By: Kelly Marshall
Submitted: 2009-01-03 11:28:51 | Word Count: 559
As a dog grows older, it may suffer spinal damage resulting from degenerative processes. In popular parlance, these conditions are referred to as ‘slipped discs’. However the term used to describe the spinal damage is not apt as a dog does not have any discs in its spine for any slippage to occur. The problem that occurs in the dogs can be described as loss of resiliency between the vertebrae of the spine of the dog. The problem may arise due to an accident or due to a gradual degeneration due to age.
One reason for spinal problems in the dog may be the fact that the owner of the dog encouraged a sedentary life style of the dog. As the dog grows older, it becomes lazy and prefers a sedentary life style. The onus is upon the owner to prevent the dog from becoming lazy. Lack of exercise decreases blood flow to various parts of the body of the dog. Decrease in blood flow leads to slackening of muscles and allows the spinal shock absorbers to lose their thickness and their resilience. Upon a sudden impact, they may be come perforated. If the sedentary life style is combined with lack of nutritious food, the shock absorbers may be starved of nutrients as well. This impairs their regenerative abilities.
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Irrespective of the cause of the problem, the rehabilitative measures for this problem remain the same. The diet of the dog must be repaired and it must be fed lots of Vitamin C and bioflavonoids. The digestive potential may be enhanced by making use of enzyme therapy. The therapy may be undertaken by internal feeding as well as external injection at the site of the diseased vertebrae. The diet must be enriched with raw grated vegetables and sprouts. These form sources of live enzymes, vitamins and minerals. Comfrey, which is a herb, is very useful to heal bone disorders. Make sure you interact with your vet in all stages of the treatment.
If your dog is suffering from this problem, prevent it from walking up and down the stairs. This form of exercise shall put additional pressure on the weakened spinal joints. Place the dog on a level ground. As the dog improves, make it walk on level ground. Only when the dog becomes stronger should you allow it to undertake vigorous exercises like climbing stairs etc.
It is very important to remember that slip discs in dogs do not appear out of the blue. They cannot be merely wished away either. It occurs due to lack of attention towards the diet and lifestyle of the dog. It shall be eliminated only when the diet and the lifestyle improves along with the administration of medicines. To avoid slip discs due to accidents, do not take your dog out if it not on the leash. Slip discs can lead to paralysis and even impairment of motor functions and excretory functions. Once this occurs, death is the only consequence.
Unless it is an emergency, the owner of the dog should not take the temperature of the dog. There always is the risk of breakage of the thermometer and the absorption of the thermometer in the rectum of the dog. Further, mere knowledge of high temperature will not be sufficient to diagnose the disease. Hence, it is always better to call the vet.
