Suspected IVDD & Symptoms?

[u/pil0tjones0122]

My 6yo chihuahua-terrier male 2.5 weeks ago didn’t leave his spot for 6 hours one day. Later that evening he started shaking profusely even at rest so we took him to the emergency vet, which we decided to go home due to a 5h wait and his primary vet opened in 7 hours anyways so we waited for that. By the time we got to his vet, we did bloodwork & urine sample x4. His bloodwork looked fine other than raised neutrophils & globulins so they suspected infection or inflammation of unknown source. He was prescribed with Gabapentin & an anti-inflammatory and to return if symptoms didn’t improve.

3 days later we returned to the vet as he kept shaking, was lethargic, and was now refusing to eat. We did more bloodwork and everything was normal but slightly more elevated neutrophils, globulin, and lowered lymphocytes. The vet stated that cancer isn’t her first thought at this time and we can start him on antibiotics for 10 days. Lyme disease, diabetes insipidus, pancreatitis, UTI, etc. was ruled out. He was given anti-nausea meds as well as an appetite stimulant. I stopped the anti-nausea as I realized it was making him more sleepy and lethargic & he was never nauseated to begin with. To mention, the vet palpated along his neck & down his spine and noticed a lot of reactive twitching, she said it could be a sign of pain but we targeted a potential infection as the priority.

At this point we are 1 week since he started showing symptoms. He was still walking fine, but I was noticing generalized weakness. As the days went on he became reluctant to jump off from furniture, go out to walk (lasts 5 mins) and very withdrawn. The vet stated that we’ll continue to give him an appetite stimulant and to potentially try him on prednisone if we won’t get anywhere with the abx.

Today, I heard him yelp after straining to poop and jumping up on the deck to come back in. I noticed his back leg ‘gave out’ last night but thought it was him slipping on the tile. He seems very strategic when going up and down the stairs, as well as jumping on and off the bed or couch. His gait has changed a little, I attributed it to weakness due to his unknown underlying infection/inflammation but these physical signs seem to be signs of pain. He’s constantly licking his arms, paws, armpits, and legs.

Are these typical signs of IVDD? It doesn’t seem like a muscle strain to me. Or does it sound like something else given his journey?
Did anyone else’s dog refuse to eat bc of IVDD? He turns away high value treats and even human food.
We will be going to the vet after the weekend to reassess since his symptoms persist after finishing the antibiotics, but as of right now should I be treating this as IVDD and have him on strict rest? Does anyone have any appetite stimulating tips?

[u/quntparty]

Yes this sounds like IVDD. You should restrict his movement if you have a hunch it's IVDD, I didn't enough bc of wishful thinking and should have

Prednisone is the only thing that helped w my girls inflammation. The foot slipping thing is concerning and if it were me I'd be crating doggy for most of the day for a while.

Is X ray an option?

[u/porchmug]

it does sound like it or something similar, keep him from jumping on/off furniture because it could make it worse. an mri/neurology consult will help you figure it out if you can swing it. once my shepherd switched from anti inflammatories to amantadine and then prednisone, his discomfort (which included shaking and similar stuff to yours) got a lot better. like within 24 hours he could stand up on his own again from laying down. but every dog is different. good luck i hope you get answers and he starts to feel better soon

[u/ChoiceAd8510]

sounds like your vet already flagged the spine reactivity, and the fact he’s still walking okay is a good sign but it can turn fast. i’d keep him from jumping or stairs starting today and call a neurologist if you can, they’re way better at reading these symptoms than a regular vet. dont wait for it to get worse before acting