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My dog pulled a muscle in her neck. I have been to the vet and she is taking steroids, a muscle relaxer, and valium for the spasms. This happened a week ago and I'm not seeing any progress. Infact today seems like the worse day yet her neck has been spasming for the past hour and a half. How long does something like this last and is there anything else I can do?
Optional Information: Type of Animal: Boston TerrierGender: femaleAge: 3
HiCustomer
Welcome to Just Answer. I'm sorry to hear that your little isn't responding to the therapy at this point. Honestly, if it isn't getting better there is most likely something else going on in the cervical / neck area to cause the discomfort - more specifically intervertebral disk disease, or other compression on the spinal cord. Pressure on the spinal cord can cause discomfort like your describing. What is causing the compression is up in the air at this point. To get further information, films of the neck and other advanced imaging would be needed. Based on what is found, then more therapy can be presented. At this point, there isn't anything more medically to add in to the current meds besides strict rest / cage confinement for a couple weeks. If it is that painful, surgery starts to become the fore-runner for treatment. Here is a good link to read.
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=2785
Dr. Bruce
She had an xray and the doctor did not see anything wrong with the spinal cord. Part of the problem is that she gets excited easily, when we get home etc. As calm as we are she tightens back up, even when she goes to the bathroom (poop) she tightens. How long does a pulled muscle take to heal?
The x-ray your vet took is good at evaluating boney changes. They aren't the best at evaluating if there is a compression on the spinal cord or dynamic instability. These require MRI or a mylelogram to fully evaluate. If this is a muscle pull, it should be something that has resolved in a week or so. I wouldn't expect a muscle strain to be uncomfortable over 2 weeks.
Experience: 12 years of experience as a small animal veterinarian