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Old December 27th, 2010, 08:07 PM
Dharry Dharry is offline
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Question My dog can't get up by herself?

Hi all,

I have an 8 & 1/2 year old Samoyed girl who all of a sudden can't get up by herself. This came on very suddenly one night. We have had her to the vet and to a specialist and they do not know what is wrong with her.

She has had blood tests, scans, X-rays, prodded, poked, reflexes tested, legs and hips checked and everything looks fine.

She can get herself up on her front paws but needs to have her back lifted up to stand properly. Once she is up she can walk, a bit slowly though and sometimes collapses after about 50 meters.

I suspect she has been bitten by a spider or snake. She is eating, drinking, going to the toilet and apart from being frustrated is generally happy.

Has any one seen this before or have any suggestions on what to do?

Regards,
Dean
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Old December 27th, 2010, 08:09 PM
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hazelrunpack hazelrunpack is offline
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Has she been seen by a back specialist? Sounds a bit like a disk problem.

Hope you get some answers soon!
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Old December 27th, 2010, 08:56 PM
Dharry Dharry is offline
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When the specialist did the scans and X-rays he had a look at her discs and said they all looked quite good with no signs of compression or wearing.

I'm not sure which way to head with her next...
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  #4  
Old December 28th, 2010, 03:34 AM
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mirtilo mirtilo is offline
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I'm really no expert and I haven't really had experience with this (but my first dog is turning 8 soon, so I should begin to expect difficulties like these, I think) but I did some quick googling and just wanted to compile a list of similar situations. You've probably run into them already in your own research, but still.

"Have you heard of the Tellington T Touch? If you haven't, you can look it up.

One of the techniques is to use a towel to lift the dogs hind end. Wrap the towel under the dog & bring it back & as close as you can to the tuck just in front of the hind legs. Lift only high enough to get the weight off the back legs. Hold for a few seconds & repeat about 5 times. You can also walk her to her food & water & out side too, just by lifting her hind end with a towel.

This is to help lower back & hind legs."

"I have a 12 year old boxer with the same problems altho she could still walk with difficulty. The vet gave her a series of injections called PENTOSAN 100 i now take her on slow short walks. She had 4 shots over a 4 week period plus a booster 8 weeks later. Plus it was not too costly."

"(Lumbar instability) occurs when the ligaments, discs and joints that support the bones of the spine are damaged to the point they can no longer hold the bones together. This causes back pain. As the bones move out of place, they can pinch the nerves and cause leg pain and weakness and would have or should have been diagnoised by examination and x-ray. If she has been like this for a while, then it is likely that you have no continued gentle exercise (like swimming) which keeps the muscles strong and protects legs/back."

source for all three

"The last time I saw a dog that couldn't stand up (she just sat), the dog had pyometra, which is an infected uterus. This has to be removed surgically and costs about the same as a hysterectomy (essentially that is what it is).

If your dog has already had her hysterectomy (been spayed), then this can't be the reason." source

Sorry I couldn't offer any advice of my own! I really hope your Samoyed heals up
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Old December 28th, 2010, 12:08 PM
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Geezer Geezer is offline
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I remember when I had a fairly young Corgi who suddenly developed paralysis of the rear quarters and he was unable to get up or to remain standing when helped up. We discovered that he had eaten something rotten and had a bad case of food poisoning. I found it hard to believe that this would cause a temporary paralysis. Also he did not vomit or have diarrhea. This was the only symptom and it lasted for only one day. But once he was treated he was his old self again.
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Old December 29th, 2010, 03:15 AM
Dharry Dharry is offline
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Thanks for the replies,

Yes, we were using the T technique when she first presented with this however are not anymore as she can walk onmher own and can usually squat ok to go to the toilet.

She has been spayed so that rules out pyometra. I have been watching her more closely over the last few days and have seen her get up by herself a few times. She tends to put her front paws as far back as possible before trying to stand, I guess she is favoring her front legs from her back legs.

The vet has her on Previcox but I yacht really seen much change since starting that, so thattells me its not arthritis or anything inflammatory, I could be wrong though but would have thought that would come on gradually not overnight.

I think it might be time to seek out some more specialists to try and find the problem, they are damn expensive though!

Cheers
Dean
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Old December 31st, 2010, 11:17 AM
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SuperWanda SuperWanda is offline
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Do you have any tick disease in Australia? I ask because our dog had trouble getting up but it didn't come on suddenly like you are describing. Initially she could not get up stairs and she was misdiagnosed so the disease really progressed until the point that she could not stand without help.
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Old January 21st, 2018, 12:20 PM
DrogoHusky DrogoHusky is offline
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Diagnosis?

Hi Dean, 7 year’s later I’ve turned to Google to try to understand our 3 year old Husky’s sudden inability to stand. Your description fits perfectly below. No sickness otherwise, walking is weak but somewhat stable, no GI issues, multiple vet ER visits, etc. Did you find the cause of this? Did she improve?

Thanks,
Jen, worried Husky owner

Last edited by DrogoHusky; January 21st, 2018 at 12:50 PM.
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Old February 2nd, 2018, 05:14 AM
Newfoundlandusa Newfoundlandusa is offline
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Similar experience

Hi Jen,

I hope your husky is doing better! The same thing is happening with my newfoundland. He was in fine health on Tuesday, had some general malaise on Wednesday, and by Wednesday night couldn't stand without his back legs being lifted. Once he is up he looks stiff but can walk, go up and down stairs, lift his legs to pee, and squat to poop. He can't stand up on his own though. We took him to the vet, had x-rays done, and all sorts of test but everything is coming back negative. We have him on a treatment course for Lyme, but again all tests for that have come back negative. How is your husky doing a week later? Any diagnosis?

Thanks,
James
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