Posts Tagged ‘Spinal Cord’
Tumors In Senior Dogs
Tumors of the brain and spinal cord are seen with relative infrequency in senior dogs, the former having a higher incidence in boxers and Boston terriers
Symptoms will vary depending on the actual location and size of the tumor but will often include dullness, staggering, pressing the head against a wall, walking in circles, convulsions, or just weakness in one or more legs.
In the hands of a competent veterinary neurosurgeon, many spinal tumors can be removed if detected before permanent damage has been done to the spinal cord in senior dogs.
Chemotherapy is sometimes needed for senior dogs and a brief period following such an operation. Brain tumors can only occasionally be removed, as most are inoperable due either to their size or location within the brain.
Such was the case with my dog TiTi, a gentle and ever so lovable standard poodle. Within a period of only one week he became suddenly aggressive, growled often at his owner, developed an insatiable appetite, and finally had a severe convulsive seizure.
In consultation with a veterinary neurologist, an inoperable brain tumor was diagnosed. Medication controlled the symptoms and improved the dog’s behavior for almost a month, then seizures started again, but with increased frequency and severity. Medication was ineffective at any dose and TiTi was euthanized.
This could happen to any dog but are most common in senior dogs.
Rare Diseases That Strike Senior Dogs
Fortunately,senior dogs have relatively few disorders of the brain and spinal cord associated with the process of growing old. Arteriosclerosis, that bane of human aging and a primary cause of senility, is quite rare in dogs. Hence it is unusual indeed to meet a truly senile dog.
Cerebral hemorrhage, also called apoplexy or stroke, is likewise a very infrequent occurrence in senior dogs. Rabies is caused by a virus which is attracted specifically to nerve tissue and is transmitted by the bite of a rabid animal. However, there have also been rare reports in recent years of airborne transmission.
It has been traditionally believed for centuries that once symptoms of rabies develop, death is inescapable, and because of the hazard to other animals and people, senior dog are euthanized if they have not yet bitten anyone.
Recent reports of two human rabies cases which were treated successfully and survived the development of rabid symptoms, if confirmed, may possibly alter the present grim outlook for rabid dogs. With the extremely effective and safe vaccines available today to protect senior dogs, however, there is no excuse for you to ever have to worry about this disease.