[Gpdd] HEALTH: Paralysed hind legs - DOUGALL

Julie juwles at optusnet.com.au
Sun Mar 19 05:16:28 EST 2006


Hi again
Poor Doogie is really having a rough time.       I ended up having to
give Dougall the antibiotics
because he was sooooo red & itchy and was ripping holes in his little
body.  
Rang the vet who told me she wouldn't have prescribed the antibiotics if
it wasn't needed 
- that she had found both mites & infection when she did a skin
scraping.     
Then on Friday we washed him in a very diluted amount of Malaseb 
(leaving to soak on him for 5 minutes).     Whilst he's still red, he is
much better 
than he was, and I can actually touch his back without him flinching.

So, that is good news so far.
 
Last night when I went to bed, all was in order.   Piggies had their
grass, 
dry food, veges (including carrot, celery, cauliflower, cucumber, pear,
apple, tomato, parsnip).  
This morning, when I uncovered the piggies.... my Dougall was paralysed
in his hind legs.      
His eyes were bright, he was keen to eat, he certainly didn't look sick 
- except he couldn't move the legs.   Front legs were fine.
 
I looked up Peter Gurney website and it said could be calcium deficiency
or 
even Vitamin C deficiency.   So, I gave him lots of parsley, then took
him to the
after-hours vet (it was Sunday morning in Australia).     Naturally,
no-one knows 
anything about piggies here.. so I printed that Peter Gurney page out 
and took it with me.   The vet was very interested, and took note of
what 
was written there.   So hopefully I've taught a vet something about
piggies.
 
Dougall was given a calcium injection; and we are giving him 100mgs of 
Vitamin C (diluted) per day.   She wanted to give him an
anti-inflammatory,
but decided not to yet to see if the calcium worked first.  I was happy
with that.      
Tonight he still can't move much at all ... Very rarely he seems to do
a little bunny hop to get him a bit closer to where he wants to go, and
twice 
I've seen the back legs move separately, when he brings them in closer 
to his body.    He had been wheeking when we picked him up, 
obviously in pain but we didn't know where.   The vet felt him closely, 
and he only complained when she touched his legs - not his back at all.

I'm hoping that is a good thing.
 
Tonight all the food is right in front of my boy so it's easy 
for him to reach.    I am praying when I wake him
tomorrow that he's getting movement back in his legs.
 
Has anyone else ever had this experience with their furry little mates?
 
Julie 



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