Proceedings 31st Symposium ESVN-ECVN

An eight‐year‐old, male intact, client‐owned vaccinated Miniature Pinscher was admitted because of chronic progressive gait abnormality that appeared six months prior to referral. Neurological examination revealed a palmigrade stance, distal tetraparesis more severe to the thoracic limbs, a gait abnormality including hypermetria and laxity of both carpal and tarsal joints and bilateral distal muscle atrophy of thoracic limbs (flexor carpi ulnaris and extensor carpi radialis) and pelvic limbs (tibialis anterior). Orthopedic examination, routine clinicopathological testing, including serology for protozoal diseases and cerebrospinal fluid analysis were unremarkable. Electromyographic testing revealed focal spontaneous electrical activity limited to the extensor carpi radialis muscle. Histopathological examination of biopsies showed diffuse, chronic, severe muscle atrophy and diffuse, chronic‐active, moderate to marked, lymphocytic‐plasmocytic neuritis/perineuritis and interstitial myositis. The dog is being re‐examined every six months for two years, showing a slowly progressive clinical deterioration, even though it still remains ambulatory.