The Paperie Daily

Tucker is Home

We’re happy to say our little guy came home this weekend.  We waited patiently for over 3 hours in the animal hospital to be discharged.  Animal hospitals are no different than human hospitals…hurry up and wait.  We were discharged with very little information on how to care for him once he was home.  I’m so glad I did my research and watched some videos online or I would have been lost.  Before we could take him we had to pay the big fat itemized bill but it was worth every penny.

Tucker is now 3 legged and a bit wobbly but he’s learning to manage.  He was still in pain over the weekend but seems to be recovering nicely.  He doesn’t like his pills or medicine one bit. Who would, he gets 4-5 medications 3 times a day. If you have any suggestions on enticing a dog to take liquid medicine…bring it! I’ll try anything.  Just for the record he now dislikes cheese, pill pockets, bananas, wet dog food or anything else that might smell like a pill or his most hated drug Gabapentin.

How long will he by paralyzed (the most popular question)?

We don’t know, time will tell.  We’re told it is an average of 2-4 weeks for dachshunds to walk after surgery, sometimes it can be 6 months.  We do physical therapy (little bicycle motions) with his legs at least 3 times a day. We prop him up to stand on all four and he’s getting pretty good at that.

He is on strict crate rest for 30 days so he must be carried out to potty, carried back in and stay in his crate the majority of the time. A little lap surfing is allowed on a limited basis as long as he’s wrapped in a blanket. So far this has not bothered him; he’s been just fine in his crate, a little tired but a happy boy.

Our lives are starting to get back into a daily pattern with a little less stress. Thank you again for all the support during this.  Tucker thanks you too!

Tucker and Daddy waiting to go home

Tucker crashed out on his first day home

A little bruising but swelling is going down

Stay tuned for updates once or twice a week. 

Have an inspiring day!

Tucker Update

Thank you for all the support, thoughts and messages.  Our journey the last two weeks has been a long one and we couldn’t do it without you!

We were able to visit Tucker yesterday however he had a little set back. He had gotten sick and was in quite a bit of pain.  He was a bit more responsive and active however was still not urinating on his own. The hospital really wants him to urinate on his own before being released, I want this too!!! 

Going into this surgery we knew the risk was possible that he would always be paralyzed and would be a ‘special needs’ dog.  We decided to take that risk as we would for our own child or ourselves.  Prognosis is good so we will continue to keep good thoughts.

I can’t stress enough to all Dachshund owners to become educated in their breed, know the possibilities of what can happen, and take precautions.  These little dogs were bred to hunt badgers. They are mighty, they are fast, they love to run, bark and most of all LAUNCH…notice I didn’t say JUMP.

Until this experience I didn’t think any of this was an issue because my previous Dachshunds never had back issues.  Now that I think back it’s probably because they didn’t jump as much, they weren’t allowed on furniture (thanks to my mother) and we had one story homes so they didn’t run the stairs.

Restricting them doesn’t always prevent surgery or injury and I would never say “don’t get a wiener dog because of their back issues”. Dachshunds of have a little personality like no other, they burrow in the sheets and blankets, they are extremely loyal and love laps and are the biggest babies…..I love the breed.

IVDD doesn’t only happen to Dachshunds.  It is the most common spinal cord condition in a dog, cats are less commonly affected. The spine is composed of vertebrae. The vertebrae form a canal that surrounds the spinal cord.  Between adjacent vertebrae there are discs composed of a fibrous outer portion and gel-like center.  These discs act as cushions between vertebrae and provide strength and stability to the spine.

IVDD is a general term that refers to the condition in which the intervertebral disc protrudes from its normal location.  This herniation of the disc results in compression on the spine. Tucker had two ruptured discs and one of them was causing him to ‘go down’ (become paralyzed) in his rear, mostly on his left side. 

We are still unsure of when he will come home but it’s looking like Saturday or Monday.

Have an inspiring weekend!

Happy Birthday Mr. Tucker Continued

Warning: The pictures below are not the most attractive and may be hard for some of you to look at. It was hard for me too!  I'm including these pictures to be able to share this journey with our family, friends and all animal lovers. I'm also including them to hopefully spread the word and educate dog owners about IVDD.  Tucker is my 3rd dachshund and the first to have IVDD, however it's common in his breed.  I wish I had known more about it and taken the preventative measures in hopes to not have this experience.

We were able to visit the Birthday Boy today! The visit caused mixed feelings, it's sad but it's also happy to know he's made it this far.  Watching the little guy go through this is heart breaking but knowing that we have given him a chance to be out of pain and possibly live a life without a wheel cart makes us happy.

Obviously he's still drugged up and groggy. He didn't respond to us much but gave me a few grunts.  He had no interest in his favorite bananna treat but who in the heck would want a bananna after this ordeal?  He had just been out to potty, he must be expressed for this and until he potty's on his own he will stay at the hospital.  He is not walking but this was to be expected.

No wagging tail or tail movement, this was the hardest for me. The little guy usually has his tail going 100 miles an hour or tucked (his name).

Thanks again for all the phone calls, emails, messages and positive thoughts.

Until tomrorow.