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Lifting Harness


wkumtrider
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My wife and I have a BC that will be 15 yrs old next month. HIs back legs are bothering him and he has a lot of trouble getting up steps. The vet says it is arthritis. Sometimes it is so bad we have to carrying him up the steps in the house. I've been looking at the lifting harnesses used to assist dogs up steps, in/out of cars, etc. The one I'm looking at wraps around his back side just in front of the back legs. Has anyone used these? If so can you please let me know how well they worked, if at all? I don't want to use something that will hurt him.

 

Thanks.

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My parents' old Lab had a spinal stroke a year ago and was totally paralyzed in her hind end. She's since recovered use of one back leg, and most use of the other, but before that, they had a harness that had two pieces. One around the front she wore all the time, the other supported the back end, but could be clipped on when needed. It worked really well to have part of the harness on her all the time, as lifting a 70+ Lb dog to put it on would not have been easy. I'm not sure what the brand is- it was borrowed from my mom's coworker.

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I used the Ruffwear harness described above (webmaster) for my old dysplastic dog in the last year and a half of her life on the recommendation of my rehab vet. My neighbors then borrowed if for a year for their old dog who was arthritic and couldn't get up and down. They also used it for well over a year.

 

I found it very useful (Jill wore it 24/7 unless it got soaked in the rain) for helping her up when she got down, for helping her up stairs, etc.. I have used it intermittently on my 16.5 year old, though putting her on Rimadyl has made her much more mobile, but I won't hesitate to use it should she get to the point where she really needs help.

 

Per my rehab vet, Jill didn't need the full harness, even though she had terrible hips and had lost the muscle tone that had kept her going without obvious problems for most of her life. If you consult with your vet maybe you can get a better idea of what the best harness would be, especially if you have access to a vet who does rehab. I was prefectly happy with the shorter harness that just provided a little lift (though I've also used it to carry Willow up stairs at a hotel).

 

J.

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Wow. Now I feel guilty about Ellie. I wonder if I could have just gotten her a special harness when her back end got so bad? But she was also in a lot of pain. The vet said she hurt all over.

 

So hard to know what to do when they get that old.

No, you knew what to do, even though it was hard to do it. Different circumstances require different actions, don't look back, keep moving forward.

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Don't feel guilty. One day Jill got to the point where she couldn't really stand. I spent an hour in the yard with her, with the harness and a towel supporting her back end. It became clear that she was no longer able to support her rear end (could stay upright only with forward momentum). I took her over to look at her favorite thing in the world--baby chicks--and she showed no interest. I knew it was time. But I had a friend who tried to convince me I should try a wheelchair and went so far as to find me one. She thought I was giving up on Jill, but that was far from the case. I wasn't about to be guilted into that. Jill was nearly 16 and had had a good long life and had gotten around well with the help of her harness and making sure she was never on a slick surface until she could no longer manage. I wasn't about to take an old dog and try to get her used to a wheelchair just so I could keep her a few months more.

 

What makes sense for one (or some) dog(s) isn't always the answer for all dogs.

 

J.

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I was thinking about that last night and I remembered just how much pain she was in. It wasn't just that she was having trouble getting up and down. She just hurt all over. And my vet said that pain pills probably wouldn't even help much. It's hard to let go but sometimes you just have to. I want my dogs to stay with me as long as possible but I don't want them to be miserable.

 

But I have some friends that have a golden that is down in the back end. They live in the country and have country vet that comes. She gives that dog some kind on injection that keeps her on her feet. I don't think they will be able to go a whole lot longer the way she is but at least it gives them some extra time with her. She doesn't seem to be in any big pain.

 

Thank you for the kind words.

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I think when things get that bad, Tommy Coyote, it's about quality of life rather than length of life . . . at least if we're thinking of them and not selfishly wanting more time with them.

 

It's a kindness to be able to end their pain . . . one that I wish humans weren't so stingy about with each other. I've often thought that we're able to be kinder to our pets than we are with ourselves and each other.

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