11, app. age 16) & CoCo (Cosmo Comet) 12/28/89-5/4/04 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Smiley Posted January 1, 2010 Share Posted January 1, 2010 We've been talking about acupuncture for awhile now and this may be a good time to start. I need to research who in the area is qualified and run it by our vet as well. As for the Dex, he's getting .5 mg once a day for 3 days, then 1/2 dose per day for 3 days, then 1/2 dose every other day for three doses. How long was your grey on the dex before you noticed a change? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawthorn Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 (edited) When Sunny had a problem with intermittent limping on a front leg, it turned out to be a neck problem - a bony misalignment causing irritation to the ulna nerve. In our case, we didn't get a diagnosis until we took him to see a very knowledgeable greyhound specialist vet. Painkillers and muscle-relaxants didn't cure the problem, although they did temporarily improve the symptoms, but chiropractic adjustments have made a huge difference. Edited to correct spelling. Edited January 2, 2010 by Hawthorn Quote When a relationship of love is disrupted, the relationship does not cease. The love continues; therefore, the relationship continues. The work of grief is to reconcile and redeem life to a different love relationship. ~ W Scott Lineberry Always Greyhounds Home Boarding and Greyhounds With Love House Sitting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burpdog Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 Try acupuncture and chiropractic. You have several in the Cleveland area that are certified. Quote Diane & The Senior Gang Burpdog Biscuits Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Smiley Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 Try acupuncture and chiropractic. You have several in the Cleveland area that are certified. I did find a Dr. Sivula who is about an hour away who is a DVM certified in numerous holistic therapies such as acupuncture. Funny enough, he has two greyhounds. I'm taking this as a sign that he would be a great place to start. Anyone heard or worked with him?? His clinic is called Dancing Paws. . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozgirl2 Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 Hi Beth - sorry Smiley is in pain! Definitely try acu... it did wonders for Cody & her pinched nerve. I never tried chiro but that may be good too! Good luck! Quote Jeannine with Merlin, the crazed tabby cat and his sister, Jasmine, the brat-cat With Angel Cody(Roving Gemini), and Weenie the tortie waiting at the Bridge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaisyDoodle Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 We've been talking about acupuncture for awhile now and this may be a good time to start. I need to research who in the area is qualified and run it by our vet as well. As for the Dex, he's getting .5 mg once a day for 3 days, then 1/2 dose per day for 3 days, then 1/2 dose every other day for three doses. How long was your grey on the dex before you noticed a change? It only took a day or two. Our unfortunate situation is that this is a recurring problem. It first happened about 3.5 years ago and we thought it was a paw. I had my regular, GH-savvy vet do x-rays because I was sure it was her paw. We did the paw up to the shoulder, but not the neck. (I was so freaked out that it might be osteo.) Sent the films to Dr. Couto's group. They didn't see anything. Happened again this past summer, x-rayed the foot again. By that point I was taking Lucky for acupuncture and I knew there was an ortho vet at that same practice. Ortho guy (who does the GH osteo amps around here, sees lots of greys for other things) immediately said it was her neck. To the chiro vet (third practice), she also says neck. Back to GP vet for a dental and x-rays, yup, the neck. There are three vets at the GP practice, we'd seen the middle one for this (it was right in the middle of getting L seen for her Cushings work-up). Middle/junior/not-a-rookie vet says there's nothing she can do for Daisy's neck, and that she wouldn't use the dexamethasone that ortho guy gave me, that I was also trying to avoid using. (I caused iatrogenic Cushings in Cosmo with long-term use of pred, so I'm kind of creeped out by steroids.) At some point after this I decide I don't have a choice and start Daisy on the dex. She did okay while she was on the Dex. She was off it for just a couple of weeks and was romping in the yard and came up lame again. We tried acupuncture for a while, then acupuncture and Robaxin (metacarbamol), but Daisy wasn't improving and was giving poor Dr. Marv, the acupuncture guy, the GSOD whenever he'd do neck points in treatment. So, last week he used new points to put the needles in and upped the ante--added Dex and Chinese herbs, and a new bottle of metacarbamol. Unfortunately, that resulted in Miss Iron Bladder peeing in the house without even asking to go out. So, we've nixed the muscle relaxants and limited her water intake. She stopped peeing in the house and she is barely limping, if at all. If this keeps happening, Dr. Marv said the next step is to go to a highly respected neuro guy in Maine, for advanced imaging and evaluation for surgery. He's supposed to be even better than anyone in Boston. Dr. Marv said we can try the Dex once or twice more before we see this resolve permanently. I was just wondering this morning if it has anything to do with Daisy's microchip. I'll have to dig up the films and see if the chip can be seen on the x-rays. I'll have to ask Dr. Marv or Dr. Kurt, the ortho guy, if the chip could cause a problem. Daisy is white and has allergy issues, so it makes me wonder.... Good luck with your baby, this whole neck thing can be so aggravating. DD Quote DonnaMolly the Border Collie & Poquita the American-born Podenga Bridge Babies: Daisy (Positive Delta) 8/7/2000 - 4/6/2115, Agnes--angel Sage's baby (Regall Rosario) 11/12/01 - 12/18/13, Lucky the mix (Found, w 10 puppies 8/96-Bridge 7/28/11, app. age 16) & CoCo (Cosmo Comet) 12/28/89-5/4/04 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Smiley Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Here we are a week later and the meds are doing little to nothing for Smiley. We'll go in for x-rays tomorrow morning and pray that nothing awful shows up. The vet doesn't think he'll see anything on the x-ray, but I'll feel better having it done and then we can rule out osteo, etc. I'm in the process of scheduling a consult with the integrative vet who practices accupuncture and see where that takes us. Any good thoughts you could spare for Smiley tomorrow would be so greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EllenEveBaz Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 Lots and lots of good thoughts to your Smiley boy. 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 SueG201 Posted January 5, 2010 Share Posted January 5, 2010 my first greyhound was 5 yrs old and diagnosed with osteo of the shoulder, best to get the x-rays done prayers that it is nothing but old age Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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