Diablo – Page 5 – Second Chance AIHA Dogs

Keymaster

Tara,

How frightening for you to come home to this. I am so sorry this is happening to Diablo. Let’s look at this carefully to see what we can figure out together.

The medical terminology that applies to the signs you are seeing may include nystagmus, head tilting and ataxia. In order, this would be involuntary eye movements, tilting of the head and walking to one side and the inability to voluntarily control movement.

These symptoms fall under the category of vestibular disease. The vestibular system helps us keep our balance and keep ourselves properly adjusted to gravity (coordination.) Several structures of the brain, the cranial nerves and the middle and inner ear work together to provide us with balance.

There are many causes for this to happen and there can be a sudden onset like this. If this continues a vet visit is important to determine the cause and then the treatment.

However, let’s start with the most direct and common cause in a dog which may be linked to an ear infection and possible rupture of the ear drum. Infections can lead to an disrupted processing in the middle or inner ears. This would be called a peripheral cause of vestibular disease. Simply addressing the infection may resolve the issue. This may include antibiotics and the short term use of prednisone to reduce inflammation in the inner ear. If he responds to this then you have your diagnosis.

In some cases a dog may have contact with a foxtail seed which can bury into the body, say the nose, and travel to many places inside the body. This is a difficult diagnosis and removal of the seed may be difficult.

Some older dogs begin to develop vestibular disease and it may be related to age . If a vet can rule out other causes this may end up being the diagnosis. The treatment is management and, while it looks awful, it is not particularly troublesome to most dogs. It may begin to cause nausea and loss of appetite and those symptoms would need to be managed.

Central vestibular disease is different and is related to changes to the brain structures (for instance a tumor.) Examining the behavior of the eyes and limbs can give a vet important clues about this. This may include many different tests which could be quite expensive or an experienced vet may be able to diagnose solely based on this exam.

So for now, Diablo is probably not suffering. If he isn’t vomiting or refusing to walk then you can schedule an appt this week with the vet. Examine his eyes to see if they are moving oddly. Think back to any previous ear infections, does he have a tendency to these? Make a list of these things and take a movie of him when he is walking oddly so you can show the vet. If you see any sudden negative changes take him to emergency. This might include refusing to move, vomiting, and collapsing.

I am really hoping this is just a garden variety ear infection. Is some cases these symptoms are temporary and resolve mysteriously with no intervention. Please don’t hesitate to email me if you need to talk more.

my best, patrice

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