Poorly Dachshund - wear and tear on disks

I wonder if you can help. My Bert has been really poorly he was having trouble getting up and down the stairs. I took him to the vets who first diagnosed colic as his stomach was swollen but after a night of Bert crying (and me crying) he has had an x-ray today which has shown wear and tear on two of his disks. The vet has given me painkillers to give him and told me he is not to go up and down stairs or on and off the sofa but he does not plan on doing anything else (surgery etc). Does anyone have any experience with this and will it just heal by itself?

I have two naughty miniature dachshund's and they always go up and down the stairs and on and off the sofa. I can obviously stop this whilst I am there but what do I do when I am not? I have seen on the internet you can buy ramps. Do you know if one of these would be suitable for Dachshunds?

Many thanks

I don't like being a prophet of doom but my working Beardie presented with these symptoms.

He went from doing agility on the Sunday to totally unable to use his back end by Tuesday!!!


My vet refered me to an orthopaedic specialist who examined him did X rays and a myelogram. two discs had ruptured and gone through his spinal cord. On the specialists advice he was pts.

Might be worth asking to be referred especially since it's a Daxie.

Hope all goes well for you and Bert

Ramps sound like a good idea.

With regards to the worn discs, have you thought about making bone-broth? It is excellent for bone/cartilage health.

Also agree with Anne about consulting a specialist.

The vet said it was just general wear and tear and has given us painkillers. What is bone broth please?

If you have insurance, or deep pockets, you could ask to see a referral vet. TV's Supervet Noel Fitzpatrick has demonstrated some amazing results for spinal conditions, and at Chester, you are also not far from Liverpool vet school on the Wirral.

I have seen a number of programmes where Noel successfully operated on disc problems but as you say Carole it is a costly operation.

I do love TV's Supervet but, hopefully, he's not that bad!
I have checked my insurance today and I am covered up to £8,000.
Does anybody know how much surgery would cost?
Bert had an up and down night, I woke up a couple of times and he was crying. Its awful to think of him in pain but there is nothing that I can do. He has to go back to the vets in 5 days time.
Does anyone know of anything that I can be feeding him they may help with the problem?
Thank you x

We had a good night last night where he didn't cry at all but then this morning I have noticed that he is walking wobbly on his back legs and is having difficulty sitting down. He also did a poo right in front of me this morning.

He is eating fine and going to the toilet fine.

I have noticed a little trembling in his back legs but nothing too serious. He does wag his tail and tries to play with his brother.

Do you think I should take him back to the vets today or wait for the scheduled appointment which is in 3 days time.

I am absolutely beside myself with worry and would appreciate any advice.

Thank you.

I would go back to the vet, today if possible, and ask about a referral to an orthopaedic specialist - which may well be to Liverpool Vet. School in your area. They would be able to tell you what your options are. As you have insurance, the cost will not be an issue.
Best wishes to the little chap. Let us know what happens.

I have done something stupid with my insurance. I rang them yesterday to see what plan I had and realised I was not on the highest plan so asked if I could change it. They said it would not cover any existing conditions but I thought that would be ok cause I was not going to claim for what we have paid already and they also said we would not be covered for the first 14 days. I have a 14 day cooling off period. Do you think I should ring and cancel the upgrade and just go back to the basic insurance I had before?