[pyrnet] assistance for Seamus

[LynmaloneB@aol.com]

Hi Susan-
It sounds as if Seamus is on the road to recovery, but I thought I'd share a 
strategy that worked for me years ago when I had a similar issue. Slater was 
a big girl (half Pyr actually) who was severely dysplastic. She did quite 
well with her condition for most of her life. If she had a particularly 
active day she would be stiff and achy at night, but otherwise you'd never 
really know she had such bad hips. As an aside to someone on the list who 
asked about dysplasia a week or two ago - she actually got stronger as she 
matured. My vet had told me that often the body compensates for the bad hip 
joint by building up soft tissue around it (ligaments, muscle - it's been too 
long - I don't remember the details) and by age 3 a dysplastic puppy may 
actually have improved in terms of visible symptoms. That was definitely the 
case with Slater.

Anyway, back to Seamus. When Slater was about 11 years old she began having 
difficulty getting to her feet from a lying down position, difficulty with 
stairs, etc. Overall, though she was her same old self though. I made a 
special belt with handles for her that we used to help her stand up, help her 
up the stairs, and help her if she stumbled when on a walk. For the last year 
of her life she wore it all the time except at night. The belt was simple to 
make - I started with upholstery webbing that was about 4 inches wide. It's 
very strong. I then covered it with cotton (is it called batting?) like you 
would put in a quilt. I made a cover for this that was just a cotton sleeve. 
I put velcro on the ends so it would go on and off easily. Finally I put loop 
handles on each end with nylon webbing like a dog leash. When wearing it, the 
belt looked like a loose cummerbund. It worked wonderfully and Slater lived 
to be twelve and a half years old. My vet was so impressed with the success 
of the devise that he has since recommended it to other dog owners in similar 
situations. The only question in my mind is whether the same arrangement 
would work with a male dog. You might have to use it in the house only, but 
forgo it on walks.

Sorry to go on and on, but I thought someone might find a use for Slater's 
"belt." My husband used to joke that - to protect Slater's dignity - he was 
going to get a red-tipped cane so that when he and Slater went for a walk 
people would think she was a guide dog.

Sending best wished for Seamus' recovery.

Lyn and Bridger

P.S. I love in Rhode Island and have had occasion to take my animals to 
Angell Memorial on three occasions. It is an outstanding facility. It's a 
veterinary teaching hospital which operates under the umbrella of the Mass. 
SPCA.