Paralyzed chihuahua walks again after rare tumor surgery
Bessie, a 2 year old Chihuahua mix, was unable to walk on her own and after a few tests by the Neurology team at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, they found a rare tumor on her spinal cord, a nephroblastoma. With Compassionate Care funds, Bessie was able to have the tumor removed and is walking again. Photo by Madison Brown for Virginia Tech.
Virginia Tech veterinary surgeons removed a rare spinal tumor from a paralyzed chihuahua — and within 24 hours, she could feel her toes again.
Bessie arrived at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in late October, unable to move her back legs. The nearly 2-year-old had gone from a mild limp to total paralysis in just 12 days, each day stealing more function until her hind legs lay motionless.
When Richard Shinn pinched Bessie's toes with a hemostat during the neurological exam, there was nothing. No flinch. No reaction. The absence of deep pain sensation marked a devastating milestone.
"Prognosis from a tumor when deep pain is gone is usually less than 10 or 20 percent," said Shinn, assistant professor of neurology and neurosurgery. "We didn’t expect her to walk again."
For owners Tammy Wright and Wendy Chartier of Bastian, Virginia, the news landed hard. Their youngest dog, barely out of puppyhood, faced a future in a cart — or worse.
A tumor in the wrong place
An MRI revealed something Shinn had seen only once before in his career. Embedded in Bessie's spinal cord was a nephroblastoma — a tumor born from kidney cells that got trapped in the wrong place during fetal development.
"It’s weird," Shinn said. "A little piece of kidney gets stuck where the spinal cord is formed, and it grows with the spinal cord."
These tumors occur more commonly in German shepherds and Great Danes. Finding one in a tiny chihuahua mix defied the odds twice over.
The tumor had compressed Bessie's spinal cord so completely that removing it all would mean destroying functional nerve tissue. Surgery could ease pain, but walking again seemed like wishful thinking.
Bryanna Mischler, Neurology Resident at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, performing a neurological exam on Bessie the chihuahua with a student. Photo by Madison Brown for Virginia Tech.
Making surgery possible
Wright and Chartier had already stretched their finances to the breaking point on diagnostic imaging. Then multiple factors converged.
The case offered exceptional teaching value — rare enough that Shinn had never seen footage of this type of tumor removal. Hospital teaching funds and compassionate care assistance made surgery possible.
Bessie also joined an ongoing clinical study led by Go Togawa, assistant professor of neurology and neurosurgery, examining whether nerve signal testing can predict which paralyzed patients will regain function.
"A lot of things came together," said Bryanna Mischler, a first-year neurology resident who assisted in the surgery. "It could only happen because of donations and because this was such a unique teaching opportunity."
The morning after
Shinn, Mischler, and a fourth-year veterinary student worked for more than three hours, drilling through vertebral bone to reach the spinal canal and carefully removing as much tumor as possible. The spinal cord looked bruised and frayed when they finished.
"It did not look healthy when we left surgery," Shinn said.
The next morning, he returned to check on his patient. He pinched Bessie's toes again.
This time, she pulled away.
"The very next day, she could feel her toes, and that was quite remarkable," Shinn said.
By discharge three days later, the dog could stand unassisted. Her right back leg stepped properly. Her left showed intermittent movement. She was nearly able to walk.
Recovery at home
At home, Wright provided intensive care — holding Bessie up when she needed to go to the bathroom, spoon-feeding her baby food, administering pain medication every few hours.
"She hated me for a couple of days," Wright said. "Every time I’d get her out of the crate, it was medicine time."
Within weeks, Bessie walked into the hospital for her recheck appointment. One back leg remained weaker than the other, but she was mobile — running through the house, occasionally sliding on hardwood but catching herself.
"The most impressive thing was that she can now walk," Mischler said. "That was definitely unexpected."
Even Bessie's personality worked in her favor. Most chihuahuas show fear or aggression during examination. Bessie remained calm through every neurological test, every needle stick, every manipulation of her healing spine.
"She was a huge sweetheart," Mischler said.
Borrowed time, well spent
The tumor will grow back. Without radiation therapy, most nephroblastomas recur within one to two years. Wright and Chartier know this — Shinn made sure they understood before surgery.
The goal was never false hope. It was quality of life and time.
"A year for a dog is different than a year for us," Shinn said. "Now they have time to prepare themselves, either mentally or financially, for when that time comes."
The case also delivered lasting value beyond Bessie's recovery. The surgery footage created a teaching resource that didn't exist before. Mischler gained hands-on experience with a condition she may never see again. The clinical study added another data point to help predict outcomes for future paralyzed patients.
For now, Wright and Chartier are doing what the surgery bought them time to do: watching Bessie be a dog.
"If we had to do it all over again, we would," Chartier said. "They treat the animals like family here."
The Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine's neurology service treats complex neurological conditions in companion animals from across Virginia and neighboring states.
