My dog is on predazone for a slipped disk. Now for third week. Only walks normal while on drug - is this bad?

If she's not walking well without it, it is likely that she is in pain. Just to check- you've not suddenly stopped her pred have you? This can cause her to become ill- it needs to be tapered off.

If you're worried about the effects of having her on pred long term (and yep, it can have some pretty unpleasant side effects with long term use- it's called iatrogenic hyperadrenocortisicm...a form of Cushing's, if you've heard of that) it may be worth talking to your vet about weaning her off the pred and getting her onto some non steroidals such as Metacam or Rimadyl. These still potentially have their problems, but are probably safer than corticosteroids long-term. However, you CANNOT use both corticosteroids and non-steroidals together, so she would have to have a short period without meds for her to be changed over.

Physio and/or hydro may also be of benefit to her

A year ago, I lost my 14 year old DoberGirl to Wobblers -- which some refer to as "slipped discs." Wobblers can result in dragging the feet, stumbling, and ultimately, complete inability to walk. The key to understanding this disease is to realize that when the discs "wobble," or slip, they assault the spinal cord which swells. This is when the gait of our dogs is impaired because the messages just aren't getting through due to imflamation. Prednisone is a method for managing the swelling and inflamation.

For 3+ years my girl managed the disease well through the use of Prednisone -- in a mild dose -- so trust me, dogs can do well on it regardless of the horror stories.

If your girl is facing what my girl was, it truly comes down to ensuring quality of life versus quanity. 14 years for a Doberman is something to rejoice in and now its time to make her as comfortable as you can for as long as you can. If Prednisone does the trick, use it and love her to pieces.

The real trick with Predisone is to be aware of the side affects and let your vet know if you see any of them so that you can get her off the drug slowly, yet safely.

And FYI -- there are other alternatives, but they come with side affects also. Rimadyl is an option, but IMHO, not much better. Stay the course in keeping her comfy and happy. Relish your time with her. The years go by far too quickly.

At 14 years of age, I honestly wouldn't be worried about the long-term effects of pred. You DON'T want to get into back surgery if you don't have to, especially at her age. In this case the prednisone is likely the lesser of two evils. It will keep her comfortable and able to walk for a longer time, at her age she would likely pass on before the long-term effects make themselves apparent.

prednazone is a corticosteroid - an anti-inflammatory. there are differant types of corticosteroid which have differant strengths and can have differant risks of side-effect. it really depends how badly affected your dog is. it may be that you can reduce the dose which will reduce the short and long term side-effects but you really need to speak to your vet about that. physiotherapy and hydrotherapy can help to speed up recovery from disc problems. there are differant groups of anti-inflammatories but really none work as well in this problem as corticosteroids.

really you need to balance the potential risks against her quality of life. if she is struggling without the medication then you may need to accept the risks to long term health i.e. chose quality over quantity of life