Preventing spinal problems...

[lala25]

Bruno is only a year and half old but I hear so many stories about doxies having spinal cord injuries and it's really scary. I read an article online that said to not let your doxie use stairs or jump. I never let Bruno use the stairs...I carry him up and down. He doesn't like them anyways. But he always jumps off of our bed. He has a set of doggie stairs to get onto the bed but jumps off when he wants down. I guess it's pretty high for a little doggie but he doesn't seem to care. Should I be worried?

[Rae]

Is Bruno your first doxie, and did you get "Dachshunds for Dummies" yet? If the answers are yes he is and no I don't have it, get thee to a bookstore ASAP. Duchie is my first doxie and I found her in my barn. I did no research before getting her because she just turned up, and D for D would have been incredibly helpful.

It's not so much spinal cord injuries that you have to worry about as IVDD which is a disk disease. The cartilage between their disks wears out and they "go down" and sometimes the disk fuse. It can be very painful, and it can leave them with limited or no control over pottying, number 1 and number 2... and some doxies end up in carts, which is the human equivalent of a wheelchair for the back end.

Jumping can be harmful, especially jumping down. Stairs are not good either. Sometimes its imporrisble to keep them from it, though!

You are a good hoo-parent for realizing that an ounce of prevention can be worth a pound of cure! Bruno is a lucky pupper.

[lala25]

I had a doxie growing up from the age of 9 to 18 but I never did alot of research on them. My past doxie had severe allergies and arthritis but never any spinal problems. It's so hard to prevent him from jumping off the bed because he sleeps with us every night and he wouldn't have it any other way. The doggie stairs consist of 4 stairs and he jumps from the top onto the bed but I never let him use other stairs. I don't want him to end up with any problems later on down the road. I am definitely going to buy that book...thank you.

[Rae]

He is a cutie patootie and its easy to see he has stolen your heart... :cheer2: :cheer2: :cheer2: for you for wanting to take such good care of him!

[Jen]

He might like a ramp to the bed better than stairs. We have a ramp for Tasha and she uses it when we're around. However, when we're gone during the day I see evidence she jumps from the big bed, to her bed, to the floor when she wants a drink of water. People here have made ramps or you can buy them.

Good for you for being proactive! Tasha is just 5 but she's had two back incidents where she was hunched and hurting. Pain meds and strict rest did the trick and now we give her supplements to help.

[Alex's Mom]

Good for you for being proactive and not letting him use the stairs...going up isn't so bad, it's the jumping down that can be a problem. Like Jen said, he might like a ramp better. Alex used stairs (little ones up to couch and bed, not big flights between floors!!! )until recently, and now I've switched to ramps because she can't manage stairs anymore. It's hard to stop them jumping down, (dachshies thinking they're indestructible ) but you might find that he prefers to use a ramp to jumping! He is absolutely the cutest of cutie patooties...that pic with the ears is priceless!!!!

[michelehbc]

Cat has a good ramp plan. If you bat your eyelases at her, she will prob. email it to you.


(if batting your eyelashes doesn't work, just tell her you'll let Bruno jump off the bed from now on- she'll send you the plans )

[LexieLuvr]

Ramps are SO easy to make - just a modified "A" frame with rubbery shelf liner on the walking portion! Even if they don't use a ramp ALL the time, every little bit helps and every walk down the ramp is one less change for a ruptured disk. With enough consistency and persistence, they CAN be trained to use a ramp 95% of the time - and that's a pretty good average! Yes, it's the shock of the body going DOWN the steps or off the couch that does the damage. Going up stairs isn't too good, but the going down is the really bad part!