Dragoon 45 Posted September 11, 2014 Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 This afternoon I found my 14 YO unable to stand. He seems to have lost his ability to maintain his balance, lost control of his bowels, has rapid side to side eye movement, panting heavily, but seemed to not be in any pain. I rushed him to the Vet where he was admitted to their hospital. My regular vet, was unavailable, but another Vet in the same facility examined him. She mentioned Vistibular Disease as a possible diagnosis. From what I understand there are two forms of this disease in older dogs, one that they can recover from in 1-3 weeks, hopefully without any permanent handicaps, and another form that is very much bad news. Also the Vet mentioned the possibility of a brain tumor, or liver issues. Has anyone dealt with this? Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BCjetta Posted September 11, 2014 Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 Most of the ones we've seen in the clinic I work at have gone on to recover with time. Initially they are quite nauseous which can be the cause for the panting. If it were my dog I would give it a week or so and monitor for improvement. I know of one dog that the head tilt never completely went away but she was able to get around fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted September 11, 2014 Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 Yes, briefly. My 9 y/o dog went through a bout of it. He pulled out of it in about 2 1/2 days. I was amazed how quick he snapped out of it given the fact that he had advanced cancer at the time (which I already knew about and he was recieving paliative care for). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted September 11, 2014 Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 My 14.5 year old had a severe bout of vestibular back in March before her 14th birthday. She was on the longer end of the recovery side, taking closer to a month to get back to (the new) normal. She vomited a lot during the first 4-5 days, so much so that I was giving her subQ fluids and anti-nausea meds (which were very pricy and didn't work well for Kat). At her re-evaluation 2 weeks out, the vet said he wasn't happy with her progress and was wondering if it couldn't be tumor related or similar, but then she started improving. She still has a very slight head tilt, but we haven't had another episode. Kat's locomoter issues were made worse by an old spinal embolism that left her very weak in a hind leg, but she did get better. So don't give up too soon and don't spend time worrying about worst-case scenarios. It sounds like vestibular to me, and absent any defining symptoms that would point to a brain tumor (and blood work would rule out liver issues), I'd give him time and supportive care (including the use of a harness or rolled towel in front of the hips to help with walking/potty issues--I had a RuffWear webmaster that I had used for a previous oldster with mobility issues) and see if he doesn't come back to something close to normal. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragoon 45 Posted September 11, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 Thanks all for the replies. Got a call this morning from the Vet Hospital. No change in his condition. The Vet thinks it is Vistibular Syndrome, but can't rule out the other possibilities yet. I don't know how long they will want to keep him at the hospital. I am going to visit him this afternoon and hopefully will get a better idea on how he is going then. They are keeping him in a padded run so he doesn't hurt himself if he tries to get up and hand feeding him. Also if I understood them correctly they are also keeping him semi-sedated. I had a Ruff-Wear harness that I took with him and they are using that to help him outside for bowel movements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted September 11, 2014 Report Share Posted September 11, 2014 I would talk to them about bringing him home unless you think you can't provide the supportive care. I think often dogs are less stressed and therefore improve more quickly in a familiar environment, especially if it is vestibular, which really just requires the "tincture of time." I wouldn't necessarily even be looking for other possibilities unless he stayed bad beyond a week. But that's just me. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjones Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I agree with Julie on bringing him home, its stressful enough with vestibular and being in an unfamiliar place can't make it any better. My two old girls had it, one took longer than the other to recover, it just takes time and patience. The biggest thing I noticed is they didn't like walking on laminate/wood floors so I ended up putting rugs and carpet squares all over non carpeted areas. Also eating was difficult because their depth perception was off so my one girl I started off hand feeding, my other girl I had to switch to food on a flat dish because she would grab for where she thought the food was and hit the side of her bowl. Just go with whatever works for your dog and makes him comfortable. Samantha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I agree with Julie and Sam. The likelihood that your boy has Vestibular disorder is much greater than liver disease or brain tumours. My old girl had two episodes in the last year of her life. She recovered most of the way in a week, and it took a couple weeks more for her to get all the way back. The second episode, about 6 months later, wasn't as severe. It did leave her with a permanent head tilt. So he's been in the hospital 24 hours? I'd seriously consider bringing him home, for all the reasons mentioned previously. For both Shoshone's episodes, her progress the first few days was really noticeable. My vet recommended OTC Dramamine for the nausea, so she slept a lot. I helped her outside and back in. Her care wasn't that difficult or time consuming. Good luck - I hope he's back to himself soon! Ruth and SuperGibbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragoon 45 Posted September 12, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I talked to the Vet about bringing him home and the Vet's advice was to wait a while until there is some improvement. Codi had a very significant back injury about 4 years ago and was already not very steady prior to this happening. Both the Vet and I have some concerns about that. And he will not eat or drink right now. He also had a fairly serious issue with his liver last spring, thought I was going to lose him then. As much as I want to bring him home, I think that until the Vet is sure what is wrong with him it is better he stay where he can be watched very closely for a while. Thank You everyone for the advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 FWIW, Kat had a spinal embolism that left her with limited use of one hind leg (when it happened she was paralyzed in both hind legs; one came back within the hour and the other has never been right since). It did cause additional issues when she had her severe vestibular episode, but it just meant I had to put more effort into helping her walk (and to stop her circling, which was the biggest problem for her--it was like she would start circling and be unable to stop, but if I interrupted her, then she could start walking straight again--or as straight as she could with the dizziness problems.... Anyway, the Ruffwear harness can help with that. For a period I actually walked Kat, per the rehab vet's advice (rehab vet because of the hind end issues, not the vestibular, except as secondary to her main problem), with a leash attached to the ring on the harness and upward pressure so that I was actually bearing a good bit of her weight and that pressure I put on the harness also gave her something to orient to. Keep us posted. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 Thanks for the update and further info. I hope you hear some good news soon, and that he's able to come home and recuperate. Ruth and SuperGibbs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragoon 45 Posted September 12, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I lost him today. He took a turn for the worse overnight, had a stroke as best the Vet could determine. I went to see him and he did not know I was there. While the Vet is not 100% certain, he is 99% sure it was not vestibular disease but was instead a series of strokes. I made the very painful decision to put him to sleep. Thank you everyone for thoughts and advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliepoudrier Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I am so, so sorry. This is the worst news to hear. I know how hard it is to let them go. There's never enough time. My prayers are with you at this difficult time. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted September 12, 2014 Report Share Posted September 12, 2014 I am so sorry to read this. Thinking of you and your boy today, grateful that you had each other for a while, sad that you had to let him go. Ruth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journey Posted September 13, 2014 Report Share Posted September 13, 2014 Aw, I am so sorry. Its never easy and always too soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simba Posted September 13, 2014 Report Share Posted September 13, 2014 I am very sorry for your loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GentleLake Posted September 14, 2014 Report Share Posted September 14, 2014 I'm so sorry for your loss. No matter when it is, it's always too soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragoon 45 Posted September 14, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2014 Thank you everyone for your kind sentiments. My concern now is for my 4 YO R/W male, Zipp. So far I have not noticed any major behavioral changes, but he does seem a little more clingy. He seems to have taken the loss better than I have, but you can tell he sometimes looks for the old man. Still hides his food and toys expecting the old man to try to find them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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