So now two and a bit years from diagnosis I am finally getting started with the writing process.
This entry is just a little bit of information about the disease, further blog entries will cover diagnosis, action and decline.
According to good old Wikipedia
Canine degenerative myelopathy, also known as chronic degenerative radiculomyelopathy, is an incurable, progressive disease of the canine spinal cord that is similar in many ways to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
It goes on to say that
Onset is typically after the age of 7 years and it is seen most frequently in the German shepherd dog, Pembroke Welsh corgi, and boxer dog
Which more or less confirmed my thoughts that Holly has a good chunk of Germas Shepherd in her.
A summary of the disease reads
Progressive weakness and incoordination of the rear limbs are often the first signs seen in affected dogs, with progression over time to complete paralysis. Myelin is an insulating sheath around neurons in the spinal cord. One proposed cause of degenerative myelopathy is that the immune system attacks this sheath, breaking it down. This results in a loss of communication between nerves in lower body of the animal and the brain.CDM is a very depressing subject to read about and there is a lot of information out there in internet-land. As with all things some is good some is bad and some is just plain bizarre, the problem is working out which is which!
As I write this Holly is sprawled across the floor close by flinging toys all over the place (an action that has sent the cats fleeing from the room in search of a safer place to snooze) and occasionally woofing at me when she has flung them all out of reach and is trying her luck to get me to gather them all back up for her. All things considered Holly is still a very happy and healthy girl with a great enthusiasm for going out and about, preferably somewhere muddy and wet.
