Spinal Cord Injury
This page is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for veterinary diagnosis or emergency care. Always consult your primary veterinarian or a rehabilitation veterinarian before starting treatment. If your pet cannot walk, has sudden paralysis, severe pain, or breathing difficulty, seek urgent veterinary attention.
What is Spinal Cord Injury?
Also known as: SCI; traumatic myelopathy; spinal trauma.
Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a broad clinical category. Causes include fracture–luxation from trauma, acute disc extrusion, ischaemic events (such as FCE), inflammatory disease, and iatrogenic injury. The cord may be compressed, contused, or ischaemic; secondary swelling and biochemical cascades can extend damage after the primary insult.
Neurological grade — from pain only through to loss of deep pain perception — informs prognosis discussions. Emergency veterinary care comes first: immobilisation when fracture is suspected, pain control, bladder management, and imaging. Surgery may be required for instability or persistent compression.
Rehabilitation begins when the patient is medically stable. Goals shift from preventing complications in recumbent pets to rebuilding motor control, proprioception, and endurance. SCI recovery is highly individual; rehab tracks function rather than promising percentages.
Common signs to watch for
Signs vary by severity and by whether your pet is a dog or cat. Owners of dogs and cats often notice:
- Sudden or progressive ataxia, paresis, or paralysis
- Spinal pain, crying, or a hunched/rigid posture
- Knuckling, crossing, or dragging limbs
- Loss of bladder or bowel control; overflow incontinence
- Reduced awareness of paw position; delayed postural reactions
- In trauma: wounds, deformity, or reluctance to be moved
Causes & contributing factors
- Road traffic accidents, falls, and other high-energy trauma
- Acute compressive disc disease
- Vascular events such as fibrocartilaginous embolism
- Infectious or inflammatory myelopathies
- Vertebral instability, neoplasia, or severe discospondylitis-related compromise
How veterinary rehabilitation helps
Early rehab (with clearance) focuses on positioning, pressure-sore prevention, passive range of motion, and assisted standing. Owners learn bladder expression when needed and safe sling use.
As motor returns, therapists add neuromuscular facilitation, proprioceptive exercise, and gait patterning. Hydrotherapy and underwater treadmill training can support stepping with reduced body weight when appropriate.
Long-term programmes address residual deficits, cart fitting if needed, and fitness of compensatory muscle groups.
Rehabilitation plans at RehabVet are individualised after a veterinary assessment. We coordinate with your primary vet when imaging, medication, or surgery is part of the overall plan.
Modalities & services commonly used at RehabVet
Depending on your pet’s examination findings, comfort, and goals, a plan may include one or more of the following:
Expected rehabilitation goals
Goals are set for the individual patient. Typical aims may include (not guarantees — outcomes vary):
- Prevent secondary complications of recumbency
- Facilitate neurological recovery and voluntary movement
- Restore as much independent mobility as the lesion allows
- Normalise bladder and bowel routines where possible
- Support owners with sustainable home care
We do not publish invented success percentages. Progress is tracked clinically (gait, strength, range of motion, pain behaviours, and home function) and plans are adjusted over time.
When to seek veterinary care
- Any sudden paralysis or suspected spinal trauma — emergency veterinary care; minimise movement
- Inability to urinate or a hard, painful bladder
- Deteriorating neurological grade over hours
- Breathing difficulty with cervical injuries — emergency
- Should I carry my pet immediately after a fall?
If spinal fracture is possible, minimise twisting and support the body on a rigid surface when moving is unavoidable, then go straight to emergency care. Do not test walking at home.
- When does physiotherapy start after spinal injury?
After veterinary stabilisation and clearance. Some gentle interventions start early; loading and swimming wait until fractures are stable and the care team agrees. Premature exercise can be harmful.
- What if deep pain sensation is absent?
Loss of deep pain is a serious prognostic finding that your veterinarian will interpret in context (cause, time course, imaging). Rehab may still be offered for nursing and any residual function, but expectations are set cautiously and honestly.
Related reading & patient stories
Book a rehabilitation assessment
If your pet has been diagnosed with Spinal cord injury, or you are noticing mobility changes, our team can assess and design a multimodal rehab plan.
Educational content only — not a diagnosis. For emergencies, contact your nearest veterinary hospital.