Sierra went to the beach

Sierra got to take a few long walks on the beach this weekend. The beach is an ideal place to walk a dog with degenerative myelopathy due to the forgiving nature of the sand. She was able to walk for about 45 minutes the first day and over an hour on the second. This jump in the amount of exercise was a bit rough and it looks like she may need a few days of recovery, but it certainly helped improve her mood in the middle of January. Sierra did well in the car, but we continue to have difficulty with good positioning in the car. The back seat really isn't big enough to allow her to move around at all and the only movement she can get is a little weight shift or the weight shifts through the cars' acceleration and decelaration.

When traveling with dogs with limited mobility consider the following tips:

1. try to ensure good positioning and alignment when lying in the car (make sure all limb are aligned and not being crushed, twisted or laid on)
2. make sure your dog can shift his/her weight to avoid pressure sores, turn your dog from side to side every hour if they are unable to weightshift
3. offer water
4. stop and take rest breaks and get your pet out of the car, even if it's just onto the grass at a rest stop, allow them to take a potty break (including expression of the bladder if necessary) to minimize bladder infections
5. try to keep travel calm and decrease stress, some pets love to travel and enjoy the change of scenery and some become more stressed, know your dog and choose accordingly
   

winter blues

Sierra has been having a harder time getting around. She is a bit more unstable and the lack of exercise through the winter is really starting to show. If the weather will get a bit warmer it would be helpful for taking her on short walks. Right now her time outside is very limited. I wonder how much mobility and strength she will regain this year if we can get back to swimming. Also, she will be going in for her senior vet visit again soon.

Sierra in the snow

Waiting for winter

I had been hoping for winter with it's cooler weather for Sierra. Well it's here now and it's not all I hoped it would be. The weather seems to be hard on her when she is outside for dinner. It's also hard for me to be motivated to take her for walks when it's windy and very cold.

She is doing well overall. She is still ambulatory, but has sudden falls when walking. She is able to walk up and down the stairs without help. She has not had any more episodes of incontinence. She is still on the supplements, which truly seem to make a difference. Exercise would also make a difference, but I've been less then successful keeping up with that piece.

Overall, she is happy and just like her "normal" self.

Just DM

Sierra is still doing well and still ambulatory. She has good days and bad days, but her decline is gradual and I appreciate each day. She is eating her supplements well these days with very little encouragement needed. She has had a few incidences of urinary incontinence. I am using people's chux pads under her bed to protect the floor as a just in case measure. I have noticed that as Sierra gets more ataxic she continues to have good righting reactions and often catches her balance before she falls. I appreciate this and hope to keep working on and preserving her righting reactions. There are many others going through the DM journey and I would love to hear from you- leave us a comment.
Sierra this summer with the DM sit and poor hip positioning.

Down the DM journey

Sierra has been doing well since recovering from the UTI with no more night accidents. She has finished her round of antibiotics and is already showing a good recovery overall. I notice that she is less ataxic after being off the antibiotics. She seems to be doing well in this weather, but I would like to be taking her for more walks.