A Case of Gunshot Injury to the Spinal Cord in a Dog: Clinical, Surgical, and X-ray Features.

A five-year-old female dog, weighing 35 kg, was presented as an emergency case after it suffered a gunshot injury. Physical examination of the dog revealed paraplegia, the symptoms were normal. There was no bone fracture and dislocation in the lower extremity examination. A bullet (diameter, 4 mm) between the third and fourth lumbar was observed on radiographic examination. The bullet was about 4 × 7 mm long, which stuck between the longitudinal spine and carefully removed. In the examination of the spinal cord, the rupture was observed relatively in some longitudinal strands, and no necrosis was present in the site. After the surgery, the dog was discharged with a good condition. As a consequence, a precise evaluation of the gunshot injury to the spinal cord could not be achieved by imaging, which made a prediction of the prognosis difficult prior to surgery. Therefore, if imaging tests provide evidence of a direct impact on the spinal cord, surgery should be considered a primary method to prevent irreversible harm necrosis of the spinal cord.