Dr. Christiansen injects stem cells into Brody’s hip.

During last month’s surgery to address an issue with Brody’s joints, Dr. Jeffrey Christiansen of Superior Veterinary Surgical Solutions collected a small amount of Brody’s fat. A laboratory extracted stem cells from the fat sample, which can be used to reduce pain and inflammation and promote healing of the surgical site.

On Friday morning, Brody was brought back to the L3Harris Animal Care Center to receive his first dose of this medication. Two injections containing about five million stem cells each were delivered directly to Brody’s hip joints. To accomplish this, Dr. Christiansen carefully inserted a needle into Brody’s hip and drew a small amount of joint fluid to confirm the tip was in the right place, then administered the injection. A third, less-concentrated injection was delivered intravenously.

We also captured some radiographs to check on Brody’s hip condition. While we won’t be able to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of the surgery for quite some time, he appears to be recovering without complication.

Staff veterinarian Dr. Kyle Donnelly reviews a radiograph of Brody’s hip.

Brody woke from the anesthesia and was returned to his habitat. It is normal for animals to experience discomfort and lameness for a few days following stem-cell injections, but Brody is already back to being his normal, energetic self.

We have enough stem cells banked for an additional 15 doses, which will be administered throughout the course of Brody’s life as needed.

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