Ben the dog and his Spinal Injury

I am just such a lucky pup, I had another holiday in the Lake district at the beginning of September, I loved it there.  We went to loads of great places for walks and I met lots of new friends as well as having a few swims. It was great all round

That picture was taken at a place called Tarn Hows and it was fanatastic for walking and swimming.  I then had 2 days in Manchester where we stayed in the city centre in a busy hotel, that wasn't nearly as much fun but I still met lots of nice people

Mum and Dad held a quiz night in a local pub at the end of September to raise money for the Vet Hospital that treated me, and they had a good night, despite the fact that dad made the questions way too hard for most people to answer. There were 11 teams on the night and so far mum and dad have helped to raise over £235 for the hospital so that is brilliant.

A huge thanks to all who donated time and money and of course prizes.

Mum has still been really worried about how much I arch my back and how I sometimes bunny hop and drag my legs so she contacted a physiotherapist who specialises in dogs and horses.  And I have now had my initial assesment appointment.  She was really nice and I got very excited! But she thinks she will be able to help me.

My main problem is that I not really aware of what my legs are doing and because of this I have started to use my front legs and my chest muscles a lot more than I should be doing and have built up quite solid muscles.  But, because this is not how I am meant to be using my muscles it means I walk differently and am also not giving my hindquarters a chance to regain strength.

I have to learn to be more aware of my legs and what they are doing which should encourage me to think more about where I place them and this should help me use the muscles in a more correct manner.  I also need to build up strength in them and stop using my front muscles so much.  Gillian, the physio, has given mum lots of ideas and the good news is I have to get lots of massage and cuddles as my muscles will be quite sore as I havn't used them for a while.  Gillian says I am young and fit and she is confident she can help me.

She is coming again next week to see me, but in the meantime mum has to try the following:-

Tying a piece of stretchy soft fabric around my back left hock area(my left side is very noticeably weaker) mum is going to use cut up tights, this should make me more aware and make me think about what my legs are doing.  I have to be walked as mucgh as possible off lead for shorter walks so as not to fatigue muscles.

Mum also has to encourage me to use the muscles in my back and back legs by getting me to stand and then lifting up 1 of my front paws for a few seconds and repeating this, this should encourage me to transfer my weight diagonally and help me use the muscles in my back.  I am not keen on this at all as I feel all out of balance and that I am a bit vulnerable.  The physio explained that my natural instincts are to be on my feet and able to move in what ever way I can as that is my fight or flight instinct, so mum just has to be gentle and patient.  The really good bit is I have to get lots of play and sitting and standing but on a blown up air bed as this will put me slightly off balance and encourage me to use all my muscles more.

Mum is also trying to find a hydrotherapy pool with a treadmill as the physio thinks this would help me too.  I basically ned to be actively encouraged to use my back legs more in order to correct my muscle tone and usage and then my posture.

Gillian is coming back next week so you will get a full update, probably with pictures, next month