Quote:
Originally Posted by Ellie May  I'm concerned for this pup just because neck pain is never good. 
To the original poster, if you have any doubts, please get a second opinion just in case. |
Yea.... I don't think I would be happy to just accept that he hurt himself...
You can do a search of AAI/AAS
Here is a summary of AAI/AAS. I am not trying to scare you, but it is very serious, and unfortunately yorkies are prone to this. It is something to at least know a little about-
WHAT IS ATLANTO AXIAL INSTABILITY "SUBLUXATION" ?
The neck is made of seven vertebral bones, or cervical vertebrae, which are connected by ligaments. Each vertebra fits precisely with its neighbor to form a joint. The spinal cord is located in a tunnel within the vertebrae, where it is protected from injury.
The first cervical vertebra is called the atlas; it holds up the head like Atlas held up the world. The second cervical vertebra is called the axis. The atlantoaxial joint is held in place by several ligaments and by a bony prominence of the axis called the dens, which fits in a hole in the atlas.
If the ligaments or the dens do not develop correctly or are injured, the atlantoaxial joint becomes unstable.This is a result of a birth congenital defect meaning your pup got this from the mother or father. Or it can be acquired do to a accident(hit by car, jumped on etc.) This places the delicate spinal cord at risk for injury. Symptoms of spinal cord injury vary with the severity of the injury. Dogs with mild cases may only show neck pain. Those with more severe cases can have an unstable, wobbly, drunken gait
and those with very severe cases can be completely paralyzed in all four legs, or suddenly die. Death is often due to injury to the respiratory center in the spinal cord, making the animal stop breathing. Mortality rate is 80% live and 20 % die.
Congenital atlantoaxial instability is usually seen in toy breeds less than one year of age. Breeds most often seen for this problem include the Yorkshire Terrier Chihuahua, Pomeranian, Pekingese, and Maltese.
Dogs with birth congenital atlantoaxial instability are born without proper ligament support of their atlantoaxial joint, or are born without a dens, or both.
The instability that is present can predispose the dog to a major spinal cord injury with only a minor incident, such as jumping off a piece of furniture, shaking their heads. It is really hard to say what minor incident might case these delicate vertebra to become unstable in a congenital AAI/AAS pup. Atlantoaxial instability can also develop in any dog after a major traumatic event, such as getting hit by a car.
BLEU BOY BARBER is a great resource for this information as she's been there with her baby, Bleu Boy.