Spinal cord injury in dogs

Department of Defense Funds UCSF and Texas A&M Collaboration to Test Therapy that May Help People

An experimental drug being tested by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences — may help dogs with spinal cord injuries.

The U.S. Department of Defense,funded the study to test a drug to mitigate damage and it has already proven effective in mice at UCSF. Now the Texas team will test how it works in previously injured short-legged, long torso breeds of dog like dachshunds, beagles and corgis, who often suffer injuries when a disk in their back spontaneously ruptures. Continue reading Spinal cord injury in dogs

Cauda Equina Syndrome

(Degenerative Lumbosacral Stenosis)

Cauda equina syndrome (degenerative lumbosacral stenosis) is caused by compression of the nerve roots (cauda equina) coursing through the lumbosacral spinal canal in the lower back. Nerve root entrapment and pressure can result from an arthritic process, infection, a degenerative disc rupture, or tumors. Most dogs affected by lumbosacral degeneration are middle aged or older large, athletic breeds. Continue reading Cauda Equina Syndrome

Oral Bordetella Vaccine Approved

April 02, 2012
Bronchi-Shield ORAL – First Oral Bordetella bronchiseptica Vaccine Approved for Use in Dogs

Veterinarians have a new, innovative vaccine choice available for protection from the primary pathogen of canine infectious respiratory disease (CIRD). The vaccine, Bronchi-Shield® ORAL from Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. (BIVI), recently has been approved by the USDA for use in dogs. This vaccine is unique because it is the first live, avirulent Bordetella bronchiseptica vaccine licensed to be administered orally to dogs .
Continue reading Oral Bordetella Vaccine Approved

Stem cell banking for dogs

Cultured stem cells from your dog can be used for arthritis or cancer treatment in the future. Other diseases are being researched for this treatment.

How to get stem cells from your dog and then bank them:
The StemInsure service provides banked stem cells that can be grown to supply a lifetime of stem cell therapy for dogs.

The process is
Collect only 5 grams of fat (about the size of a grape).
Collect fat at spay, neuter, or any procedure where your vet uses anesthesia.
Vet-Stem processes and banks stem cells for future culturing (growing) and use.

Affordability
Reasonable up front processing cost (see your veterinarian for specific pricing).
Only $50 per year banking (storage) fee for the StemInsure sample after the first year.
Costs are spread out over time.
Avoid a separate surgical fat collection in the future.
Provide treatment options for current applications as well as future applications of stem cells.
One fat collection per patient can provide a lifetime of stem cell therapy.

Important Facts for Dog Owners: Continue reading Stem cell banking for dogs

Canine Lymphoma treatment

02.23.12
Texas A&M , UT MD Anderson Team Up to Treat Canine Lymphoma

HOUSTON – A new immunotherapy for companion dogs with advanced-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) has been shown to improve survival while maintaining quality of life, according to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports. The study resulted from a collaboration between The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital in Houston and Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine in College Station. Continue reading Canine Lymphoma treatment

Ticks moving across Canada

06 March 2012
Disease carrying colonizers on the move: predicting the spread of ticks across Canada
Researchers are watching as ticks that carry Lyme disease colonize Canada, but their research aims to predict the communities most likely to be hit by this sickness. “Our findings will help community groups and government agencies to alert the Canadians who may . . . → Read More: Ticks moving across Canada

Progressive blindness (XLRP) treatment

Gene defects in dogs and people cause a progressive, inherited blindness called Retinitis Pigmentosa (XLRP). Gene therapy treatment developed at the University of Pennsylvania was able to treat this disease in dogs.
“While the exact disease mechanism of the RPGR form of XLRP is still unknown, the researchers were able to successfully treat dogs with two different RPGR mutations. The mutations disrupt photoreceptors in different ways, but both ultimately cause them to become useless for vision. While this form of blindness is rare in dogs, it is common in humans. Patients with XLRP usually begin to lose night vision as children and become almost totally blind by middle age. ” Continue reading Progressive blindness (XLRP) treatment