shelter puppies rule replied: "i can't believe the vet didn't think it was vestibular syndrome. with vestibular syndrome, the dog isn't in pain, some will just always have that head tilt after suffering from the vestibular disease.(which is LIKE a stroke-but not a stroke. the dog experiences an episode of dizzyness, falling over, unable to walk, or walks like he's drunk, and the eyes roll in opposite directions. usually it only happens once, and it's common in senior dogs) recovery to walk again takes most dogs about 5 days but some take longer. how did the vet confirm it was a herniated disc? does the vet have proof or making guesses? the hallmark sign of vestibular syndrome is the head tilting to one side. i'd get a second opinion definately because they do recover from this also, in older dogs, their eye sight goes just like with people. to your dog, fast moving s in front of him look like shadows. so your hand to your dog could just look like a shadow. that's why he might not show as much interaction wtih you. it doesn't mean you and him can not adjust. add: sorry, yes vestibular syndrome recovery is 100% with symptoms(dizzyness)..but usually that head tilt just always stays. but the dog isn't in pain! even during vestibular disease, which has no known cause except that it happens in older dogs, the dog just feels as if he is drunk. he can't walk straight, it's like his world got turned upside down. they do recover though and chances are 98% that it won't happen again (i had alot of senior dogs) i copied this from dogster.com forum, because it's a better reply than mine and thought it would help to understand vestibular disease (where it says "I" the person is speaking for her dog...): "I had two bouts with vestibulitis. The first bout lasted about 45 mins and then--voila!--I was suddenly better. About 4-6 weeks later, it happened again, only the symptoms were far worse than the first time and mom rushed me to the vet, thinking I'd had a stroke or spinal injury. The vet diagnosed it immediately based on my rapid eye twitches (nystagmus). He said the cause of vestibular disease is often unknown and there is no real treatment, but that most dogs recover on their own within 7-10 days (other sources say recovery can be anywhere from 2 days-3 weeks, depending on the severity.) Some dogs completely recover while others, like Lucy, may be left with a minor head tilt and possibly some minor motor difficulties (Lucy still has some very mild balance issues and sometimes still wants to circle to one side, but she has learned amazingly well how to compensate). The vet said OTC Dramamine can help with the nausea caused by the loss of equilibrium and motion sickness. Vestibular disease (vestibulitits) is caused by inflammation or damage to the vestibular apparatus of the inner ear, i.e. the little hair-like filaments that line the inner ear which are the nerve transmitters to the part of the brain which controls equilibrium. Anyone who has ever had the great displeasure of an inner ear infection can appreciate the agony of having one's equilibrium out of whack. You said your vet prescribed antibiotics. Please check the antibiotics you've got and make sure it is not gentamicin, streptomycin or neomycin (all are of the same class of antibiotics called aminoglycosides). This class of antibiotics are well-known to be ototoxic, i.e., toxic to the ear and can cause deafness and/or vestibular damage. You would be amazed (well, maybe not) at how many vets are completely ignorant about this and actually prescribe one of these types of antibiotics for EAR infections. And these antibiotics do not need to be directly in contact with the ear to be ototoxic. Absorption through the skin, injection and oral dosing of these antibiotics can have equally damaging effects on the ear. In fact, I had been prescribed Neosporin (which contains neomycin) as a topical antibiotic for a skin infection just prior to my first bout with vestibulitis -- we theorize it is probably the neomycin that caused my vestibulitis. Regarding your vet prescribing antibiotics...the textbook consensus is that antibiotics aren't really necessary in treating vestibulitis, unless one is certain it is in fact an inner ear infection which caused it (and inner ear infections are notoriously hard to diagnose). Dogs with even severe cases of vestibulitis, such as Lucy, which have not been treated with antibiotics have been shown to have the same recovery rate as dogs treated with antibiotics. Hope you feel better soon.""