Corgi IVDD

[kayo]

I am new to this forum. Found it by googling Corgi Back problems.
My 6 year old Corgi was just diagnosed with IVDD and Spondylosis of the spine at T13/L1, L2-L3, L7-S1 as well as possible sclerosis and narrowing of disc at the TL junction.

She is now on Tramadol, Rimadyl and methocarbamol.
Crated 100%, only out for bathroom breaks on leash.

I am trying to find out if other people have had dogs with this amount of spinal damage.
She has been an extremely active dog, given to running the fence line racing the UPS truck, FEDX, Postman, etc. I never saw any symptoms. A couple days before the onset on the extreme pain, and all the other IVDD symptoms she jumped off the only couch that doesn’t have a ramp up to it.

I feel so bad about not seeing this coming on and would like to get any information I can from Corgi owners who have gone through this.

[SarahKing]

As a former RVT, ask for a referral to a board certified surgeon. They may want to do a CT/MRI or a myelogram (unless you have already had this done). Often, IVDD is progressive and degenerative and may require surgery. Are you doing any physical therapy?

[MsM]

Sorry to hear your troubles. My 5 yo Cavalier has had surgery for a disc in the lumbar-sacral region. So far the other discs seem okay, though she scared me with a weird front end lameness (still unknown - MRI on neck showed nothing)

Definitely want to get an expert, board-certified neuro vet if you haven’t already. Has she had an MRI to diagnose? Vet told me that, as with human back problems, the thing they were doing at the time the symptoms show are often just the proverbial last straw.

With my dog, I have ramps and baby gates to restrict her movement. now that she is past crate confinement. She had surgery in April and seems fine now. She just graduated to being loose in the house. She is always on a leash outside. She can probably have some time in a confined area of the yard, but no more running and wrestling with her brother I struggle with providing her a quality of life while not taking foolish risks.

Have you seen “Dodgerslist”? Lots of info there.
Best wishes.

[besttwtbever]

My parents dachshund has IVDD and has now for about 5 years. Surgery is not an option for him due to his age as they don’t feel that he has that many more years. When he first started having “flare ups” 5 years ago, they were few and far between at about once a year. Recently he gets them about every 3-6 months. He is usually on the drugs you mention for 1-2 weeks and then he slowly tapered off of them. This has worked well for him so far. J feel that the only reason it isn’t working better is because my parents are vehemently against crating him :rolleyes: and definitely don’t prevent him from jumping as much as they should, which is frustrating at best. In any case I wanted to share because sometimes they can be managed medicinally instead of surgery. That being said, if surgery is an option for your dog, I would definitely try to go that route.

[SquishTheBunny]

Second neurologist appt. Mri will tell you if he is a surgical candidate.

[Beckham03]

def neurologist and sx consdult. We do mris and cts on ivdd dogs all day. Dachsunds and corgis seem to be a bit more straight forward and we typically do cts on them. Usually t9-l5.

[SquishTheBunny]

Sorry my post posted before I was finished.

I would get an mri (or myelogram ct) to sir what you are dealing with. We see herniated discs frequently in llong back dogs like dachshunds and corgis. TL region is most common . Some cases can be managed medically so if your dog is still walking well he Ian likely a god candidate. Any pain or major incordination ataxia and further diagnostics and surgery should be considered before there is permanent damage to the spinal cord.

[Arizona_DQ]

Please go to www.dodgerslist.com !!! It is a wealth of information ! This is just not limited to the dachshund breed or long backed breeds!

My one dachshund has gone down 3 times now, and each time we put her on the same drugs as you listed and she gets back up. Looking at her, you could not tell she has had an issue! Crate rest is a must!!!

Please check out dodgerslist!