Through the use of social media and the news, the stories of a few of the dogs diagnosed with short spine syndrome have gone viral. This is an extremely rare condition that only 13 reported dogs in the world have. The news of this disorder first came up when one of the owners of a short spine syndrome dog told her story. The video quickly went viral and many others began to tell their stories too, proving that these dogs weren’t the only ones. Although the dogs look very strange, often described as looking like a hyena, or a pig mixed with a frog, they are almost completely normal. The disorder is caused from severe shortening of the vertebral column or spine due to the compression of vertebrae, which leaves the dog with a fused spine that curves in multiple areas, crooked ribs, and cramped organs. As can be seen from looking at the dogs, it seems like they have no neck. In fact, they …show more content…
With having a strong passion for both animals and biology and all things connected to the two, I am intensely intrigued to learn more about this condition. Sadly, with this disorder being so rare and newly discovered, there is not a lot of research that I can read about or cases that I can analyze. I do find it quite touching though that so many people care about these animals, even with them not looking normal. With wanting to be a veterinarian, this disorder and the many other rare conditions in the world can be some of the many things that I study and learn about. I can use my knowledge of biology and biochemistry when I am older to analyze the conditions of these dogs to determine what causes the disorder and possibly even find a cure. Along with this, I can use this disorder as a test of my knowledge when I am a vet to determine other possible illnesses. Overall, I would simply gain knowledge of animals and their health by working with one of these dogs or just researching things about the
Owners who wish for their animal to be treated must have veterinary approval for their animal to receive the treatment from a McTimoney chiropractor. In most cases the veterinary surgeon would refer their patient to a registered chiropractor for treatment to add more effect to their veterinary treatment. This would be seen as a part of a remedy of the patient’s condition. The chiropractor will ask for a complete history of the patient at the first initial appointment to inform them on the behaviours and fitness level of the patient or if the patient has had any past problems or present problems. This information will help to define the number of treatments the animal may require and the length of each treatment. This form of treatment can be used in animals who compete at a professional level such as agility dogs or show jumping horses where great stress is forced on the animal’s joints or it can be used on animals who do not compete professional. These animals could be older dogs who find it hard to fully function due to age and disease. Many owners may regularly see chiropractors as part of their regular part of the training programme. This helps to maintain optimum performance and helps to prevent future problems. Owners would always receive specific aftercare advice for the patient. The patient’s age and the nature of the problem can influence this aftercare alongside with the patient’s current activity level and fitness level. The ranges of animals that can be treated are cats, dogs, horses, farm animals and even exotic
Most people are familiar with service dogs and have seen them in action. Animal-assisted therapy is similar service animals in that an animal-human healing partnership is being created. However, the difference is that therapy pets are typically used to treat a mental disability whereas people with physical disabilities use service dogs to help them in many ways. Therapy animals are used in a wide variety of places, such as, hospitals, prisons, nursing homes, therapy sessions, mental healthcare facilities, and even in people’s homes. These amazing animals are used on a wide variety of different disorders, but they are utilized mostly by people suffering from depression, anxiety, and PTSD. For people with these mental health disorders, everything in live can be difficult and challenging, however with the help of animal-assisted therapy, their mood, motivation, and life can dramatically improve. Anyone who hears about these brave, loving animals soon falls in love with them. From a medical standpoint, there have been many successful studies and the support for animal-assisted therapy still continues to grow in doctors and therapists across the nation.
Cervical Spine Injuries are very serious, and should always be treated as a medical emergency. The most common mechanism of this injury, among many, is the axial compression of the vertebrae due to headfirst impact (Ivancic). This mechanism is most commonly seen in American football, but is also very common in rugby, hockey, diving accidents, wrestling, gymnastics, or equestrian sports. Since this injury is so common in American football, many safety requirements have been set into place. Officials have implemented the saying of “see what you hit,” which makes it nearly impossible for axial loading to occur, due to the curvature sustained in the neck (Skovrlj & Qureshi). This has also been made an illegal tackle in some forms of football, falling under the name of “spear tackling,” and calls for penalties. These precautions are all
Case Description: The child was a 21/2 year old girl diagnosed with Caudal Regression Syndrome. The family did not want to amputate her leg at this age. She was seen in the natural environment through the
Scoliosis is a disease that attacks the muscles and ligaments of the spinal column, causing a sideways twisting and rotation of the spine, ribs, and pelvis. Its is a C-shaped or S-shaped curvature of the spine. An S-shaped curve is created when a secondary curve counterbalances primary abnormal curve. It severely impairs the bodies neurological, hormonal, and nutritional systems.
Dr. Cee, a veterinarian with a well-established practice in a small city, saw Ms. Kay's dog, Sandy, in March 1987. Dr. Cee diagnosed Sandy as having a rare blood disease. He knew of only one experimental treatment for the disease, but it was extremely expensive, lengthy, uncomfortable for the animal, and had been ninety-five percent ineffective in laboratory testing. Ms. Kay decided against trying the treatment and asked that Sandy be euthanized because she did not want him to suffer any longer. She was extremely attached so the dog and left him at Dr. Cee's with great sadness.
Abnormal spinal curvatures can either be present when born, appear due to a disease, bad posture or “unequal muscle pull on the spine”. The three different types of abnormal spinal curvature are scoliosis, kyphosis and lordosis. Scoliosis usually appears in girls, during late childhood. Scoliosis is a curvature that is towards the side(lateral) instead of it being straight down. A way to recognize scoliosis would be by noticing if one shoulder blade is higher, or sticks out more than the other, back pain, a rotating spine. This kind of spinal curvature can make it very difficult for the lungs to function. The only way to treat scoliosis would be with surgery, or a brace. This treatment has to be done way before the growth finishes to assure there is no complications with breathing and deformity. Kyphosis is a hunchback. Kyphosis usually appears in elderly people but can happen at any age. It is identified as a “dorsally exaggerated thoracic curvature” meaning it is round in the back. Kyphosis usually occurs because of disease, any fractures after osteoporosis, any kind of injuries and any form of degeneration of the spine. Its main occurrence would be due to osteoporosis. In order to treat this specific curvature one must undergo surgery once diagnosed with it, or might have to wear a brace and go to physical therapy. There is no way to remove kyphosis but it can be treated immediately to help reduce further
The main characteristics of this syndrome is low muscle tone, short stature, incomplete sexual development, cognitive disabilities, behavioral problems and excessive hunger that can lead to life threatening obesity. In-utero, PWS results in reduced fetal movement, frequent abnormal fetal position and occasional excessive amniotic fluid. At birth, PWS often results in lethargy, hypotonia, feeding difficulties, difficulty in establishing respiration and hypogonadism. Young children demonstrate late acquisition of major motor milestones for example, sitting at 12 months, walking at 24 months. Children aged 1-6 years present with symptoms of hyperphagia with progressive development of obesity. Short stature is generally present followed by lack of pubertal growth spurt and
A tumor in the posterior aspect of his spinal cord at C6 that has resulted in a spinal cord injury will affect the tracts in the dorsal column, medial lemniscus, posterior spinocerebellar and cuneocerebellar ascending tracts. (Lundy-Elkman 2013). The posterior spinal cord carries mainly sensory information from the periphery to the brain. This is critical information to the brain and includes sensations about the position of the body and limbs in addition to vibration sense and the ability to finely discriminate touch sensations. Destruction of neurons in the posterior spinal cord results in loss of these sensations below the level of involvement.
Over the latter part of human history, man-kind has had a dramatic effect on the canine genome, using inappropriate breeding practices to achieve great changes in physical appearance while negatively impacting canine health (Arman). Because pedigree standards instituted by kennel clubs historically focused on appearance rather than behavioral or internal health, many breeders today incorporate breeding practices such as inbreeding and line-breeding to achieve an ideal pedigree (Maki). However, these breeding practices produce negative results by increasing the frequency of genetic disorders and decreasing the size of gene pools (“Animal Welfare”). Sensory, joint, and heart disorders have now become a mainstay amongst dog breeds (Bjornerfeldt). Because many breeds have characteristics that are in themselves unnatural and unhealthy for the individual dog, veterinarians must intervene to maintain decent health. Every generation these characteristics become more deeply in coded in the canine genome, perpetuating significant complications in ...
Scoliosis is a musculoskeletal disorder that causes a sideways curvature of the spine or backbone. It has been present in the world for thousands of years, among people of every race, gender, culture, and country. A majority of the time these curves are S- or C-shaped. “Scoliosis is most common in late childhood and the early teens, when children grow fast” (Medline Plus). Girls are statistically more likely to have it than boys when dealing with severe and progressive scoliosis. However, mild scoliosis curvature is equally common. It has been suspected that it may be genetic. “Some of these genes likely contribute to causing the disorder, while others play a role in determining the severity of spinal curvature and whether the curve is stable
A 15 year old Taylor Gomes was diagnosed with scoliosis when she was 8. When she was 14, her curve had progressed, and her pediatrician knew it was time for her and her family to take a bigger step. It was time for a surgery to be performed on her, she had progress to 55 degrees. When the day arrived Taylor and her parents were confident as they could be. Several days after her surgery. Taylor has grown 2 inches after the surgery to correct the curve. Based on research scoliosis is best defined as a common spinal condition affecting over 3 million people in the United States per year. It is defined as a sideways curvature in the normally straight vertical path of the spine, scoliosis oftentimes surfaces during the rapid growth spurt (burst)
Scoliosis affects millions of men, women and children. The spine has curves that allow flexibility. Scoliosis is diagnosed when a person has an abnormally curved spine. The condition is rarely fatal, but it can have a negative effect on a person's daily life.
It is clear that idiopathic scoliosis is a 3-dimesional complex problem with possible genetic (Grauers, Einarsdottir and Gerdhem, 2016), biomechanical (Kim et al., 2015) and degenerative or aging (Silva and Lenke 2010) factors involved and that adult scoliosis as a disease is not a well understood condition as of yet. Large steps have been made in the last two decades, according to Asher and Burton (2006). However, research is also pointing out that novo scoliosis is, in fact, different than idiopathic scoliosis and should be treated as such, as stated by De Vries and associates in 2009. Scoliotic surgery does not seem to be a well-developed option, with adult post scoliotic surgery complications risk at 18% due to the degeneration of the vertebral column related to aging, as explained by Trobisch, Suess and Schwab in 2010, and the chance
The chorus of dogs barking in the kennel, punctuated by an occasional plaintive meow from a boarding cat, added to the usual din at the clinic. Vet techs scrambled to find an exam table for the 3-year-old German Shepherd in the middle of an epileptic fit. His owners sat in the waiting room, anxiously rubbing their hands and glancing behind the desk hoping to see Max. In the middle of the action, I found myself holding another dog lying flat on his back, watching the treatments with wide eyes. It took less than five minutes for the techs and Dr. Anderson to control Max's fit, and although I was only 13, I was more certain than ever that veterinary medicine was for me.