Life for a dog with osteoarthritis can be tough. Pain and inflammation cause a decrease in mobility and quality of life. And those things become much worse when you suddenly lose a limb due to cancer. This is Reggie’s story.

Reggie, a mixed breed dog, lived an active and playful lifestyle. He was accustomed to 20+ mile hikes in the beautiful Colorado mountains and enthusiastically played fetch for hours in his back yard. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in his hips and his quality of life quickly began to deteriorate. His 20-mile hikes turned into 5 miles on flat terrain followed by crippling hip pain for the rest of the week. His legs began to slip out from under him while playing fetch and he would be in intense pain afterwards. Because of this, his ball had to be retired.

To make matters worse, Reggie was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor on his front left leg. He was 11 years old at the time, so his owners initially elected to remove the tumor as opposed to amputating his leg. Despite several surgeries to remove the tumor, it kept recurring. To minimize chances of metastasis, Reggie’s owners eventually opted to amputate his leg at the recommendation of his veterinarian.

At the same time, his veterinarian recommended treatment with VetStem Cell Therapy for his remaining arthritic limbs. During his amputation surgery, his veterinarian, Dr. Angie Zinkus of Germantown Parkway Animal Hospital, collected fat tissue for VetStem Cell Therapy. The fat was shipped to and processed at the VetStem processing laboratory, and six stem cell injections were shipped back to Dr. Zinkus. Approximately 48 hours after the initial fat collection procedure, Reggie received an injection of his own stem cells into both hips, both knees, as well as his remaining elbow and shoulder.

When a dog undergoes leg amputation, the remaining legs must bear the extra weight, which may lead to the development and/or worsening of osteoarthritis. By treating Reggie’s shoulder, elbow, and knees, in addition to his arthritic hips, Dr. Zinkus hoped to mitigate the excess wear and tear on his joints, and potentially delay the onset or reduce the severity of future osteoarthritis in those joints.

In addition to stem cell therapy, Reggie received platelet therapy in each of his treated joints. Platelet therapy and stem cell therapy work synergistically. Concentrated platelets accelerate internal healing processes by attracting stem cells, supporting an anti-inflammatory environment, and stimulating local tissue repair processes.

According to his mom, Reggie had a great response to the stem cell and platelet therapy. She stated, “Once Reggie recovered from the amputation and was solid on his 3 legs, his quality of life has been amazing! His ball has come out of retirement and he is back to chasing it down like a champ without pain! We’ve slowly been increasing his mileage on his daily walks and he hasn’t been in any pain. His hips had been so painful that he no longer wanted to snuggle in bed with us for fear that we would bump his hips, and now we almost can’t get him out of our bed. The stem cell and PRP injections have given us our boy back, and he is living his best senior tripawd life! We celebrated his 13th birthday in February and are grateful to have a few more years with him knowing he will be comfortable.”

If you think your pet may benefit from VetStem Cell Therapy, speak to your veterinarian or contact us to receive a list of providers near you.

Jackson is an approximately 5-year-old tripod, meaning he only has 3 legs. His right rear leg was amputated when he was only four months old, just before he was adopted from an animal shelter. Jackson got around just fine for a while, as many rear leg amputees tend to do. But when he was around 2.5 years old, he injured his left knee while playing. This was bad news for Jackson.

According to Jackson’s mom, he could barely walk after he injured his only rear leg. His owner had to help him get around by using a lift harness. His veterinarian, Dr. Nick Vitale of Heritage Animal Hospital, diagnosed him with a partially torn cruciate ligament in that left knee. Additionally, he was also diagnosed with severe osteoarthritis in his left hip and both of his elbows.

Fortunately, Dr. Vitale is an experienced VetStem user, and recommended treatment with VetStem Cell Therapy. Jackson had fat tissue collected from his abdomen and sent to the VetStem laboratory for processing. After his stem and regenerative cells were extracted and concentrated, 5 stem cell doses were shipped back to Dr. Vitale. Jackson received one injection of his own stem cells into each elbow, his left hip, his left knee, and an intravenous injection.

According to Jackson’s mom, he had a great response to the stem cell therapy. She stated, “After the therapy, he is completely back to full functioning!” It is just over three years since Jackson’s initial stem cell treatment and he has not required a retreatment. Fortunately, he still has multiple stem cell doses stored, should he need them in the future.

Jackson’s story is unfortunately not uncommon among tripods. Osteoarthritis is common in tripod dogs because their remaining limbs endure added weight and stress to make up for the missing leg. Jackson is also not the only tripod dog to benefit from VetStem Cell Therapy. Mandy is a front leg amputee who received stem cell therapy for arthritis in her hips and hocks (ankles). You can read Mandy’s story here.

Of course, we never want any dog to be in pain or lose mobility. But when it comes to tripods, keeping them “on all threes” is extra important. We are so happy VetStem Cell Therapy helped Jackson and Mandy return to their own version of normal mobility. If you think your dog may benefit from VetStem Cell Therapy, speak to your veterinarian or contact us to receive a list of VetStem providers in your area.

Kingsley, a rottweiler, found his family in the emergency room. His mom, Dr. Bethany Mullins, was an ER veterinarian when Kingsley came in as a puppy. Despite the fact that he was an amputee with only three legs, Dr. Mullins adopted Kingsley immediately.

As a front let amputee, Kingsley’s remaining front leg was under extra stress. And when he was just eleven months old, he was diagnosed with osteoarthritis as a result of elbow dysplasia. Dr. Mullins reported that Kingsley could barely walk and due to the severity of his condition, surgery was not an option for him. Fortunately, the veterinary surgeon suggested treatment with VetStem Cell Therapy.

Kingsley’s first stem cell treatment was in July 2010. He received one injection into his affected elbow and one intravenous injection. According to his mom, within two weeks he was running with her other dogs and playing fetch. Kingsley went on to receive follow-up injections of his own stem cells approximately six months and one year after his initial treatment.

After his third round of stem cell injections in August 2011, Kingsley went approximately five and a half years before requiring another stem cell treatment in early 2017. In the ten years since his initial injections, Kingsley received a total of eight follow-up stem cell treatments. According to his mom, Kingsley’s life expectancy was a mere three years due to the severity of his condition. But with the help of his veterinarian mom and his stem cells, Kingsley lived to be twelve years old.

Unfortunately, Kingsley passed away earlier this year. His mom described him as the sweetest, most gentle dog, stating, “He even went to a preschool class for a presentation about being a veterinarian and was wonderful with the children.” Dr. Mullins went on to say, “You truly saved Kingsley’s life…He lived a full life because of his stem cell injections over the years…I am an ER veterinarian, so I don’t do a lot of stem cell therapy in my department. But I’m a true believer, having had it for myself at one time, and I believe what you are doing is the future of many solutions to diseases that have confounded us. Please keep doing what you’re doing.”

It is stories like Kingsley’s that keep us doing what we are doing. When we hear about dogs like Kingsley, who were dealt a bad hand in life, but came back against all odds after having stem cell therapy, we cannot help but be immensely proud of and grateful for this technology we have developed. We hope that Kingsley is getting all the belly rubs and kisses on the other side of that rainbow bridge.

Mandy’s mobility issues began when she was around four years old.  She broke her right front leg in three places and after several failed surgeries, she ended up having the leg amputated.  Not long after, she began showing symptoms of arthritis in her rear end.  Mandy’s mom, Susan, took her for a consult with Dr. Jerrold Bausman of VCA Veterinary Specialists of the Valley.  Dr. Bausman confirmed that Mandy had arthritis in her hips and ankles and recommended treatment with VetStem Regenerative Cell Therapy.

Mandy received her stem cell treatment in December 2017 and Susan noticed improvement in her mobility shortly after.  You can read the rest of Mandy’s story here.

We recently checked in with Susan and Mandy is still doing great!  Mandy is eight years old now and has stem cell doses stored at VetStem should she require future treatments.

If your dog has been diagnosed with arthritis, visit your veterinarian to determine if stem cell therapy may help.  Or you can contact us for a list of stem cell providers in your area.