My poor old pup, 13-year-old Brownie, is suffering from what I hope is idiopathic vestibular symdrome, but what my vet thinks might actually be a brain tumor. He thinks that because Brownie didn't exhibit any of the weird eye movements that customarily accompany vestibular disorder. Also, her ears looked fine. We could get an MRI to find out for sure, but our vet kind of told us there was no point since she would be too weak for treatment even if it were treatable. Since an infection is also still a possible cause, we've got her on a heavy-duty antibiotic (Chloramphenocal). She's been on that since Friday and things are actually looking worse so far.
I'm hoping others here who have had experience with canine vestibular disorders can share their experiences so I can sort of compare what's happening to Brownie.
There wasn't a dramatic onset, as I've read usually happens. For a few weeks we'd noticed her sort of getting lost around the house, having trouble with stairs, walking in somewhat circular clockwise patterns and tilting her head a bit to the right. I assumed it was the start of some cognitive dysfunction, but then about 4 days ago it did get dramatically worse. Now she's sleeping more, eating less, walking in clockwise circles (sometimes very tight loops!) and/or staggering any time she's up, falling down and falling over, whimpering occasionally. I realized that she hasn't actually lost any mental faculties, as I'd originally thought. She knows where her food and water bowl are. She knows where the front door is and what side it opens on, etc. She essentially can't go left, and if she encounters an obstacle to her right, she simply stops (that's how she gets "stuck" in corners, behind doors, next to furniture, etc).
We have discovered that if she has a good visual straight line to follow (fence, sidewalk, edge of driveway) she can practically go straight until that visual ends... and then she either stops or circles right. And not only can she walk straight in that situation, but she can actually run! All the rest of the time, she staggers, falls, walks in circles, etc.
As hard as this is to deal with, it's worse because Brownie was still rather weak and frail (and wobbly at times) from a bout of drug-induced Addison's disease in January. She was being treated for Cushing's disease and had been on too high of a dose. Currently, she's on prednisolone (a form of prednisone) to try to keep her eating (she's eaten very little and lost A LOT of weight this year). We've been spoon feeding her for about 2 months now, but she still isn't eating enough to gain weight and with this vestibular problem, it's an uphill battle. Believe, me, she can not afford to lose another pound! Our once overweight 37lb. pup is now a skeletal 19lbs. It so sad. We've done everything we possibly can and it just seems like once we are on the road to resolving one problem, another crops up!
There have been many bad days over the past few months that I honestly thought might be her last. In fact, we've dubbed her the "death's door pup" because she never ceases to amaze us with her ability to be at death's door one day and frolicking in the yard the next. Even so, I'm not in denial that this could be brain tumor and our pup may not be with us much longer. But while I'm still hoping and praying for a better outcome, maybe those of you with similar experiences could help me out by sharing.
Thanks.