Dear Dr. John,
My nine-year-old Keeshond weighs around 54 lbs. In the last month or two, I have noticed that he is much slower getting up and down, cannot jump up on my couch anymore, and it appears that his hind legs shake at times. What could the possible cause of his slowing down and apparent discomfort? I would like to keep him comfortable and wonder what diagnostics might be needed and what treatments might help. I suppose I should call my vet to see what can be done but I am fearful of possibly receiving bad news. E.D.
Dear E.D.,
As we and our pets age, things slow down and we find that there is not enough strength and stamina to do things as were done in younger years. There are several possibilities that might explain what you are seeing with your dog. First and foremost of these is simple arthritis which can affect dogs at different ages. Your dog may have also simply suffered a bad back sprain and anti-inflammatory medications might resolve the problems.
Other possibilities include ankylosing spondylosis with compromise of nerves that come off the spinal cord, hip dysplasia, disc degeneration, degenerative myelopathy and more. There may even be more than one of these conditions going on simultaneously. The diagnostics would begin with a good physical and neurological examination followed by radiographs of the spine and possible MRI. Other tests may include checking his overall bloodwork, cerebrospinal fluid or various neuromuscular tests. The treatment will be dependent upon the cause of what is developing.
With earlier intervention, diagnostics, and appropriate therapies, your dog will stand a much better chance of being comfortable and slowing down the effects of the aging that you are seeing. His weight does not sound too heavy for his breed but getting him to lose some weight would make it easier for him as well. If you want to help your dog then you do need to contact your veterinarian and start the workup. Until then, keeping him comfortable would involve limiting his mobility and perhaps using 325 mg buffered or coated aspirin once or twice a day.
Dr. John de Jong owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic. He can be reached at 781-899-9994.
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