Border Collie with Hydrosyringomyelia

[sarahsum]

Blue's of day could have something to do with the fact that air pressure has been pretty high in the UK today - round the 1020mb level. It's forecast to drop quite a lot over the next few days, so you may find that Blue perks up again. Air pressure does seem to affect dogs with SM.
Kate, Oliver and Aled

Well like you say, the air pressure has dropped, he managed to eat his breakfast without choking, his neck is straighter, his balance is back.....and i suddenly feel a lot happier....new iphone app installed to monitor air pressure so I don't spend another day caterwauling when he goes wobbly again! But what a flipping b***er when even the air pressure is against our dogs!!

[Love my Cavaliers]

Which iphone app did you get? I'm thinking of getting it to monitor changes in Riley. Yesterday she was walking sideways and had trouble getting up the one step into the house and all this talk about the barometric pressure has me wondering if it's affecting her.

[sarahsum]

My friend gets migraines and she said last night it was a horrendous migraine cos of the pressure. I have one called weather board, and another one that was on my iPad, I think it's weather HD. They don't forecast they just measure. But you can go online and get a forecast of air pressure. He's a little better tonight but it will probably take him several days to recover.

[Kate H]

If Blue does get affected by air pressure, it would be worth asking your vet or Chestergates if you could give him an extra gabapentin on those days, or keep some metacam in the cupboard for an emergency boost. They may not stop his wobbles but should help his pain and discomfort. Though he may be less affected as he gets more used to his medication.

I suppose it's not really surprising that air pressure affects dogs, when you think the dilated ventricles are pushing the skull outwards and then the air pressure starts pushing in the opposite direction from outside. It must feel rather like a very bad migraine - horribly painful, though not all SM dogs are affected so badly.

Kate, Oliver and Aled

[sarahsum]

i gave him an extra gabapentin anyway...my vet had said i could increase to three, and the sight of him hanging his head made me give him the extra dose. We had a pet service at our church today & he managed to go, its a lovely service. He's not as good as he was, but considering the width & extent of his syrinx he is amazing to be able to walk. He is happy enough, he has just been attacking the hoover!

[Karlin]

3 times a day would be pretty normal for gabapentin, so I wouldn't feel too concerned at adding a 3rd dose if you are only doing two as the norm. It's probably useful to just keep in the back of your mind that it often is not enough to give it only twice a day, because it tends to begin to wear off at around 8 hours for most dogs (But not all). But it might be something you want to ask about at Chestergates at some future point, if you are consistently seeing occasional discomfort in Blue. Also, you may find that you end up needing to increase the dose he is on. It is really hard to know if that might happen, given that he doesn't have syringomyelia that is associated with the Chiari-like malformation. Recent research in cavaliers has indicated that the malformation can progress, as well as syringomyelia itself, but if there aren't the problems associated with the malformation, then I guess a lot more would be unknown (in a condition where already, so much remains unknown! One of the best known human specialists in this condition said that he still saw the condition as a complete enigma even after dedicating his life to understanding it better). I think it is hard to know whether some dogs need to increase their dose of gabapentin (just as some people do with the condition) because the condition is progressing, or because the effect of the drug begins to wear off. But a lot of us have found that we have had to increase dosage over time, and that we also need to go from 2 to 3 times a day.

Shifts in pressure definitely can affect dogs with this condition–Leo tends to be more uncomfortable when the weather is turning more stormy, but he also had a very hard time during a period when there was really good weather and we were over visiting in the UK. I usually give him something extra at those times.

[sarahsum]

Unfortunately his scan didn't cover his brain properly, Mr Skerritt thinks his middle ear might be affected too. Maybe that is affecting his balance. That seems to be his trouble at the moment, especially in the evening, his back legs seem quite wobbly when in the past they have been strong. He can still jump on the settee though and chase down the garden when it suits him!
I have taken the decision not to have surgery on him. He has such a severe syrinx that I think the stress of surgery and the separation from us is just not worth it. He has fought so hard and well and bravely that I don't want to put him through more of an ordeal for an uncertain outcome.
Tonight he has had roast beef etc and pancakes for pudding.....and now he is lay across my feet. He loves me so much and the feeling is mutual, I feel lucky to have him. X

[Sabby]

Unfortunately his scan didn't cover his brain properly, Mr Skerritt thinks his middle ear might be affected too. Maybe that is affecting his balance. That seems to be his trouble at the moment, especially in the evening, his back legs seem quite wobbly when in the past they have been strong. He can still jump on the settee though and chase down the garden when it suits him!
I have taken the decision not to have surgery on him. He has such a severe syrinx that I think the stress of surgery and the separation from us is just not worth it. He has fought so hard and well and bravely that I don't want to put him through more of an ordeal for an uncertain outcome.
Tonight he has had roast beef etc and pancakes for pudding.....and now he is lay across my feet. He loves me so much and the feeling is mutual, I feel lucky to have him. X

I think everybody on this Forum can tell how much you love Blue. I know how you feel; I feel the same about my Harley. He is my world.