Neurologic conditions are serious, but we talked with an expert who assured us: Your dog can recover and go on to live a happy life. Just like for us, back problems in dogs can be annoying, debilitating, and most of all painful—especially when it comes to IVDD (intervertebral disc disease). IVDD can cause as little as minor back pain for your dog, but sometimes it can be much more severe, says Michael Petty, DVM and author of Dr. Petty's Pain Relief for Dogs: The Complete Medical and Integrative Guide to Treating Pain. The key for treating your dog is to keep at it. Your dog can recover and continue to live a happy life. Don't think you need to opt for euthanasia right away. "These cases can take a long time," he says. "... Be patient." What is IVDD? Intervertebral discs are the hockey puck-like pads or material that sit between your dog's vertebrae. Their outsides are fibrous while the insides are made up of more of a gelatin-like consistency, Petty says. The discs are there to provide a cushion for your dog's spine as she moves around. Petty offers up two main causes of intervertebral disc disease. One is simply age. The "jelly" part of the discs will dry up as your dog gets older, making them more susceptible to rupturing or breaking. That's IVDD. Younger dogs can sustain IVDD from an impact, exercise, or action that causes excess pressure on an intervertebral disc, causing it to rupture, Petty says. Symptoms of IVDD in Dogs These can run the gamut from…