YEAH!!! Then she can get some lovin' and nursing from you, which will likely speed her recovery. I know when my dogs aren't feeling well, it often takes just a little of my time and love to make things better--I hope it works for Riley too.

I'm so very glad. I know only too well how stressful it is when your beloved pet is at the vet. We dealt with a similar situation with our cat (who had a form of adenocarcinoma this year) and worried every time she wasn't at home. Hugs to both of you.

I am glad Riley is doing well. Best wishes for a full recovery.

Maybe a chiropractor would have done just as well? Don't they have animal chiropractors by now?

Just read this, and hope that riley is doing much better....how's mama doing now?

Also, you may want to look into an animal acupuncture doctor. My grandmother used them with her schnauzers, and it does work.

Take care of that doggie!

We do have holistic vets up here that do acupuncture-- I will ask.

The vet called this AM. Miss Riley is walking with a lot more improvement over yesterday and can come home at 3 PM. I am so happy -- can't wait to see her!

James, I don't think a chiropractor would have applied here... don't know that they have those for dogs, but the problem was diagnosing what was wrong with Riley. She wasn't acting like she was in pain, so we had to determine what was causing the pain-- the neuro specialist ran these tests b/c she had paralysis-- so something with her brain wasn't communicating with her legs-- and so they looked at the spine and then found the hernia.

So relieved she is doing better... I knew I should have gotten her groomed last week. I have a feeling it will be a while before I can take her in for grooming now and she is going to start looking like a woolly mini-mammoth pretty soon. The fur grows up around her snout so she can't see and I'm sure not taking a pair of shears to her face!

Glad to hear that Riley's up & about! Will continue to pray for her!

Thinking about you and Riley, since you're likely on your way to get her & bring her home. I'm sure she'll have plenty of kisses for you... even if she is a woolly mini-mammoth.

((((((((Riley & adpiucf))))))))))

Riley's home! She's walking... a little unsteady, but it's a start. The vets have been so great to us.

15 staples in her back... they will be removed in 10 days and she's in confinement for about 6 weeks to keep her quiet until she's healed a bit more.

Some photos

:) I hope she gets better soon!

What was the bill on this little procedure? Do you have Pet HMO?

Bless her little heart, and yours too. 6 weeks in confinement...do you have her crated?

I would definitely check into the acupuncture stuff!

Best wishes to your baby!!!

Best wishes to your baby, too!!!

What is her breed? A cocker-spaniel mix? I will do a little scientific literature search and drop a few articles if you would like? One can never have TMI when it comes to these kinds of situations.

About 3K... give or take a few hundred bucks. I do have pet insurance, which will cover a good part of the cost.

I wholeheartedly recommend pet insurance to any pet owner. It won't cover pre-existing conditions or conditions that are pretty common like hip dysplasia, but you can get coverage for surgery, testing, routine medical care, dental, flea and tick/heartworm meds. It's a few hundred bucks a year and well worth it!

She has a big crate in my room, and a more normal Riley-sized crate in the living room so she can be wherever the people are. :) I take her out for potty walks, meals and treats, just like you would when crate training a new puppy (minus play time... we can't do that for 6 weeks!)


She's a pure-bred American Cocker Spaniel... the strangest thing about this whole drama is that cockers are not prone to back problems. If you find any info, let me know... but the neuro specialist told me this was not something that was usual for cockers... I expected hip problems and cherry eye in about 10 years!!!!

Poor little Riley-- she is a trooper. She is walking much better today and she's chowing down her food... I can see she is doing better!

Thank you all so much for the care and concern! I will keep you posted on her progress.