6 Year Old Dog Experiencing Balance Issues

[TamaraL]

Hi, I'm not a Vet however I am a lifelong long animal lover searching for information.

I'm reaching out about Samson he is experiencing neurological issues and so far we have no solid diagnosis. This all started with a limp in his front legs approx. 4 months ago the only other sign was pain. Activity was restricted but no Vet visit until recent. Approx. 30 days ago I noticed some instability in his back legs, the problem has now progressed to all 4 leg instability, balance issues and fast. He slips on our laminate floors (never done this prior) like he's on ice skates, he slides down from a sit, started to knuckle at times on his front feet, falls over at times, shakes head often, kicks back legs excessively, unable to stand like normal to pee on 3 legs often falls, appears to be experiencing some level of Vertigo.He's had spinal x rays, blood work, fecal, Lyme disease test, urinalysis. We have ruled out Wobbler's syndrome, Vestibular Syndrome, Degenerative Myelopathy and Lyme disease. I am in need of support around herbs, supplements, diagnosis, detox etc. Lower back xrays show some degenerative disc disease but Vet agrees this is not that. He was in very good health and active prior to the limp in the front legs, I've had him since he was 12 weeks and he is on a 70% Raw/ Dehydrated/ 30% Nature's Logic kibble. I've added in a mushroom supplement for immune support and Krill Oil. I'm researching other supplements now.

I'm attaching a video I took of Samson on 10.1.20 which shows his imbalance issues. These imbalance issues and lameness are all NEW. The last time he was able to jump up into my truck was on 8.30.20, he now needs assistance getting into the back of our sedan. I'm working with two different Vets one of which is an acupuncturist and we see her today 10.5.20 for our second appointment. Update (10.6.20) I think acupuncture is working second visit was great. We see our other Vet tomorrow 10.6.20 for a laser therapy appointment and I will ask for more bloodwork at this time. Update (10.6.20) did not get the bloodwork done but did get a catheter style urinalysis done which was negative for bacteria. Vet has recommended I take him to the Neurologist for a spinal tap looking for bacteria.

I've taken Samson to Acupuncture, Chiro, Hydrotherapy and believe Hydrotherapy was way too much for him at this time as after 2 sessions he has gotten worse.

Current Plan- Rest, Immune Support (need more ideas), Pain Meds daily since 9.4.20 (Meloxicam), Acupuncture and Laser Therapy. He has not been placed on any antibiotics or steroids at this time. Update (10.6.20) Vet prescribed Doxycycline per my request.

Over the weekend I think I landed on what may be Samson's issue possibly Diskospondylitis not to be confused with Diskospndylosis. I believe Samson may have a bacterial or fungal infection. Hoping it is bacterial and can easily be cured.

Watch Samon's Video Here:

On Tuesday 10.6.20 I will request another blood test and urinalysis looking for bacteria. Urinalysis did not show bacteria. Referred to Neurologist.

With Diskospondylitis one or more of the below bacteria will be found in blood or urine. The bacteria gets into the vertebrae and causes infection between the discs.

1. E. Coli
2. Staphylococcus
3. Streptococcus

See Diskospondylitis Reference Videos Below:
https://youtu.be/BakA_xF0dgY
https://youtu.be/NDW7CNIlr08
https://youtu.be/lEy0QpTgNOk

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Thanks for making your first post Tamara.

I'm sorry that handsome and happy Samson is having problems.

It's fantastic to hear how much you are doing for him!

Did the instability symptom start before or since the Meloxicam?

Did the chiropractor find any mis-alignments? How was he after his adjustment?

Is Samson neutered or intact? Have any of the vets done a rectal exam to check for prostate pain or enlargement?

Regarding supplements, check out SmartZYME and MoringaPet Balance.

I agree that an information gathering consult with a neurologist should be your next step diagnostically.

Please let us know what you find. I look forward to our Holistic Medical Decision Making call on Friday.

 

[TamaraL]

Thanks for making your first post Tamara.

I'm sorry that handsome and happy Samson is having problems.

It's fantastic to hear how much you are doing for him!

Did the instability symptom start before or since the Meloxicam?

Did the chiropractor find any mis-alignments? How was he after his adjustment?

Is Samson neutered or intact? Have any of the vets done a rectal exam to check for prostate pain or enlargement?

Regarding supplements, check out SmartZYME and MoringaPet Balance.

I agree that an information gathering consult with a neurologist should be your next step diagnostically.

Please let us know what you find. I look forward to our Holistic Medical Decision Making call on Friday.

Hi Dr. Jeff,

Thank you for replying to my post.

The Meloxicam was given to him for the first time on 9.4.20 and he has been on it daily since. He already had the imbalance issues starting to show, I do not believe the Meloxicam is causing the imbalance I think it has actually really helped with pain management. Samson is back to his bright self mentally however his body is not cooperating.

The chiropractor has not called out specifically to me anything about misalignments. I think the chiro was helping however for now we chose to hold on it and if it is picked back up we will do it with the acupuncturist whom I think is really helping.

Today is day 2 on antibiotics. I'm very hopeful we will see improvements in the next few days. I'm also looking forward to our call and thank you for the supplement info I will look into both. I did add in Green Juju the immune boost/ anti-inflammation formula.

 

[TamaraL]

Samson is neutered he was neutered at age 3 1/2. No rectal exam has been done however yesterday 10.6.20 the vet did the urinalysis via catheter and was all over his business. He said nothing about enlarged prostate.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

YW Tamara.

Yes! It does indeed sound like there is a painful component which helps rule out a pure neuropathy.

We'll see what the neurologist says, but a partial disc prolapse or instability in his spine can cause similar ataxia (instability).

This can be in any part of his spine. But for him to have a fore leg lameness (before the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) and now a rear leg ataxia (imbalance) would mean two different areas affected.

That makes an upper spinal lesion less likely IMHO.

How was Lyme or other TBD ruled out?

If a C6 was equivocal, you may still want to run a Cornell Multiplex for Lyme. This is a much more informative test. In addition, your vet could then consult with Cornell directly.

There's more about it in the Lyme course, which is in your member library over at the main site.

Also:

Lyme Disease Multiplex Testing for Dogs

Background Lyme disease is induced by the spirochete B. burgdorferi. Spirochetes are transmitted to dogs by infected ticks. Similar to humans, dogs are incidental, dead-end hosts for B. burgdorferi1 . Typical clinical signs in dogs are sporadic fever, acute arthritis, arthralgia, lameness, and...

www.vet.cornell.edu

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Hi Tamara-

In case we didn't discuss these safe ways that may help to raise Samson's cellular energy and healing, it might be helpful to take a look at:

Helping all Pets Using Vitality From Negative Ions

Hi @everyone- I am about to go out for a therapeutic sniff walk with Archie, but would like to share one important tip. It's about the potential of increasing cellular energy, vitality and healing using negative using ions. It's the same healing effect that occurs whenever pets or people are...

www.holisticactions.com

and:

Magnesium Oil

I missed what magnesium oil is used for on tonight's Empower Hour. Could you please repeat? Thanks! Kristen

www.holisticactions.com

 

[TamaraL]

Dr. Jeff,

Thank you for the additional info. I have good news I've connected with a local holistic vet who saw the video of Samson and said she knows what it is. She happens to have an affinity for Rottweilers like me and she called me Sunday. Samson and I saw her yesterday and she thinks this is Wobblers. She believes he has a lesion in his cervical spine causing all his issues. She in fact looked at the X-Rays and sees two spots that could be contributing to his symptoms.

She said I've been doing everything right but out of order. So far she has given us the Jing Tang Cervical Formula herbal supplement and we are scheduled to see the chiropractor she works closely with for an adjustment and more next wednesday.

She sounds very, very confident and stated we can get him better he will have a long life. I was overjoyed and I believe her. The plan is adjustment, electric acupuncture (specific protocol to treat wobblers) and laser therapy. All things we've been doing however as she said out of order, we need to release the pressure first.

We are still on schedule to see the Neurologist tomorrow. I'll update here if they share anything new.

I may opt to purchase an Assisi loop as well.

I'm very grateful for the support.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

You're welcome, Tamara.

Fantastic that the vet is confident that Samson has wobblers!

The extra space in the cervical vertebral area usually makes this quite treatable.

Has he ever shown any neck pain?

Hopefully, the neurologist will clinically confirm the diagnosis without further workup.

Good luck tomorrow.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Hi Tamara-

How was yesterday's neurology appointment for Samson?

 

[TamaraL]

Dr. Jeff,

The Neurology appointment went well. To me it seemed the Neurologist confirmed Wobblers could absolutely be his issue. We are continuing with the holistic more conservative approach. I'm trying to wean him off the Meloxicam now, we've added in the cervical formula herbs. I'm wondering about Gabapentin we have that drug as well but I haven't been using it. Perhaps it could help me get him off the Meloxicam for pain. Any thoughts on Gaba? The Neurologist suggested adding in one 300 mg tab a day.

We have his cervical adjustment set up for 10.21.20. Still another week away from seeing if we have landed on the right path. I believe we have connected with the doctors who can truly help get Samson back to healthy. Thank you for your support as well.

We are not using any steroids and don't plan to.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Thanks for your rapid reply Tamara.

Good news that the neurologist concurs that Samson's symptoms have a cervical origin.

Did the neurologist see any lesions on the x-rays?

Yes, gabapentin is much safer than meloxicam and may allow you to wean and even stop the NSAID.

Other natural ways to reduce the swelling and support healing include VetriDisc from Vetriscience, pure grape seed extract, the blueberry-kale smoothie, and possibly even the negative ions from the ionbox.

Vetri Disc

Unique formula to support connective tissues associated with the spine in dogs.

www.vetriscience.com

10 Benefits of Grape Seed Extract, Based on Science

Grape seed extract is a dietary supplement packed with powerful antioxidants to boost your health. Here are 10 health benefits of grape seed

www.healthline.com

Try to keep him 6 feet or less from the ion flow for at least 2 weeks.

 

[TamaraL]

Dr. Jeff,

I have an updated video of Samson here for your review.

Neither the holistic vet or the neurologist said they saw lesions on his spine but they did say they see narrowing space, not sure if that is the same thing? Samson's big day is coming up this wednesday 10.22.20 where he will be seen by a new chiro who will be performing a cervical adjustment.

I see small improvements since the introduction of the cervical formula herbs introduced last Monday and the electric acupuncture used first time last Monday. Also, he's getting the wild blueberry smoothie with barley grass and spirulina.

I've got him totally off Meloxicam now and managing pain with aspirin (enteric), 1 gaba a day, arnica, herbs for vertigo/ balance management.

I'll update again after wednesday. Let me know if you agree he's looking stronger.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Yes, this video looks like he is ~10% stronger and continues to be a very happy boy!

Narrowing of a disc space can be related to a lesion but neither of these is obvious from these x-rays.

Great news that he's off meloxicam! How often is he getting aspirin?

We'll look forward to hearing how he does.

 

[TamaraL]

Wanted to share a quick update. Samson continues to improve. On the "Cervical Formula" for 15 days now. His inflammation is way down. Also, got adjusted last week by the new chiro she said he had a rib out as well as other issues all along his spine she focused attention in his cervical region. Noticeable improvement same day in his gait following the chiro visit. He was also injected with some anti inflammation herbs along his spine in 5 places. He's getting electric acupuncture as well.

See video for the results. He hadn't fallen with all 4 legs out for several days. Walks have gone from 1 block to 3 blocks. Last Night we did have a a few falls in the evening could be the dark that impacts this and maybe because he decided he wanted to run. Falls happened not during running but at the end of 2 blocks, perhaps he gets tired? Overall his stability is coming back.

The video shows him at a fence talking with dogs this was intentional to really highlight his balance improvements. Thank you.

 

[Dr. Jeff]

Wow, he's doing great Tamara!

Keep up the wonderful work.