Canine jumps into rehabilitation

Beautiful Brumbelow (Photo courtesy LeAnne Brumbelow)

When Beautiful Brumbelow, a mixed breed dog, was 4 years old, she was living in a shelter when a high school volunteer came in to take her for a walk. After immediately falling in love with the dog, the volunteer and her mother, Leanne Brumbelow, adopted her and welcomed her into their family.

Eight years later, now 12-years-old, Beautiful was playing in the family backyard when she attempted to jump over a temporary fence, but did not make it. The family dismissed it as an innocent mishap, but did notice that she had a slight limp after the jump. The following morning, her family noticed that her toes turned under Beautiful’s feet, and she was unsteady, so the family brought her to an emergency veterinarian. Beautiful was examined and was sent home with instructions to keep quiet and limit activity to help her recovery, but the family knew this could present a challenge.

The family would be proven correct when 3 days later, Beautiful attempted to jump over the sofa to greet guests and aggravated her injury. Her condition then began to deteriorate and within days, she could not get up after going to the bathroom. This led the family to immediately call her veterinarian and when they arrived at the clinic, Beautiful was unable to walk. The family veterinarian recommended hospitalization to keep her immobile and under close observation, where she began to ‘perk up’ after 2 days.¹ She was able to stand up to go to the bathroom but could not walk and she was eventually discharged with plans to visit the neurology team at the Colorado State University (CSU) the next week.

During her initial evaluation at CSU, Beautiful received a thorough pain management treatment to decrease the inflammation and was then brought to meet Brumbelow in the lobby in a blue stroller by Sasha Foster, MSPT, CCRT, and CSU veterinary rehabilitation coordinator. “Sasha unzipped the stroller, and I couldn’t believe it when Beautiful slowly stepped out and walked a short distance to me,” said Brumbelow. “She wagged her tail for the first time in over 2 weeks!”

According to the release, Foster recommended weekly physical therapy appointments, at home exercises to improve her strength, and pain management to work on bringing Beautiful back to normal function. After her second physical therapy appointment with the team at CSU, she was cleared to go on short walks outside.

“With neurology cases, recovery is never a straight line. The neurologists recommend seeing if there is progress about every 2 weeks. If there is progress every 2 weeks, the pet may continue to improvement,” explained Foster.

Beautiful is continuing to progress thanks to the dedication to at-home exercises by her family and a commitment to regular rehab appointments. She had weekly sessions for 2 months, including walks on an underwater treadmill, and then she graduated physical therapy.

“A huge component in her recovery was her owner’s dedication,” said Foster. “Leanne did an incredible job of initially limiting her activity and completing her home exercises, then slowly increasing her activity level within the prescribed home exercise plan. We only see pets 1 to 2 times per week. Continuity of care is provided by the owners at home. Leanne’s care of Beautiful at home was a key factor in her recovery.”

Beautiful and her family need to continue to complete regular exercises at home to strengthen her core and manage any sore muscles and because she is predisposed to injuring her back. Beautiful's new motto will be 'all 4 on the floor,' according to Foster.

Reference

Mingus L. CSU veterinary rehab experts and a dedicated family help pup walk again. Colorado State University. Published July 12, 2024. Accessed September 4, 2024. https://cvmbs.source.colostate.edu/csu-veterinary-rehab-experts-and-a-dedicated-family-help-pup-walk-again/