Vestibular disease in an old dog....

terrydel

My girlfriends dog has been diagnosed with this.
He is a 14 year old dalmatian cross, he has nerve damage that means his back legs are very week, but last weekend he was flying around and in great form.
He got up Wednesday and was circling and unable to stand, his head tilted to the side. He vomitted while she was at work and she took him to the vet that evening.
He stayed in on a drip and antibiotics, and we got him home Friday. He is still very poorly. He will not get up and walk, he is eating and drinking small amounts which is good. When weve got him up to go outside to pee, it is a real struggle and he is very unsteady.
Its heartbreaking to watch. Just wondering if anyone has any experience of this and what the prognosis is? Reading up, it seems that depending on the cause, the prognosis is generally good. But the vet seemed to be hinting at euthanising him once the weekend is over. We are just hoping he improves by monday and can at least get up to eat and drink without help.
Any advice/thoughts greatly appreciated.

aonb

Your poor dog - and poor you too.
What little I know of vestibular it can clear up quickly, once the dog has been treated, but his age is against him. You mentioned that your gf is out at work - would the dog be home alone all day? This might make a big difference to maintenance/treatment if he doesnt regain his balance... he would be home alone unable to get up to eat/drink...
I guess the next couple of days will tell a lot. Hope he picks up quickly and gets back to normality.
If not, and given his nerve issues with his back legs, you might have to think about the vets suggestion, if his quality of life is so compromised

terrydel

aonb wrote: »

Your poor dog - and poor you too.
What little I know of vestibular it can clear up quickly, once the dog has been treated, but his age is against him. You mentioned that your gf is out at work - would the dog be home alone all day? This might make a big difference to maintenance/treatment if he doesnt regain his balance... he would be home alone unable to get up to eat/drink...
I guess the next couple of days will tell a lot. Hope he picks up quickly and gets back to normality.
If not, and given his nerve issues with his back legs, you might have to think about the vets suggestion, if his quality of life is so compromised

Thanks for the response. Yes, she works during the day but will come home at lunch if needed. Really hoping he improves over the next 48 hours. I love him so much, as she does. We are praying he can get better.

Eric Marley

Hello,
Sorry for that. How is the dog doing as at now? I really hope that the situation doesn't get to the point of euthanizing. Have you tried consulting another vet? They usually have different experience in some cases and maybe another vet somewhere can be more helpful.

aonb

Was just wondering too how your dog is doing? Really hope he's improving? Its hard for the humans to watch. Our very elderly collie just couldnt cope with the disorientation/nausea and just gave up the fight really , he too had issues with weakness in his back legs, but at 17, he was on borrowed time for a very long time.