Articles with degenerative myelopathy (DM)

Unsteady Gait in a Dog: Raven’s Stumbling and Trouble Walking

Dealing with your dog’s mobility issues can be equally hard on you and your dog. The list of potential things that can impair your dog’s ability to walk is long and can include: injuries/trauma degenerative conditions metabolic disorders endocrine disorders heart and blood disease infections poisoning immune-mediated conditions adverse reactions neurological conditions cancer The potential suspects differ with acute or…

by Jana Rade

Canine Degenerative Myelopathy (DM): Understanding DM and Top 10 Management Suggestions

Degenerative myelopathy is a progressive disease of the spinal cord. First symptoms include loss of coordination in hind legs. When faced with a particularly difficult challenge in life, I have always felt the best weapon of combat is knowledge. Along with that is keeping a positive attitude. As a physical therapist, dealing with canine patients diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy…

by Susan E. Davis PT

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of America, and an award-winning author in my spare time. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care into my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough, but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn, and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian, and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to use 20 years of hard-earned experience to save others from the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way, as I did.

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