As you may know, the majority of our blogs focus on canine arthritis.  But let’s not forget about our feline friends.  Like dogs, cats are living longer, healthier lives and also suffer from common “old age” problems such as osteoarthritis. In fact, in a retrospective study conducted at a major veterinary school, radiographs from 100 cats that were presented to the teaching hospital for illnesses unrelated to arthritis were re-evaluated.  90% of the cats had radiographic evidence of degenerative joint disease.

How do you know if your cat has arthritis?  Well, first of all, they may not show the same
signs of arthritis that dogs do.  For instance, they may not noticeably limp the way dogs do.  Cats generally hide their pain very well.  Listed below are some questions you can ask yourself to see if your cat may have osteoarthritis.

1. Is your cat less active than he/she used to be?  While cats are not known to be high performance athletes, a change in activity level may indicate pain associated with arthritis and not necessarily just normal ‘lazy’ cat behavior.
2. Is your cat missing the litterbox? While this could be a behavioral issue or the sign of a kidney or bladder issue, also consider OA. Some cats may be too painful to want to step into and out of a litterbox.
3. Does your cat take longer to get up from lying down or have difficulty moving around?  If your cat no longer jumps on that high ledge like he/she used to, your cat may have arthritis.

Did you answer yes to one or more of the above questions?  If so, you should consult with your veterinarian to determine if your cat has arthritis.  While there are not a lot of safe options for controlling pain in cats, VetStem Regenerative Cell Therapy has been shown to be a low-risk and effective treatment for osteoarthritis.  If you are interested in consulting with a credentialed VetStem provider, contact us to receive a list of providers in your area.

It was recently brought to our attention that a VetStem patient named Argo was featured on the local news for his stem cell treatment.  Argo is a 5-year-old chocolate Labrador with arthritis in several joints.  He received stem cell injections in his shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees by Dr. Angie Zinkus of Germantown Parkway Animal Hospital.  He also received platelet therapy injections in each joint utilizing Veterinary Platelet Enhancement Therapy (V-PET), to further stimulate the natural healing process.

Click on the picture below to watch Argo’s 15 minutes of fame! (scroll down to the second video)

Last week I attended a veterinary regenerative medicine conference in Sacramento, California.  The North American Veterinary Regenerative Medicine Association (NAVRMA) was founded in 2010 to bring together the best minds in the stem cell world to discuss research findings and share perspectives on how stem cells can provide treatment options for animals.  Over 100 of the key veterinary stem cell scientists and practitioners met and were educated by the academic and scientific leaders of stem cell research.  I was an invited speaker and was also asked to lead a workshop focused on the education of veterinarians about being a clinical study investigator.  On Sunday, September 9^th, I presented ground-breaking stem cell safety data from the VetStem Research and Development program as part of our FDA product development.

Lectures ranged from clinical applications to basic science and discovery of how stem cells work and how they can best be applied to solve veterinary disease challenges.  Included in the program were talks on kidney disease, arthritis and lameness, and many immune-mediated diseases.  The keynote lecture by human doctor Farshid Guilak from Washington University focused on new discoveries of how we can modify stem cells for even better disease-fighting power.  Very cutting-edge work!

VetStem is proud to be in the forefront in bringing cell therapy into the hands of the practicing veterinarian and we are grateful to the many horse and pet owners that have trusted stem cell therapy for the care of their beloved animals.  I have been a regular speaker at the NAVRMA meetings and this meeting, as in the past, has provided opportunities to collaborate with stem cell enthusiasts around the world with the goal of bringing the healing power of regenerative medicine to our animals in the most rapid manner.

This week’s blog is about Gabby, a ten-year-old Doberman pinscher.  Gabby had a string of bad luck beginning in August 2016 when she tore the cruciate ligament in her left knee.  Though she had surgery to repair the torn ligament, she ended up suffering a partial tear to her right cruciate ligament during her recovery.  Approximately one year later, she stopped using her right rear leg, which was likely due to the arthritis and scar tissue that formed in the joint after she partially tore her cruciate ligament.

Due to the severity of her arthritis and joint swelling, her veterinarian, Dr. Jennifer Tate of Sylvania Veterinary Hospital, did not feel she would be a good candidate for surgical repair and instead recommended treatment with VetStem Regenerative Cell Therapy.

Gabby was treated with stem cell therapy in November 2017 and quickly showed signs of improvement.  Her owner, Ann, stated that she felt like Gabby was five years younger and that she would bark at her to get up in the morning to play (we’re sorry about that, Ann!).  You can read the rest of Gabby’s story here.

We recently checked in to see how Gabby is doing and according to Ann, “Grabby is still doing great! She hasn’t slowed down at all. She runs zoomies, jumps over the couch, and jumps to greet me when I come home. You would never know she’s 10 years old, and I’m so thankful we did the stem cell treatment!”  Yay, Gabby!!

If your dog has arthritis, VetStem Regenerative Cell Therapy may provide some relief.  You can speak to your veterinarian about the treatment or you can request a list of veterinary stem cell providers in your area here.