Acupuncture to control pain

[Guest Anonymous]

Gnasher has been suffering from pain for several months now which has finally been traced to being caused by a small spur of bone on his spine which should not be there.

Rest and anti-imflamatory painkillers have not made a great deal of difference so we are now moving on to try acupuncture if Gnasher will tolerate it.

I am concernd about his reaction to it as he was badly abused before I had him so tends to panic about things at times particularly with people he does not know.

Any experience?

Dawn

[alicat613]

A friend used this on her dog for pain relief with great success. Her dog had a lot of fear of vets and had no problem with the treatment.

What is the longterm plan with the bone spur? Good luck with the treatments and I hope your dog feels better soon.

[Guest Anonymous]

Thanks Alicat,

Gnasher has now had two sessions of acupuncture - I won't exactly say he enjoys it but the vet I am seeing is brilliant and we are getting through the sessions without too much fuss!! Already he is loads better and I am very impressed with the improvement in him.

As for long term - I really do not know - my lad is only four (and the bone spur is possibly the result of a kick from his previous owner :-? ) and the vets do not think surgery will be an option due to where it is. I think it will just be a case of taking on the future as it comes and making decisions based on his options at that time.

Dawn

[pitbullEmily]

[quote name='Gnasher']Gnasher has been suffering from pain for several months now which has finally been traced to being caused by a small spur of bone on his spine which should not be there.

Rest and anti-imflamatory painkillers have not made a great deal of difference so we are now moving on to try acupuncture if Gnasher will tolerate it.

I am concernd about his reaction to it as he was badly abused before I had him so tends to panic about things at times particularly with people he does not know.

Any experience?

Dawn[/quote]

I have heard that acupunction works well in these cases and it seems to be helping my dog.

Did your vet take a set of xrays?

My understanding is that it's important to determine whether the spur is from a single incident, and therefore may not cause additional problems, OR whether it's genetic and degenerative. If the calcification has resulted from instability in the spine, it may increase, that could cause more problems in the future, including higher levels of pain or even crippling (depending on where the spur is).

Look up "spondylosis" on the web; this may be what your dog has. It's very common and not necessarily a problem.

But if you can afford it, you may want to try to get referrals to an orthopedic vet or a neurologist. In a young dog, a future of pain and limited activity is not very positive.

There are surgical solutions, though they are expensive and carry their own risk.

[Guest Anonymous]

My vets opinion at the moment is that the bone spur was probably caused by trauma rather than a condition. She has mentioned that it could be the start of a progressive condition but we will not be able to say for sure until some time in the future when the x-rays are repeated. I am not sure there is any other way to determine whether the condition is a result of an injury or not?? She also feels that the area of his spine where the spur of bone is makes surgery a risky option for him so at the moment very much a last resort.

With acupuncture I have been able to stop his painkillers completely and we are gradually increasing his exercise levels - all being done with no signs of pain so I am really pleased with his progress so far.

In the last few weeks I have taken him back to his training classes, lengthened his daily walks and started to give him very small amounts of running free at the park.

If his condition worsens and the options change his treatment may also but so far I am extremely impressed with acupuncture even if he is not all that pleased with going and having needles stuck in him!!

Dawn