Degenerative Myelopathy

The generic medical term for the dog's spinal cord or bone marrow condition is degenerative myelopathy.

The illness has no known aetiology and could go undiagnosed.

While the disease can affect any breed and any dog's age, older animals are more likely to be affected.

This disease has a poor prognosis since it causes degeneration of the animal's spinal cord, resulting in the loss of many physical functions.

This disease affects the dog's central nervous system and, in later stages, can impair the cervical and lumbar sections of the spinal cord.

Lesions on the spinal cord are common.

The illness may also impact neurons in the brain stem.

The most prevalent symptoms of this condition are difficulties in maintaining proper posture, partial or total limb paralysis, loss of control over faeces and urination, excessive spinal reflexes and loss of muscle mass.

Degenerative myelopathy has no known cause.

Although there appears to be a genetic link, there is no conclusive evidence to establish the presence of a genetic mutation and the likelihood that the disease will impact a dog.

German Shepherds, Pembroke and Cardigan Welsh Corgis, Chesapeake Bay Retrievers, Irish Setters, Boxers, Collies, Rhodesian Ridgebacks, and Poodles have been found to have a higher prevalence of the condition in several genetic investigations.