9 Month Old GSD with Weak Hindlegs - Page 6

Gautam, THANK HEAVENS! You now have a veterinarian who actually knows his profession, is taking the appropriate steps to identify the exact cause of Mervin's illness, and intends to reverse these problems so Mervin returns to the very healthy, strong, active puppy he was just 5 months ago.  The course of treatment he has prescribed for Mervin is a reasonable one, and although he told you to bring the dog back in one month, he likely also told you to bring Mervin in sooner if his condition worsens before the month has passed, correct?  If he did not mention that outright, it would be only because he figures you for having sufficient sense and awareness to know not to wait if things worsen, as you'd already demonstrated this by refusing to accept the other vet's offhanded assurance to you that Mervin was perfectly OK. :) 

This is such encouraging news, and I know I'm not alone in being relieved in hearing your report of the day's events, and eager to hear how Mervin fares as he embarks on this treatment regimen!  He's collected quite the fan club here, your handsome 9 month old fellow...hope his little buddy Maxim doesn't get jealous. ;)

Yes the vet told me to bring Mervin incase there is no improvement in 2 weeks time. Maxim is already jealous!

Look you all, raising a happy and healthy dog is easy!  Play with them often, feed them good dog food (Royal Canine is one of the best), and don’t worry about their health.  Nature has given them all the necessary tools to combat any form of health problems that may arise.  Better than humans even.  Rarely is it ever necessary to take your dog to the vet.  Unless they are completely unresponsive, more than likely they will pull through whatever the world around them can throw at them.  They are very hearty animals.  Leave them the fock alone when they get sick occasionally.  More than likely they would prefer to “play” through the pain if you just play with them and be with them.  That is all they really want and need.

Guatam1972, your dog is fine.  It appears to me he is perfectly healthy.  He may never be the super show dog you were hoping for, but he is a happy dog with a nice temperament.  And this is not always the easiest thing to find in the best of show dogs.  Stop taking him to the vet, he doesn’t need to be watered twice a day, and you don’t need to clean his kennel with chlorine twice a day either.  Just play with him, train him and always be there for him and all will be fine.  Who gives a shit if he never develops the straight and true gait you may have been hoping for.  There is nothing you can do to fix that anyway.  He is what he is and that should be good enough.

Gee, that's funny, maywood, because the vet who examined Mervin today finds that he is NOT "fine".  You cite "Royal Canine [sic] is one of the best" foods--and yet that's the very food Mervin's been getting and it has not been sufficient to keep Mervin at a healthy weight, let alone have him gain any as he ought to be doing.  At nine months of age, he should weigh more than 55 pounds, maywood.

I'm beginning to wonder if maywood is actually the first vet who diagnosed Mervin as "fine", only to then tell Gautam a few days ago that he should euthanize Mervin.

maywood, giving advice on the care of dogs is NOT your forte.

What do you know Hexe?  25 kilos is not a bad weight at all.  Your just trying to take cover from all the crap you've been feeding throughout this thread.  The vet initially told her the dog was fine health wise.  After listening to you and taking your advice now the OP returns from the vet and the dog isn't fine.  Gee, I wonder how he got that way all of a sudden? 

Nope, I've got no need to 'take cover' from anything I've written in this thread--I own my words, and when I'm shown to be wrong about something I've written, I acknowledge that as well.  This, however, isn't one of those instances.  As for 'what do I know', well, the fact is I know plenty when it comes to animal health. It's actually my chosen profession, and has been for the better part of my life. My track record, as it were, on that subject, on this forum, speaks for itself.

On your advice, a dog in the condition that Mervin is presently in would be dead before it reached its first birthday.

Maywood Play through the pain? Nature has given them everything they need to combat ANY form of health problem that may arise - WOW. ...So we don't need vets at all any more ! Certainly if I were listening to advice on dog health I know I would be keenly listening to what Hexe had to say. Based on what you have said above - I would take your advice....not so much. But if denial is your thing, it is your right, but pity the poor dog who has a severe health problem....left to play through the pain and just, well, get over it...or die. Jeepers. Anyway, back to Mervin and Gautam. Good news that you have a better vet on board! Gautam, now you need to be careful of the ratio of organ meat to muscle meat that you feed. It should be mostly muscle meat, with around 20% organ meat, as organ meat (liver, heart and such) can in itself cause diahorreah, though it may well help with the anaemia, as it contains lots of natural iron. If you can vary the types of meat to include chicken and fish too, that would be good, but that may be too much too soon for you at this stage, or maybe the vet wants to keep to one type so as not to overload the system. Most dogs will digest chicken very freely though, so if you can lay your hands on some, including skin, it would be beneficial. Also remember you are feeding for weight GAIN now, so you need to feed more than you would for a normal meal, perhaps you could add in an extra meal, so as not to overload his tummy. Maybe 3 X a day if you currently feed twice. Again, I would suggest you record his weight now, so that you can keep a record regularly of what is happening with his weight. Please keep us posted as to how he is getting on.

Sometimes Gautam. people like to comment on forums simply to play devils advocate. There is no way that someone that owns a german shepherd or is in the health care field could be so naive as a few of the above comments read.  ( hopefully you know who I mean )

Gautam, all of us who have been following your pups progress are so happy you took your dog to a big city vet. Our fingers are all crossed that he is on the road to recovery and bless you for being such a caring and concerned dog owner.

Please keep us all up to date with the progress. 

Lynn

Just reading back on this thread I notice that you were supplementing with Irish Cal while feeding Royal Canin. Whilst you would need to supplement when feeding beef and offal as you intend to for a while, supplementing a complete food could cause problems, especially with an excess of calcium. Also, 5 cups per day seems low to me for a 9 month old male, especially if they are the small cups provided by the manufacturer.  Just some thoughts on a re-read.

If Mervyn does respond to a meat based diet, you will need to review it to be a more comprehensive and varied diet, including bones for calcium in time. There is plenty of information available on the 'BARF' diet available from members here or on the internet. But that is for the longer term if he responds to the change in diet and it turns out not to be EPI.

Do let us know how he gets on.

 

  I am glad Gautam has found a vet that seems to know what they are doing and hopefully Mervin is on his way to better health.  Many of us could tell Mervin was not absorbing the proper nutrients, his muscle mass and joints were paying the price. Maywood take another look at the video and see if you come up with the same conclusion as you have now, those of us who have been feeding our dogs real food can see the difference. Thank you Hexe I knew you were on the right track all along and it seems a medical expert who has seen the dog agrees with you. Thank you Gautam for caring enough about your dog to find a solution, Mervin will be an impressive dog once you get his health in order.