Bonnie
Bonnie
Bonnie is a 16 year old Labrador x German Shepherd. She joined our family on January 6th 1994 as a companion for Shep. We had recently moved to Chester-Le-Street from London and thought the company would be good for Shep.
Having gone through a baptism of fire when we got Shep we were more selective in our choice of second dog. We went to the Northern Counties Horse Rescue and Other Small Animals Society in Gateshead , a privately run shelter with many different species up for adoption. There were about 50 dogs the day we went to look round. Having a more clear idea of what we were looking for we ended up with a choice of two dogs, a whippet or Bonnie (who introduced herself by nipping my fingers - well I had put them through the wire in her run). As I had chosen Shep, Phil got to choose the second dog and thus Bonnie came home with us.
She had been badly treated by her previous owner (the shelter was full the day she was brought to the door but the staff were afraid she would be killed so took her in) and as a result was and is extremely nervous around both people and dogs. To help overcome her problems we began agility and obedience training which we both enjoyed despite not being very proficient.
In June 1996 Bonnie was diagnosed with mild/moderate hip dysplasia which, in conjunction with the move to America left her lame most of the time. On arriving in the US we started trying to find something to relieve her obvious discomfort. We started with Glycoflex and moved through Aspirin and Rimadyl (which resulted in vomiting and diarrhoea) before settling on Adequan which made her a lot more comfortable. At the same time we went to see a chiropractic vet who spent over an hour manipulating her joints. Initially she wasn't too keen but by the end of it she was really relaxed and a lot of her lameness had gone. Ideally I would have liked to keep going to this vet however the distance from my home made this impractical so we returned to more traditional approaches.
Having had a really great year health wise, June 1998 saw another deterioration when she went very lame again and X-rays showed that her left hip had deteriorated markedly. We went to NCSU vet school prepared to hear that she'd need a hip replacement - I got a nice surprise :-) Simply put her hip is bad but her muscles are good and thus surgery was not required. With gradual increase in exercise we have managed to get things settled again and have a pain free dog.
In 2001 Bonnie's hips appeared to be deteriorating, despite continuing to use Adequan. I decided to try a different approach, taking her to physical therapy three times a week. On her first visit we had a consult and found that she has Cauda Equina Syndrome. Two months of physical therapy made a huge difference, although without the underwater treadmill she deteriorated fairly rapidly. To help maintain her musculature we constructed a "horizontal ladder" raised 6 inches off the floor, making her lift her rear legs when she walks. This, combined with several short walks a day has stabilised her somewhat although she tires easily and remains somewhat unstable in her rear legs.
September 2003 - again Bonnie started deteriorating, collapsing on her rear legs and unable to walk for more than a half mile. At 15 years old and with hip dysplasia and Lumbosacral disease it was not a great surprise, so again she is going to physical therapy, although this time to a new rehab and wellness center, closer to home. Amazingly after only six sessions she's shown a remarkable improvement, being back to her 1/2 mile walks, running round the house and generally causing trouble :-).
While physical therapy and drug therapy (Tramadol and Amantadine)improved Bonnie's quality of life, her hip dysplasia and lumbosacral disease continued to progress. By June 2004 walks were a maximum of 1/4 mile and even then she walked with a stilted gait and her head down. I had been considering getting her a wheelchair and that month took the plunge and ordered a wheelchair from Doggon Wheels.
As Bonnie can still walk, the wheelchair was adjusted so that about 75% of her weight was taken by the chair. This support reduces her pain and allows her to exercise her rear legs, as shown in this short video clip. I'd heard that some dogs find it hard to adjust to a wheelchair so I was somewhat apprehensive - I shouldn't have been. As soon as she was put in the chair her head went up and she set off across the parking lot at a brisk trot with a vastly improved gait.
November 2004 - As I was warned, Bonnie is having increasing problems with her rear legs, a result of her lumbosacral disease, not her hip dysplasia. She stumbles, knuckles her rear feet at times, and has problems getting up after lying down, however once up and going there is still no stopping her. Bonnie still attends for physical therapy which is definitely helping, but we are reducing the time per session so as not to over tax her back.
January 2004 - Bonnie deteriorated to the extent that I took her to NC state vet school for a neurologic work up. A CT scan revealed the disk between the L7 and S1 vertebrae is protruding 50% and compressing her spinal cord. As Bonnie is now 16 years old, has severe hip dysplasia, and is still able to walk, she was not a surgical candidate. At least I now have a diagnosis and can thus better understand and manage her "peaks and toughs".
March 2004 - Bonnie has been on and off her food for the past 6 - 8 months. I at first attributed it to her age, but became more certain that something was wrong. I had an ultrasound performed and found that parts of her stomach wall are very thickened - up to 1.2cm when the norm is 0.5cm. As a result Bonnie was taken off all her medications and put on Famotidine. The effect of this was dramatic, within a week Bonnie was back to eating her usual amount. The downside is she now is having more back and hip pain as she cannot be on Tramadol or Amantadine while she has stomach irritation/inflammation.
Each year millions of unwanted pets are destroyed. Please help reduce this number by spaying / neutering - all my dogs are .
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