Slipped Disc - any information please?

A friend of mine has a peke, 4/5 years old who has slipped a disc. Don't know how, as all I have had is a message on my telephone. The vet has said it's either an operation - he says could cost £10,000! - or put her to sleep!. Friend will spend money if necessary, but is asking whether the operation will actually do the job?

I have no knowledge of this type of injury, so, on her behalf am asking if any of you has experience of slipped discs in dogs? Hope someone can help.

i have to say thats a lot of money a friend of mine has a boxer that slipped a disc last year it cost around £3,000

I have to say Brodie still isn;t right from all the operations so i will sit on the fence on this

Have a dachshund friend who has had two dogs with this, They ewere operated on successfully but always had some problems afterwards but I believe this is one of the commom problems in dachsies because of their shape so don't know about other breeds. That sounds a lot of money for the op though.

I think until she sees a vet who specialises in back injuries there's no way she can get a reliable prognosis.

Debs

I have personal experience of this in that Brodie my now 12 year old min LH Dachie slipped a disc when he was 6 and a half and went of his legs. After a couple of visits to my vet who put him on steroids which helped for a couple of weeks and then back to square one I thought no more - so I spoke a friend of mine who recommended that I took him to a man who has horses and greyhounds and is a dog physio. He first went all over him and said that he had put his spine out because of the way he was coping with the slipped disc . He put the spine back in there and then with not a murmer from brave little Brodie and then said that he would recommend hydrotherpy as it becomes a nuerological problem in that the brain tells the legs they don't work and in the hydro pool they are weightless and eventually their legs will start ro move and the brain latches onto this and hopefully the message gets through and the legs begin working again. It was a slow process and I took him to thehydro pool twice a week for a month then cut it downto once a week and after about 12 weeks the back legs were moving in the water and within a bout a further 8 weeks he was up on his feet again and has never looked back since, albeit he walks with a crab-like gait. I alsomaniupated the back legs every day .

So it is possible for them to recover as my little one has shown. I was fortunate in that the Physio and the pool were only 15 minutes awy from where I live and at that time it cost me around £5/£6 a session, but it would have been worth it even if it has been treble this.

Hope this at least gives your friend hope for her little one and do keep us posted as to how it goes. Comforting cuddles to the little peke.

There was a thread elsewhere on this a few days ago [ relating to agility dogs and recovery ].
I asked for posters` permission to pass on their experiences here for you and the first has answered quickly. This is what she wrote :

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my dog (border collie) had an op last week to correct a badly slipped disc and the total cost was £1505. That was Approx £750 for the myelogram to identify the exact nature and location of the problem. The rest was for the surgery to remove the disc tissue, hospitalisation, drugs etc. This was not with my regular vet, but with a specialist orthopaedic surgeon to whom she was referred.

Whilst I appreciate there will be differences depending on the precise problem, £10K sounds ridiculous!

You are welcome to quote my posts.

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One of the posters talked about a Peke which had a slipped disc operated on, his treatment total was just under £2000

As soon as I get the go-head I`ll post the other comments for you.

My dog has had a slipped disc and it has been kept under control with Rimadyl and steroids (tablets and injections) he is doing well at the moment. My vet has spoken to an orthopoedic surgeon and he does not want to operate unless it is absolutely necessary. I think your friend should seek a second opinion for her Peke. There are also lots of supplements that can help the cartilege heal/ rebuild eg glucosamine and chondroitin. Also instead of a myleogram you can have an MRI scan which is less invasive but will probs be more expensive. I hope she is insured.

Thanks for all your comments and help. Am passing all the information onto my friend, and will keep you informed as to the outcome.

I think the same as you - £10,000 is just ridiculous!

Anything else that anyone can contribute would be very, very welcome.

Many thanks.

Wanda

Hope your friend gets a second opinion as already suggested. Back problems can be very complex and I don't think there's a 'one box fits all' kind of answer, she definitely needs to seek specialist opinion.

I'm sure my friend will get a second opinion before she does anything, but certainly all your comments and suggestions are proving very useful to her, so many, many thanks to all of you.