Need prayers for Jessie please; update; no tumor!!!!!!

   It looks like idog vibes have worked again; the MRI was clean; no sign of a tumor. They're still waiting on the results from the spinal tap; sometimes the spinal fluid can be inflamed. I guess treatment would be an antibiotic but I'll find out the results when I get her later today; she's coming home. The neurologist was almost positive Jessie had a tumor based on his exam, but it looks like it's old dog vestibular disease, which clears up without treatment. He also says it's possible she had a small stoke but there were no signs of one on the MRI, and they're not common. Her urinalysis showed slightly elevated protein but that's normal for her and her kidney values in her blood work were normal. But, her blood pressure is high and he said early kidney disease can cause that. He's going to consult with an internist and it's possible that Jessie will be put on medication for it. I was crying happy tears on the way home this afternoon. Thanks again for all your wonderful prayers and thoughts, I'm so happy to be sharing this news with you.

Yay!!!!

Yeah! That sure is a positive update. I'm glad Jessie can come home today.

 WAHOOOOOO!!

Excellent news!  You must be so relieved.  Sending lots of strong, healing vibes that she feels better soon and that the syndrome clears as quickly as possible.

I'm just seeing this and SO, SO glad Jessie is OK!! 

(((((Janice & Jessie))))) So happy to hear the MRI's were good and no signs of tumors! Hopefully this was just a small set back and Jessie will be back to normal in no time at all. She's soo incredibly lucky to have you by her side! 

Sending out lots and lots of get better vibes for Jessie and super hugs for you Janice!  Keep us posted.

kpwlee

 WAHOOOOOO!!

  I yelled YIPPEE while driving back home. 

  Her spinal fluid was normal. The neurologist expects her to make a full recovery; she's a little more steady today. We're seeing an internist in a week for a full kidney workup and to have her blood pressure rechecked. Her protein to creatine ratio was 2.86, so she's on an ACE inhibitor for her kidneys. She's also on a blood pressure medication. I'm hoping that once the protein loss in her kidneys is reduced, her blood pressure will be normal. This may have been a good thing because we wouldn't have known about the kidney disease until her next senior exam in February, and that's if it showed up in her blood work, which it hasn't yet. The reason the neurologist had the urinalysis done was because kidney disease can cause high blood pressure and they couldn't find any other causes. I e-mailed Monica Segal last night to have her formulate a kidney diet; it won't have less protein than she's getting now but it will have less phosphorus and sodium than commercial food.

  Callie; Is there anything special that you did for Foxy when he had vestibular disease; any acupressure points that would help or any herbs?

  Thanks again to all of you for your wonderful support; it helped me a lot the past few days.

What great news!   Sending strength gaining vibes for Jessie!  I am so happy for you both!

Given Jessie's pre-disposition to be inflamed (this is a pancreatitis dog -- "itis"!!!!!) I was SURE this was what it would turn out to be.  They always feel so compelled to point out "the worst" scenario (which is usually cancer) BUT vestibular disease can truly show itself SO differently with different dogs.

I massaged his neck A LOT (and used White Flower or WoodLock or even plain peppermint oil) because that tendency to walk in circles winds up muscles SO badly.

Not so much acpressure points but there ARE balance points and inner ear points an acupuncture vet would be able to do. 

 There is one for nausea on the belly -- if she'll lie on her back.  Find her navel (yes, dogs have one -- it's usually an inch or so below the bottom of the sternum) and go another inch or so below that tiny scar.  With your finger tip make tiny but firm circles -- start counter clockwise and do it for 30 seconds and then reverse it for 30 seconds.

I sent you the name of a couple of homeopathics the other night -- those would be the most immediate relief.

It sounds odd -- but anything "calming" -- this weirds them out SO badly, and it actually makes them fearful because their bodies will NOT do what they want them to.

I am SO THRILLED this has been able to put your heart at ease. 

calliecritturs

Given Jessie's pre-disposition to be inflamed (this is a pancreatitis dog -- "itis"!!!!!) I was SURE this was what it would turn out to be.  They always feel so compelled to point out "the worst" scenario (which is usually cancer) BUT vestibular disease can truly show itself SO differently with different dogs.

  Keep in mind that it was a neurologist that said it was likely to be a brain tumor based on a his examination of her; her reflexes and the pattern of her eye movement indicated the problem came from inside the brain, from the brain stem area. Thank God he was wrong.

  Yesterday evening while in the yard, her rear feet got caught in some vines and she fell. She got right back up and continued along as if nothing had happened. It's a reminder that dogs don't feel sorry for themselves and just get on with life. She is recovering quickly; her walk is almost back to normal today and at this rate we may be taking short walks in a few days. I was doing the massage described in "Four Paws Five Directions" to relax her and am going to start range of motion exercises today.

   I wish I had went with my gut and asked for a protein -creatine ratio to be done in September when she had a urinalysis done as part of her senior workup. She did have a protein loss of ++ but my vet wasn't concerned because that's been her norm for years; either + or ++. If we had caught her kidney disease at that time and got the protein loss under control, her blood pressure may not have gotten so high. This is a good lesson for lurkers; even though I have a great vet who helps me take very good care of Jessie, he underestimated the importance of the protein loss. If I had asked for a protein-creatine ratio he would have done one.

Always good to hear good news, yeah

I'm so happy she's recovering so well for you!  I will definately ask about protein loss results when Willow has here blood work done this week.  How old is Jessie now?  Willow is 10.