My dachshund recovered from paralysis, but has poor balance. Tips?

Once they have a disc issue, Dachshunds are more prone to future issues. I would recommend confinement again, and a quick vet checkup. Often pain medications and rest will help them heal. Veterinary acupuncture is also a great alternative therapy to increase speed of healing and hind end weakness or paralysis.

You need to rest Luther as must as possible. It can take six to eight weeks for him to fully heal. Do not let him roam around at all. The spinal cord recovers slowly and extra care must be taken not to allow running, jumping, stairs, playing with other dogs, or hopping on or off furniture. Keep him confined in a small room or crate, taking him out to potty, and putting him right back in when he's done. Physical therapy can be started right after surgery to help regain strength. Speak to his vet about physical therapy. Best of luck.

He needs to rest. You can use a sling or towel under his belly to help him stand to go potty and take short walks in the yard. Many dogs with neurological injuries will have muscle spasms and that can cause the knotting up that you are seeing. Your veterinarian will do an exam and prescribe medication for pain and often a muscle relaxant also. Will time he should improve as you are already seeing some positive changes. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Freckles.

Poor guy. I would absolutely think about. Neurologist consult but the first thing that should be done is an exam by your regular vet and bloodwork/urinalysis done to rule out any other detectable underlying cause. Plus the neurologist will want to have you referred by your regular vet in order to see Oskar. Mainly what we want to rule out first is any underlying liver issue (hepatic encephalopathy or a liver shunt). Liver problems can for the most part be treated through your regular vet. I hope that your pup turns out ok and that you are able to get to the bottom of his neurological symptoms. Best wishes and take care.

It does sound like a back injury. If he is getting worse (meaning he started out stumbling and then was dragging his limbs then stopped urinating), the best solution for him is surgery. Make sure you talk to the vet about medications and the biggest importance is REST! This means in a cage only- no walking, carry outside to potty and carry back in. Talk to the vet about how to express his bladder, too. Good luck and kisses to Hannu!

That is concerning. Dachshunds are prone to having discs come out of place in their back and press on the spinal cord, leading to weakness or paralysis. I would recommend taking her to the vet in the next day or two to be checked out, and try to prevent her from going running or jumping in the mean time.

These signs are due to a spinal cord injury most likely due to intervertebral disk extrusion in the thoracolumbar tract. The presence of paresthesia (due to nervous system lesion) is causing tingling sensations on the penis and a sort of itch (that is why is persistently licking it). A buster collar would be essential to avoid excessive licking. Physiotherapy would be very useful to improve recovery, but sometimes only neurosurgery can give best outcome (as the disc material keep compressing spinal cord). Learn how to do it on this link http://veterinarynews.dvm360.com/rehabilitating-canine-veterinary-patients-after-neurosurgery Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.