Dr. Cinda met Rosie in July of 2016. Rosie was 1.5 years old, and she had been injured 3 days prior. Her hind legs were paralyzed, and her bladder was enormous. The owner said she did not know what happened to her but that she could no longer walk and asked if Dr. Cinda could “fix” her. Rosie was a rescue from California that Jerome Humane Society (JHS) saved. A representative of JHS came along with the owner to the appointment. The owner was told that everything that could be done for Rosie would be done. The owner said that she would not be able to care for Rosie due to the extent of her injuries and agreed to sign Rosie over to Dr. Cinda. An appointment was scheduled with a neurologist, and Dr. Cinda and JHS were given the bad news that Rosie’s spine had been severed and she had a 5% chance of walking again. Dr. Cinda and JHS worked together on Rosie; with acupuncture, cold laser and swimming.
Rosie started to move her legs a little after a few weeks and many treatments and then progressed slowly from there. Eventually, Rosie was able to stand, but she would fall over. Also, she did not regain the ability to urinate, so she needed to have pressure applied to her bladder (expression) several times a day to do so. Rosie would try to run with her front legs but dragged her hind legs. Dr. Cinda got her a wheelchair which she did not like and would try to get out of it.
In 2019 Rosie became Dr. Cinda’s first Stem Cell case where Rosie’s own cells from her fat were processed and injected all along her spinal cord and into the epidural space. In less than a month, she was running around like a maniac. Dr. Cinda could not catch her anymore and she could wag her tail for the first time since the accident, but she still had to be expressed to urinate. Rosie saw her previous owner one more time at a fundraiser for JHS, and the lady cried and apologized to Rosie while she held her face in her trembling hands. Rosie looked right into her eyes and licked her nose and face as if to say, ”don’t worry, I will be ok”.
The lady passed away shortly after that. Rosie amazed Dr. Cinda with the forgiveness she showed. She inspires us every day with her courage and strength to keep going no matter what, and this is part of the reason why she is able to walk again. The other part is the endless hours spent by Dr. Cinda and Jerome Humane Society caring for her and loving her.