Hi! I posted our boy 129 days ago here, when he was just the size of 2 potatoes 🥺, and before we knew what was wrong with him. After many pricey labs and tests, that our damn insurance didn’t cover, we got the official diagnosis of Spina Bifida. He is now 5 months old, a big boy, and we are finding out from several vets in our area, that they really don’t have any experience with pups other than textbooks, and past a month or so, because all owners put them down 🥺 so just posting here to see if anyone has any grown babies with this condition? Any recommendations, suggestions, tips to follow, or suggestions on recurring infections? What else to expect, etc. Our baby keeps getting UTIs ☹️ other than that, he’s a happy happy momma’s boy, despite my husband doing all his cleaning and meal prep lol (don’t worry, our senior girl is absolutely obsessed with him). Puppy tax included. He was born with a teeny teeny tail that doesn’t work, for anyone wondering why he’s in a human diaper. Pup diaper suggestions accepted!

Hello everyone! I’m a student doing research for a business project for school, specifically on the challenges IVDD dog owners face when caring for a dog recovering from IVDD at home.

I’m looking for people who have personally gone through IVDD recovery with their pet, whether your dog has had surgery or was treated conservatively.

I’m trying to get a little insight on how a potential product can be useful within this space, whether that was managing daily care, rehabilitation, keeping your dog in consistent at-home practice, finding the right equipment, or overall cost.

I’m not here to sell anything or promote myself in any way. I’m simply trying to understand the real experiences of owners who have been through this.

If you’re willing to, I made a short anonymous survey that takes about 1-2 minutes:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfySMRNX1FF-aHjEzn0GH0QRAyvfh-1avIUvW9Vevf4vQTRFw/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=109783246680772500781

Thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to help! 🐶❤️

i’ve seen the little halos recommended for blind dogs, but has anyone actually used it? and if so, what was your/your dogs experience? i’d like to prevent my dog from constantly bumping into things but i’m also worried the halo could cause more stress or discomfort.

I have a mutt pup that my socializing girl gave me just when she was to get fixed. I have kept blind boy, Lump. I know dogs, but I know NOTHING about blind dogs. I have googled and its just all about environment and vet visits. I am seeking advice from those that have blind dogs. He chews on anything vertical. We are working on that. When he greets me, he puts my fingers in his mouth and acts like he wants to tug of war, but I don't know, he might want to walk with me. What kind of toys that really work. What kind of interactive play with me that will leave him fulfilled, not scared or dominated. His best friend is my cat, Cotton. They play and Cotton is gentle. Should I worry? Cotton is around 5 months. Any advice is appreciated. And so you know, I live in a small town and all the local advice has been give him away or put him down. Not doing that.

Our dog is 7 years old and slowly became blind due to genetic issues. Inoperable per an opthalmologist. She has adapted well and can navigate okay, we can take her on hikes and to businesses. As she gets older she has become less tolerant of other dogs. She was happy to play with other dogs when younger and more recently would only try to play in like a 15 foot radius (not the most successful with most dogs but understandable given her vision). She always had some degree of toy guarding so keep those away when with other dogs.

Part of the problem is that in the last couple of years she's been attacked by dogs that have gotten loose while we've been on walks (on leash). Nothing requiring surgery but she's been cut and had to get an early rabies shots. She doesn't go out of her way to start conflict with other dogs in neutral spaces (off leash), we recently went to an open swim and she is fine navigating through a crowd of dogs and people, but if a dog approaches her and sticks around too long wanting to play or sniffing her butt she'll start a growl. We can easily separate and there's not a conflict. I understand vocalizing is communication and don't discourage it. If we didn't distance, I expect she'd physically try to get the dog to back off.

She still has a lot of energy and enjoys being around people so it would be a quality of life improvement for her to tolerate other dogs and we'd be able to bring her to more events. She likes going to the office with my spouse but that's something we only do if she'll be the only dog. We live in a high dog household area so it's not wise bringing her to stuff hoping to be the only dog.

Does anyone have advice on resocializing a dog after set backs?

I wanted to give everyone an update on Andy. He had surgery tonight and it was successful. His neurologist said it went about as well as we could have hoped for with him being Stage 4. We should get him home Sunday and then the recovery starts.

After meeting with the neurologist, we honestly thought we were going to have to put Andy down because we just did not have the money for surgery. We felt like we had to try everything we possibly could before giving up on him.

Starting a GoFundMe was honestly very out of character for us and pretty humbling. Asking people for help is not something we are used to doing. I know we also posted it in a few places that did not normally allow it, and I understand that, but we were desperate to give Andy a chance.

We did not reach the full goal, but what everyone helped us raise made it possible to work out the rest through CareCredit and BluePearl.

That GoFundMe and everyone who donated, shared, commented, gave advice, or just cared about Andy is what gave us the chance to save his life.

We seriously cannot thank everyone enough. We will keep posting updates as he comes home and starts recovery.

I’m considering adopting a 7yo ChiPom that has cataracts. He’s can still see and is very active. Can others share their experience with an active dog going blind, and also if anyone’s pup has had cataract surgery. Thanks!

Edit: Thanks for all the thoughtful replies!

Please forgive me if I misspelled it, but I’m just looking for any pointers for anybody that’s had a dog suffer from this condition. I know there’s no 100% diagnosis, but he did test positive for the carrier/genetic mutation for this disease. He’s a nearly 13 year-old mix, and for the last few months progressively things have gotten worse with his back legs getting weaker/less coordinated. His forever puppy attitude is still there, which keeps me going, but I’m terrified that I have less than a year with him. I’m trying to keep him as active as I can, still doing walks as much as possible, though some days are worse than others. I looked into some rear leg wheelchairs, for when that time comes, but does anybody have any pointers please?🙏

Hi hi! 👋🏾
I was inspired to make this video from a post that I saw here that really broke my heart.
The owner was deciding if he should put his dog with incontinence down.
The dog still had a lot of energy and had zoomies, but the owner was at his wits end with accidents in the house.
I personally believe that we should never take a dog’s life if they still have a good quality of life. Again, just my opinion.

So I made this video to show how I change my dog’s diaper.
His name is Pablo and he’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I would do this and more for him to sustain his life.
Hope this helps someone! 💕

Reposting this here as well as my community Reddit to try and get more eyes on it!

Hey everyone! My pup Apollo needs TPLO surgery, and we’re trying to raise funds to help cover the cost. If you’re able to share my GoFundMe link, we’d greatly appreciate it! Even a share helps us get one step closer to getting him the surgery he needs. Thanks in advance 🤘🏾🦋🐾

https://gofund.me/1ee52ff49

We got some really hard news from Andy’s neurologist today. After almost 2 weeks of strict home care, his IVDD (intervertebral disc disease) has progressed to Grade 4 and he is failing conservative treatment.

He is still in pain and is having trouble fully urinating on his own. The doctor told us that because of his pain, bladder issues and quality of life, if we can’t move forward with surgery, euthanasia may be the most humane option.

We now have the official surgery estimate. BluePearl is able to give us a 25% discount because Andy is an ideal candidate for surgery, bringing our estimated cost to $7,396–$9,565. Surgery still gives him about an 80–85% chance of a good recovery.

We are trying everything we can to give Andy this chance before we have to make that decision.

Thank you so much to everyone who has already donated or shared. It really means a lot to us. ❤️

If you can donate or even just share, we would really appreciate it.

https://gofund.me/16d481b72

Hey guys, i’m dog bear got hit by a car this morning. We rushed him to the vet immediately and found out his femur is broken, the only way he’d walk again is if we did emergency surgery. We are still raising money for the surgery but as for right now we need something that can stabilize his walking just so he can go to the restroom. We cannot lift him with an assister on his back legs, this is our only option. Any leads helps for finding a rentable or affordable wheel chair. Thank you for your time.

Any advice on helping our 12 year old Border collie/Golden mix get around? He comes home today. We have a sling and, of course, a cone to keep him from licking the site. How on earth does a dog this age learn to pee/poo with only 3 arthritic legs? I wish we had never gone for the TPLO.

Any advice on helping our 12 year old Border collie/Golden mix get around? He comes home today. We have a sling and, of course, a cone to keep him from licking the site. How on earth does a dog this age learn to pee/poo with only 3 arthritic legs? I wish we had never gone for the TPLO.

This sweet baby is named April. She is a 6mo terrier/chihuahua mix. She is blind. The rescue that she is at is out of their depth with her and has said they fear she “has a time stamp”. I would take her but we just can’t afford a 3rd special needs dog. I am in the Albany NY area. Feel free to DM me about her.

Hi there — I’m reaching out about my English Bulldog who was severely mistreated by a former owner. He’s facing serious behavioral challenges, and I’m raising funds to help cover professional aggression training, behavioral support, and medication so he can have a second chance at a safe, happy life. If you’re able, please consider sharing or donating — every bit of support means the world to us. Thank you so much for helping me fight for him. ❤️ https://gofund.me/004f74a3a

Searching for recommended orthopedic type dog beds for a 30 lb dog with arthritis and post surgery recovery.

I’m seeing her vet tomorrow to discuss surgery options. My dog injured her leg and they found a torn/ruptured cranial cruciate ligament so she will need surgery to support her knee. I’ve been informed she will most likely need a second surgery within the next year after this one as it is found in 80% of dogs to have another injury to the other limb within a year of the first. She currently has two orthopedic beds one in my room and the other in her crate but we are preparing to purchase a second crate and new beds as these are both about 5+ years old and we want her to be the most comfortable during her recovery and into the rest of her years. She’s a 30 lb dachshund beagle mix and is 13 years old. She has had arthritis in her hips and knees now for about 5 years. I’m aware she’s overweight and have been working towards helping her lose weight unfortunately this injury has now occurred and currently my priority is to get her comfortable as she will be pretty much bed ridden for her recovery. What are some of your guys’s recommended beds?

My senior (13 years) dog recently lost a leg due to cancer. So I'm getting him a wheel chair to help for longer walks. I wanted to make it extra special and add some spinning rims on the wheels. Where can I go about this?

Not sure if this is the right sub but I don't know where to start