Gorgeous five-year-old Rocky, a German Shepherd dog was referred to our Neurology team for further investigations as he wasn’t able to walk using his back legs and he had severe back pain.
His owner originally thought Rocky’s lameness in his back legs might be because of a slipped disc. He said “We didn’t really know what was making Rocky ill. He was very bad and we didn’t know if he would make it.”
Beatrice Carletti, one of our Consultants in Neurology carried out investigations and an MRI scan with our Diagnostics team which revealed he had an infection in one of his intervertebral discs, which was the cause of his severe symptoms. Analysis of the scan revealed the spinal infection had spread from Rocky’s urinary tract.
Beatrice said “He needed urgent treatment and was immediately started with antibiotics, together with an intense programme of physiotherapy and hydrotherapy.”
Following the start of his treatment, Rocky slowly started to recover and after a week was able to walk with the assistance of a sling.
Beatrice added: “During the following weeks and months Rocky was rechecked routinely and his owner worked very hard to provide him with intense physiotherapy. It’s great to report that a few months down the line Rocky has made a full recovery.”
Rocky’s owner added: “Beatrice and her team were really good and kept us well informed and treated Rocky very well. Rocky’s well on his way to being the dog he used to be.”
