THE NECK WRAP
At our next appointment he had some rather interesting news. He had talked to Dr. Durkes about the effect of the implants on Wobblers. While Dr Durkes had seen improvement through acupuncture, he had had real success with the use of a neck wrap. He explained the treatment to Dr C and we decided to give it a try. The dog is wrapped in sheets of cotton from under the ears to the shoulders and then a layer of vet wrap holds it tight. The wrap is made quite snug and should be thick. The immediate effect is to stabalize the area, but long term (this is done for at least 3 to 6 weeks and possibly longer), the theory is similar to that of surgery, just a more gradual and non-invasive route. The vertebrae is supported over a period of time, allowing the tendons and muscle to build up and support the vertebrae. (Bear with me on this, as my explanation is less than scientific or complete). In surgery, a little tool pulls the vertebrae apart and bone glue is used to fill in the area to create the stabalization needed. It requires some kind of stiff cast and extremely restricted activity, in most cases NO activity, which is one reason this was not an option for Sylvia.
|