The team, led by Dr. Natasha Olby, veterinary neurosurgeon and neuroscience professor at N.C. State, began studying paraplegic dogs nearly four years ago, testing whether two experimental drugs improve movement.
The dogs in the study had suffered some kind of devastating injury to the back, such as a fracture or herniated disk and were paralyzed in their hind legs. The results of the study revealed small but significant improvements in the dogs’ ability to take steps, she said.
“We saw that the owners could pick out when their dogs were on the drug or not, even though (the study) was blinded because they did see changes in their pet’s movements and, in some cases, in the tail wag,” she said.
While there were some dogs that showed no response, more than half showed small improvements and three actually regained almost full use of their hind legs for extended periods of time, she said.
“Our question has become, ‘Why did these dogs have such good responses while five dogs had no response, and what can we understand about what’s going on in their spinal cord that will help us to develop better, more targeted treatments in the future?’” she said.
While most canine spinal injuries are treatable through surgery, other options include physical rehabilitation at facilities like the CareFirst Animal Hospital at Glenwood.