Major surgery tomorrow for a subarachnoid cyst!

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lost1700

Boxer Booster
Long read, sorry.

My 7 year old male goes into the hospital tomorrow for a major surgery to drain, if not remove, a subarachnoid cyst. The surgery will consist of making an incision in between his shoulder blades and down is back roughly 10" long. They will then have to cut through roughly 3-4" of muscle and tissue to get to the spine. To get to the cyst they will have to cut the tops off of three of his vertebrae. Hopefully this will give them enough access to attach the cyst. The neurologist said there is a 70-75% chance that my dog will return to a normal life. He will spend a week in the hospital and will have to be crated for 4-6 weeks once we get him home. He will only be allowed out to use the restroom.

Arachnoid cysts are cerebrospinal fluid-filled sacs that are located between the brain or spinal cord and the arachnoid membrane, one of the three membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. They are pretty rare and cats and dogs and not much research or study has been done. Below is a link to probably the largest study with a lot more info.

http://www.animaisparaliticos.com.br/images/biblioteca/ccc2a575f1ee47a.pdf

This past week our dog appeared sick so we took him to the vet because he has had bouts with pancreatitis and colitis. He received fluids and pepcid. It also appeared that his hips were bothering him so the vet did some physical tests to see if he was in pain, and he was not. A couple days go by and it appears that the back legs were getting worse, he was dragging his nails when he walked, was not turning properly, slow to sit and get up, and did not have good balance on his back legs. He has also been incontinent for a while now but I had always though it was due to his digestive issues. Now I know that his incontinence and his leg problems are due to the cyst. The cyst is pressing against his spinal chord basically disrupting the neurological signal to the back half of his body.

I just wanted to inform everybody about this condition and the symptoms. If left untreated our dog would eventually be paralyzed, sooner then later.
 

Gatorblu

Boxer Insane
Your poor boy! I can't even imagine how nervous you must be having his spine operated on! It sounds like your vet seems well informed about the surgery and has done a good job passing that info to you. (Always a plus in my book!) 70-75% recovery prognosis is pretty good. I will say a prayer and we are sending lots of healthy and speedy recovery (((vibes))) to your boy! Please keep us posted as how things go.
 

Tuff Love

Boxer Insane
Oh my gosh, how scary!! Wishing your boy lots of luck with his surgery, the odds of full recovery sound very positive however and that's great news! grouphugicon
 

lost1700

Boxer Booster
Thanks for the thoughts. I am definitely scared! The saddest part is that my poor Bosco has no idea what he is in for. I wish I could tell him.
 

Roge

Boxer Insane
Wow that is scary , wishing your dog the very best of luck with the surgery and also to you it will be a tough day but the prognosis is promising, I think he is a lucky boy not knowing whats going on it enough having you demented with worry. you will both be in my thoughts ,
 

ZoeyandWiley

Boxer Pal
Best of luck in surgery for your boy! He is lucky to have an owner like you :) Zoey and Wiley send wiggly butt kisses for a quick recovery!
 
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