Announcing Eli!

[NewfK9]

We have our new Newf Puppy!! And I say that lightly, at 18 mnths old he is 170lbs of adoration, him and me. But, the reason I post here is he has a pinched nerve in his spine, and he falls down and has a hard time placing all four of his feet, he gets up and walks around the yard with the boys, but momentum will catch up with him and he falls down. I have an appointment with the Holistic vet Thursday for acupuncture and hopefully a few treatments of that will get him moving around a little more normally. We are having ramps for him built this weekend so he can access the yard easier, Has anyone else had this problem before? Have you tried acupuncture? Did it work? He was on predestorne for 6 weeks and it helped significantly but with so many side effects, I would like to do this as naturally as possible. I will be doing massage, heat and ice packs once the area is determined, and buffered asprin for pain, cause I am sure this hurts. Other than getting him a bib that says "Help I've fallen and can't get up" and help would be appreciated. Any idea? All would be appreciated.

 

[lilly06]

Congrats! Perhaps some chiropractic work in conjunction with the acupuncture will help.

 

[Lori]

First, congrats on you new boy! Thank you for taking him even with his problem and getting him help. I have had acupuncture done on Chance and it helped a lot.

 

[Angela]

Sorry Eli has some back problems, that's sad.
I would also try a chiropracter.

 

[NewfK9]

We will try EVERYTHING, all ideas will be considered and appreciated, and photos soon.

 

[Newfs Forever]

Acupuncture and chiropractic helps immensely!

 

[Newfs Forever]

Forgot to mention that maybe some hydrotherapy, electric stimulation and/or laser may help also.

 

[Thule's Mom]

Congratulations! Eli is a very lucky boy to have found you! Speaking from personal experience... I'm a firm believer in accupuncture! Good luck!!!

 

[ardeagold]

Congratulations!!

Yes, we've had two with back problems and acupuncture returned amazing results, fast.

Hope it works as well for him!! Please keep us updated.

 

[NewfLove]

I agree with acupuncture which once took our sweet Allie from not being able to walk to walking very easily in one session. Congrats on the new addition!

 

[NewfK9]

Wonderful, we are on the right track! Updates tommorow after the first treatment and vet appointment.

 

[Blacknewfs]

Gabapentin is effective at controlling nerve pain in many dogs. My Matilda takes this.

 

[BoundlessNewfs]

Does he have spondylosis, causing the pinched nerve? Our Maggie has that, and some days she is fine, then BOOM...she just steps wrong and a nerve gets pinched. Then she either goes immediately lame and falls down, or she will start moving gingerly and those muscles will knot up so tightly that she cannot straighten her neck or move without screaming in pain.

I do a lot of massage, and apply a heat pack to the affected muscles (she gets a hump on her shoulders where the muscles knot up so tightly). I make the heat pack out of regular uncooked rice and a large sock. Pour 2-3 cups of the dry rice into the sock, tie a knot in the end, and heat in the microwave for a minute or so, until it feels quite warm to the touch (but NOT so hot you can't easily handle it). Lay that on the sore area for 5 minutes, then remove and massage the area. Reapply as needed.

When Mags has an episode, it usually takes 3 days for her to loosen up and move normally again. The heat and massage helps her be able to move without as much pain, and loosens up the muscles enough that she can move her head and neck again.

We also take Maggie to a water therapy pool for dogs. Keeping that muscle tone helps keep the back aligned, so that nerves are less likely to get pinched.

If you have a good canine chiropractor, I'm sure that would work wonders for him.

 

[NewfK9]

From what I understand, he was playing with his brother when he was injured, but I love the idea of a rice sock for soothing his inflamed area. Seeing Dr. Xi tomorrow who is supposed to be the best in the city for acupuncture, I was told of a dog who had to be carried in, walked out!

 

[Pipelineozzy]

You are in farming country...get wheat or canola instead of rice.. When the stuff starts to seem like it isn't holding heat as long, spray it with a bit of water or roll it up in a damp towel for a while to restore the moisture level. I have several of thse (I just make a cloth bag and sew it up) and you can keep some in the freezer for cold pack, and some for microwave heating.
Careful with canola...the oil in it can make it get too hot and actually burn. Flax also works well..pretty much any grain.

 

[NewfK9]

We had our first acupuncture treatment today and the change is remarkable-thank you everyone who let me know I was on the right track with this gentle sweet sweet dog-Thank you all

 

[suse]

Congratulations!! Eli is one lucky boy

 

[NewfK9]

Thank you