Mahoney’s sore back
Mahoney is a fabulous three year old cavoodle who is usually the life of the party. He loves to jump up and is very active. Last week Mahoney stopped going through the doggy-door and had several episodes of yelping with pain. He might have been limping on one of his back legs but it was hard to tell which one.
On Mahoney’s first visit he was given some anti-inflammatories which made him feel better, but the pain was still there.
On his second visit, he was given stronger pain relievers. These helped, but made him groggy. It was really time to investigate the problem as Mahoney wasn’t improving with his initial treatment.
Xrays were taken of Mahoney’s spine and a problem was located in his lumbar vertebrae.
Mahoney has compression of his 2 caudal lumbar vertebrae. This can be seen if your compare Mahoney’s xray to the normal dog below.
To assess any spinal cord compression more comprehensively, Mahoney would need a contrast CT scan, which is a specialist procedure.
Pain from back problems can take 4-8 weeks to settle and injuries can reoccur if Mahoney does too much jumping.
For the moment, Mahoney is being treated conservatively with pain relief, gentle exercise and by avoiding jumping. We hope his problem can be managed but are aware that if Mahoney’s condition worsens, he may need specialist care.
