Love for Raz: A Plea for Healing

Update: I had to say goodbye. I’m so grateful for all of your love and support and Laps of Love for making his last moments painless at home and surrounded by love and his toys. I’m still trying to make sense of this happening so fast, but seeing my spry, bouncy, playful dog become entirely incapacitated within days was torturous. His condition was degenerative and had such a grim prognosis. He deserves dignity. He really got dealt such a shitty hand for such a good fucking dog. Nobody could ever match his Razness and it has been such a blessing to be his mom.

******

My best friend in this entire world has gone from the happiest and most playful boy to barely being able to walk within just a couple months.

Initially in February I noticed him being painful in his rear area and tucking his tail between his legs. He got diagnosed with limber tail syndrome, basically a sprained tail and sent home with some meds. Over the next month he seemed to improve but still couldn’t wag his tail and was still not himself. His mandatory daily routine of playtime and zoomies were far and few between. He hesitated on stairs and no longer could get on our bed which is his favorite spot. I bought doggy stairs.

Last week he declined again. He was exhibiting signs of extreme pain and tremors and vocalizing his pain. I took him to a different vet and got X-rays done. The vet nor the radiologist found anything of note visible on the imaging. They said they have never seen limber tail be this painful or last this long but they had no suggestions of a differential diagnosis. He got more pain meds and gabapentin.

A few nights ago, I noticed an occasional slight wobble in his back legs. Terrified, I suspected he had a slipped or ruptured disc (IVDD in dogs). The next morning, he fell over while trying to squat down to go poo. I called a neurological specialist and scheduled a consult. He didn’t eat his supper.

Today we woke up and he can now barely walk without falling over.

Seeing him, my crazy, funny, hyper, jumpy boy like this is extremely terrifying. I can’t even imagine how hurt and confused he is right now. He is only around 7-8 years old and we have been inseparable for almost 6 of those years. I will do anything and everything I can to fight for this boy. Anybody who know me knows my life revolves around these little beings. Raz is my soul dog.

To diagnose IVDD accurately requires an MRI. 2,300-6,000$ is the estimate I found online. The neurologist couldn’t give me an estimate over the phone. I won’t know if surgery is an option or anything until our appointment with the specialist but I know whatever treatment plan they come up with will be expensive and I’d rather die than say I didn’t try.

I don’t qualify for care credit, we can’t get pet insurance as this is now a pre existing condition. I’ve already spent almost a thousand dollars on him while also trying to save the money required for us to secure housing before the end of May.

I will be updating the page with more accurate estimates depending on how the neurologist wants to proceed. Thank you for taking the time to read this.