Stem cells for pets promised for fall

A Charlottetown-based company is about to become the first in Canada to offer stem celltherapy for animals.

The treatment is for joint problems, and Chemaphor will focus on dogs and horses.

Joint problems are common in both species, and can be debilitating. They are usually treated with anti-inflammatories or hip replacement surgery.

"It's quite exciting," David Hankinson, director of nutrisciences for Chemaphor, told CBC News Tuesday.

"These little cells are like angry little hornets. They go to work and start repairing the tissue damage and regenerating."

The treatment has been offered in the United States for almost a decade, but Chemaphor will be the first company in Canada to offer it. Veterinarians from across the country will collect tissue samples from the animal, and send them to Chemaphor's lab in Charlottetown.

"We spin it down in the lab, clean it up and essentially concentrate the stem cells," said Hankinson.

"It's injected back into the same animal into the area where there might be a problem with hip dysplasia or sore elbow on a dog, these kind of things."

Veterinarians will have to take an online course to learn how to collect the tissue and give the injection.

The therapy is costly, about $3,000 per injection, and is not always effective. The company's own research claims it is successful about 80 per cent of the time.

The manager and senior scientistof the Charlottetown lab are currently in California learning how to process the stem cells. They will train the rest of the staff in the procedure when they return.

Chemaphor says it hopes to be offering the treatment to Canadian dogs and horses by the fall.