Cody had a check-up with his doctor Kristina Kiefer yesterday to determine whether or not he needed a second stem cell treatment and the verdict was that he did not - YAY!
Cody is now walking around by himself without the support of his walkabout harness. He's wobbling at times and sometimes falls on his butt but that's to be expected. With ongoing rehabilitation he'll continue to gain strength.
Adam and I are so very grateful for the U of M and specifically Kristina's knowledge and studies around the use of adipose derived stem cells in canine orthopedic conditions such as IVDD.
According to the MANY hours we've spent researching IVDD, dogs that go in for surgery before they lose deep pain sensation, have an 80-90% chance of walking again but once they lose deep pain, the chances greatly decrease. In Cody's case, he went in for surgery about 36 hours after he lost DPS so the odds were against us from the beginning. We wholeheartedly believe that the decision to go along with stem cell therapy along with the skills of his amazing DVM Kristina, Cody is able to walk today.
The Bodem family sends a big THANK YOU to Kristina Kiefer and the entire University of Minnesota CVM team.
