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Possible degenerative myelopathy or something else

3K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  der-schweinestall 
#1 ·
I am looking for some advice with our 9 year old GSD Lily. A few months back I noticed that she seemed weak in her rear end and was dragging her nails on the ground when she would walk. She had a cruciate ligament repair done in February of this year so I kind of brushed it off as the recovery from the surgery. In the last few weeks though she has progressed to muscle spams/twitches, feet slipping, and an odd gait where she almost high steps with her rear legs and walks with her feet more under her body. She also seems to just be wobbly and unsteady. Other than that she is eating and acting well but does seem more gaunt in her hips.

We took her to the vet today and he said it is not the knee as the joint feels fluid and she has not pain. He pressed along her spine and all over her rear end and there were no sore spots. He does not believe it is a pinched nerve because she does not appear to be in any pain or discomfort. He is strongly considering that it is DM but has referred us out for a consult.

Any experiences or advice would be appreciated at this point of what we can look for as far as a diagnosis and treatment. We have an appointment with a canine neurologist tomorrow at 10:15. I am trying to remain hopeful but fear that this is DM. If you have any experience with diagnosis or treatment of similar symptoms/condition, I would really appreciate the insight.

I recorded several videos of her walking in the hopes that it would give the vet a clear look at her symptoms.
 
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#2 ·
I'm very sorry to hear that. I lost my old guy to DM. It was a heartbreaking experience. Look into getting her some booties or wrapping her rear feet and keep a close eye on them; dragging the rear feet can cause sores and bleeding of the toes. Look into coconut oil for DM. After I started giving it, his symptoms seemed to reverse a bit and the course of the disease seemed to slow but of course that could just be my perception.
 
#3 ·
We ran some tests on Lily this week but have yet to have a definitive diagnosis, but apparently the lack of an exact cause for her leg weakness makes my vet and neurologist more likely to suspect a case for DM. We also took her to an orthopedic surgeon and he said he could not find anything that would explain her symptoms either. She shows no sign of knee pain from the surgery, no pain along the spine, and X-rays show great hips. We ran some blood work to check levels and all normal. We even ran some blood work to check the muscles after exercise and all normal. We have opted not to do an MRI at this point because of the cost and the Uncertainty that it would help with a diagnosis at this point.

The vet has suggested a round of NSAIDS to see if t makes a difference though he did say if this is DM, there would likely be no effect from the NSAIDS. We will also start some additional vitamins/supplements to boost the neurological functions as much as possible.

Thank you for the bootie recommendation - I will definitely order her some. We already include coconut oil in her diet so hopefully it's been beneficial.

I am trying hard not to panic, but I am terrified that if this is DM, how long I have left with her and what her quality of life will be. Any other diagnostic recommendations or treatments would be really appreciated. Lily is the best girl and so special to our family. Thanks!
 
#4 ·
I come from Germany and try to write you in English, I hope you can understand me.
I already had a DM sick dog. For this disease it is typicall that the dog loses all body muscle. Everywhere, he becomes quite thin. The muscles also go away at the head. The dogs get holes above the eyes, because the muscles also go away there. Our dog got Vit. B12

Has the veterinarian already thought of cauda equina syndrome? Has the cross-leg bone (I mean the last part of the spine)been X-rayed? What you write sounds typical for CES. We have had 2 dogs with this disease.
 
#5 ·
I come from Germany and I am trying to write you in English, I hope you can understand me.
I already had a DM sick dog. For this disease it is typicall that the dog loses all body muscle. Everywhere, he becomes quite thin. The muscles also go away at the head. The dogs get holes above the eyes, because the muscles also go away there. Our dog got Vit. B12

Has the veterinarian already thought of cauda equina syndrome? Has the cross-leg bone been X-rayed? What you write sounds typical for CES. We have had 2 dogs with this disease.
 
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