My family has several kinds of pets. Chihuahua among them has become a rather heavy illness called atlantoaxial subluxation. Although it is a disease that requires surgery when it becomes severe, fortunately my family Chihuahua is now well treated with internal medicine. I would like to write about the symptoms that are suspected to be subluxation of the atlantoaxial joint and the treatments that were performed.
I hope it will be helpful for dogs with the same symptoms.
What is atlantoaxial subluxation?
Humans, dogs, and mammals have seven bones on their necks. Destabilization of the first or second bone from the cranial side may squeeze or damage the nerves that pass through the neck, causing paralysis and pain in the limbs. This is the subluxation of the atlantoaxial joint. It is a disease that occurs not only in dogs but also in humans.
It often occurs in small dogs among dogs, and it seems that it often occurs before the age of 2 years.
What are the visible symptoms?
When I recall now, I was giving some signals. If you have any of the following symptoms, please have a look at the veterinary hospital as soon as possible. Of course, the earlier you can detect it, the less the burden of treatment.
The way of walking is strange.
At first there were times when I was walking like dragging one leg. Did you get injured at that time? Did you break your legs? I was only thinking about it.
In fact, I walked normally after a while, and I didn’t feel any pain when I touched my foot, so I left it as “I’ll heal soon.”
Even though dog wasn’t doing anything, I suddenly screamed.
Sometimes there is a sudden screaming when there is no external factor that causes pain. I examine dog’s body to see if dog are injured but I an not find anything.
Stumble and fall.
This is a strange symptom. dog stumbled and fell while dog was taking a walk. Is it happening? I thought that, but after that, Dog tripped over with the same foot twice and three times and fell. I interrupted the walk and immediately went straight to the veterinary hospital.
Diagnosis at the veterinary hospital
Tell the veterinarian about the symptoms I wrote above.
At the veterinary clinic, I was asked to see how to walk and he touch the dog body in various ways.
First of all, cervical hernia was suspected because he stumbles and falls when walking at an animal hospital, and when he heads down, he feels pain and squeals.
For the time being, I decided to take an X-ray, but I can’t say clearly even though the gap in the neck bone is suspicious. . . It is a diagnosis. To make a clear diagnosis, you will not know unless dog have a CT.
At this point, I was very worried, “he have a serious illness …”.
CT at an animal diagnostic center and unexpected MRI.
dog will receive CT because it cannot be treated unless the name of the disease is clear. I decided to have a CT at a veterinary diagnostic center introduced to an animal hospital.
Anesthesia is essential because the dog must remain still to undergo CT.
Anesthesia has some risks, but it can’t be helped.
If you go at the reserved time, you will leave your dog for CT.
It took about an hour from anesthesia to the end of CT examination.
After about 40 minutes,
“On CT, the bones in my neck seem to be compressing my nerves. I want to continue with MRI for more clarity, is that okay?”
I was asked.
I am even more anxious. . . I’m about to cry. . .
He told me to do an MRI, and after waiting for another 30 minutes, the examination was completed and I was informed of the results.
Based on the test results, he was diagnosed with atlantoaxial subluxation.
I heard this name for the first time here. At the Veterinary Diagnostic Center, he was told that the bones in his neck were compressing the nerves, which caused paralysis of his limbs.
I am told that I have a very serious illness, and I have a lot of anxiety about what happens in the future.
I knew the name of the disease, so I consulted the future policy at the animal hospital.
I found out that it was subluxation of the atlantoaxial joint, so I consulted with an animal hospital about what to do in the future. Treatment options are “surgery” or “medical treatment”.
Surgery
Surgery is the best way to get a full cure, but of course there are risks.
First of all, I was very worried about anesthesia and the mortality of 20% during and after surgery because I touch the neck bone. In the first place, the surgery itself will be quite burdensome.
Medical treatment
If you do not undergo surgery, it is a medical treatment by taking painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs. There is a risk of recurrence that is not completely cured.
My family chose medical treatment.
Considering various things, my family avoided the risk of surgery and chose medical treatment by medication. I was asked to prescribe several types of drugs such as “analgesics,” “anti-inflammatory agents,” “nerve supplements,” “blood flow improvers,” and “neuroprotectors.
You also need to be careful not to strain your neck in your daily life. Specifically, when raising rice or water, raise it slightly so that you do not have to look down greatly.
As a result of medical treatment and rest, he recovered in about 3 months!
he rested so that he would not exercise much and continued medical treatment.
By the time I started treatment, the symptoms had deteriorated considerably and he could not walk properly.
In the case of our Chihuahua, it seems that the right half of the body couldn’t move well.
About a month after the start of treatment, dog’s walking was getting better, but it was still unstable
Two months after the start of treatment, his arm seems to be okay. When I took a walk for trial, all four legs are working fine. he didn’t get stuck.
Just in case, he took medication for another month and didn’t exercise much, so he is fine now.
Be careful of recurrence. Does dog have initial symptoms?
I cannot be relieved because the medical treatment does not completely cure and there is a risk of recurrence.
Even now, I am careful if dog has the initial symptoms described above. Be careful of recurrence. Does dog has initial symptoms?
Costs and insurance
Now for the treatment cost. First, a large amount of money costs about 100,000 for MRI and CT. In addition, it costs thousands of yen for each medical examination. This also becomes a ridiculous cost if the number of times overlaps. My family had pet insurance. This article also covers insurance use at this time, so please refer to it. Just in case, the insurance I had a year ago was very useful. Everyone is strongly encouraged to take out some pet insurance.
Summary
I wrote about the symptoms and treatment of “Axial Subluxation” of my Chihuahua. Fortunately, my family’s Chihuahua recovered from medical treatment and is now running around energetically.
The earlier you find it, the more likely it is to recover.
If you are a small dog and have a puppy, please be aware of the above-mentioned symptoms: “Walking strangely,” “Screaming in pain when you are not doing anything,” and “Stumble and fall.”
#pet #dog #Chihuahua #Atlantoaxial_subluxation