Participation Matters
BY SHARON M. ALBRIGHT, DVM, CCRT
“IF RESPONSIBLE DOG BREEDERS DO NOT PARTICIPATE IN HEALTH RESEARCH, WE WILL NEVER MOVE FORWARD, WE WILL ALWAYS HAVE THESE HEALTH PROBLEMS.” —JULIE HIGGINS, ENVISION BOXERS
T his desire to improve Boxer health, and a wish that no more dogs and owners should have to experience the agony of degenerative myelopathy (DM), are what motivated Boxer breeder Julie Higgins to participate in a clinical trial with her dog, “Sophia.” Degenerative Myelopathy (DM) is a progressive, degenerative disease of the nervous system in dogs. Clinical signs appear later in life and include worsening weakness and paralysis starting in the rear limbs and progressing to involve the front limbs, swallowing muscles, and diaphragm. There is no definitive treatment for the disease. A life-long dog lover and fancier, Julie showed various breeds as a Junior and worked for professional handlers to improve her skills and knowledge. After a break to start her human family, she chose to breed and show Boxers, acquiring her foundation bitch in 2008. “I had to come up with a kennel name,” Julie said. “After a lot of thinking, I always want to keep in mind what I ‘envision’ a good Boxer to be. So, Envision Boxers it was!” Fast forward to Sophia, an independent, “queen of the house- hold” Boxer with a successful conformation show career and breed- ing history. In 2022, at eight years of age, Sophia started losing muscle tone, dragging her rear feet, and losing her balance. Julie knew that Sophia’s genetic status put her “at risk” for DM and rec- ognized these common clinical signs of the disease. “You could see it in her eyes that she was confused and upset that she couldn’t do what she wanted to do,” Julie noted. Thankfully, a social media post alerted Julie of a clinical trial for dogs with DM at the nearby University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine.
“YOU COULD SEE IT IN HER EYES THAT SHE WAS CONFUSED AND UPSET THAT SHE COULDN’T DO WHAT SHE WANTED TO DO.”
116 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, JANUARY 2024
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