i have an 11 year old german shepard, he just had a serious stroke that left him paralysed, will he be ok?

Question

in 2 weeks i've nursed him to full walking pace with a slight limp, any advice out there maybe from similar experiences?

Answer 1

its shepperd genius, and yes he will be fine. Dont worry, strokes are mickey mouse

Answer 2

I had a Shepard mix. At age 6 he had a spinal stroke. Basically a blood clot lodged in the spinal canal. Did your dog have a spinal or brain stroke? How paralzed is he? All four legs, back two, etc.

The stroke my dog had effected both his back legs. He was fitted for a wheel chair. After 4 months of therapy, he had partial use of one leg. He had massage, acupuncture and water (pool therapy). After 6 months, he could kinda stumble several feet.. At 9 months, he was out of the wheelchair. He lived for three years after that with only a barely noticeable limp.

11 is getting up there for a Shepard. Consult your vet on possible prognosis. But therapy would be the best for him. If he can't control his bowels, bladder, or eat properly, the most humane thing would be to put him down.

Best of luck.

Answer 3

I know a friend who had a dog and she had got paralysed too at the age of 14. She was a labrador an was ok in a while with the help of certain therapies and masages for the dog. Ask your vet about these. But the secod time it happened when she was 16 she had to put her to sleep because of the agony she was in. Your dog is still young compared to hers and he has a fighting chance. Keep fighting but if reality hits you, you have to face it. I hope your dog gets better, my prayers are with him. it is dangerous to try your own concoctions and methods too because they usually cause more damamge than good, ALWAYS ask your vet.

Answer 4

aw the poor puppy!! he does run the risk of subsequent strokes, but there is a chance he will recover from the first one without any noticeable side effects, its hard to know tho, just like in humans; without an MRI or cat scan or whatever tests they do, they wont know the extent of the damage to the brain, but if he's gone from paralyzed to walking, then i'd say you're doing pretty well. its hard to know if the limp will go away, it could be permanent damage. just keep up the work, but go easy on him, you might also want to talk to your vet about blood thinners, it will keep any clotting down, but if you dog is to get injured the blood wont clot and he could run the risk of bleeding to death (my mom's by is on blood thinners due to heart complications and he had to give away all of his chainsaws just for that reason)

good luck.

Answer 5

poor thing. I would consider trying water, or pool, therapy. This will help strengthen his muscles while not putting too much strain on him. I think you are doing a great job at rehabilitating him.

Try the pool therapy, if you dont have a pool, ask your vet if they know of a place that offers it. You can also try treadmills, they are a bit more painful for the dog, but still effective.

Answer 6

Sorry mate, big dogs have shorter life spans than smaller breeds. He may never regain the same level of activity he had before.
While he is still with you, consider getting another dog he can help tutor. That may help the loosing of "ole faithful" easier when there is "young faithful" showing some understanding of the predecessor's tricks.

Answer 7

What a stressful 2 weeks for you - I hope he'll be ok.

What I'd do if he were mine is take him to a holistic vet - I don't know if they can help your dog, but I do know they can do awesome things with laser acupuncture, chiropractic treatments and massage. It's worth a try - he's only 11. Good luck to him!

Answer 8

I'm sorry your dog is having health issues. But your dog is considered a senior age dog. You need to look at the world from his perspective. How is his quality of life? Is your dog in pain? If you want to continue down this path you might want to see about special medications (are blood thinners available to dogs?) pain medication, therapy.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Poor thing... Im sorry to say this but its best if you put you german shepard to sleep... You have no idea what kind of pain hes going thru... Its sucks... Sorry...

Answer 10

Your dog is 77 years old in human age, and from what you are telling me, the dog is doing real well. I wish you and your dog the very best, and you have my prayers.