Retired St. Francis K-9 Bane has been out of the force for a little over two years now. He's been diagnosed with a terminal nerve disease Now he's paving the way for awareness of his disease and a new type of treatment.For Bane, Thursday's vet visit started off the same. He hopped out of the car's trunk, shook off the ride and got help from his handler Detective Holly McManus with the St. Francis Police Department. But inside the West Allis Veterinary Clinic on Greenfield Avenue, Thursday's treatment is a little different.McManus started noticing stumbling and weakness in Bane about a year ago.McManus thought it had something to do with his hip, a common issue in German shepherds, but all of Bane's tests came back normal.It wasn't until he got a DNA test in June of last year that McManus started getting some answers.Bane tested positive for degenerative myelopathy, DM for short. "Dogs will start to show signs that they're slowing down, that they have some neurologic deficits in the hind end particularly," said Dr. Harpreet Singh, a surgery specialist.On a scale of 1 to 5, five being the worst in terms of severity of DM, Singh said he would rate Bane at a four. "Then the disease will and in some cases rapidly within six months progress to where it can affect the front legs," Singh said.Singh said DM is the K-9 version of ALS in adults.After the diagnosis, Brandon Ames, owner of AniCell Biotech, a company based out of Arizona, reached out to McManus to offer Bane an extension of active life with a natural stem cell treatment."Bane invested in us," Ames told WISN 12 News. "He put his life out there and the best thing we can do is give back and do what we can for him.""The cells that we're injecting come from the innermost layer of the placenta," Singh said. "It's unlikely that the body is going to try to attack them."Ames said this is the first time this stem cell treatment is used to treat DM in Wisconsin; usually it's used by vets to treat wounds."Trying something that really isn't heard of in in Wisconsin, I think that makes a big difference," Singh said. "We are always trying to improve our outlook on what is possible.""He's terminal," McManus said. "So to me, I looked at it as if we're doing minimally invasive trial products, what do we have to lose?"McManus told WISN 12 News if you can get past the physical appearance of the disease. The silver lining here is that Bane is quite comfortable."We're pretty sure it's mostly pain-free. I think the pain he has, or the discomfort is just from being an 11-and-a-half-year-old German shepherd as opposed to the degenerative myelopathy," McManus. "I don't see it in his face that he's sad he can't run after something, or he can't go do something because he was always the work smarter, not harder type of dog anyway.""The spirit is still there," McManus said. "The will to survive is still within these animals. It really is a disability, you know?"This is Bane's second stem cell treatment.McManus said after the first one in January, she noticed a change is his movement within 48 hours. While Bane's medical team monitors his progress with this treatment, it's not necessarily a cure for his disease. "The disease doesn't scare me as much as the impending loss that I'm going to have," McManus said. "There is a line that I won't be able to cross with him, and that I know that at that point that'll be the time when he tells me it's time I need to respect that."McManus said this Bane's way of still serving his community even after being retired. She says the goal is to raise awareness about DM and help other dog owners who might be going through the same thing.Singh said a dog diagnosed with DM usually lives anywhere from six months to two years.McManus adds a life-size bronze statue of Bane will be built outside of the St. Francis Police Department by this summer. There are ways to help with Bane's medical and treatment expenses. He has a fund set up here.

Retired St. Francis K-9 Bane has been out of the force for a little over two years now. He's been diagnosed with a terminal nerve disease

Now he's paving the way for awareness of his disease and a new type of treatment.

For Bane, Thursday's vet visit started off the same.

He hopped out of the car's trunk, shook off the ride and got help from his handler Detective Holly McManus with the St. Francis Police Department.

But inside the West Allis Veterinary Clinic on Greenfield Avenue, Thursday's treatment is a little different.

McManus started noticing stumbling and weakness in Bane about a year ago.

McManus thought it had something to do with his hip, a common issue in German shepherds, but all of Bane's tests came back normal.

It wasn't until he got a DNA test in June of last year that McManus started getting some answers.

Bane tested positive for degenerative myelopathy, DM for short.

"Dogs will start to show signs that they're slowing down, that they have some neurologic deficits in the hind end particularly," said Dr. Harpreet Singh, a surgery specialist.

On a scale of 1 to 5, five being the worst in terms of severity of DM, Singh said he would rate Bane at a four.

"Then the disease will and in some cases rapidly within six months progress to where it can affect the front legs," Singh said.

Singh said DM is the K-9 version of ALS in adults.

After the diagnosis, Brandon Ames, owner of AniCell Biotech, a company based out of Arizona, reached out to McManus to offer Bane an extension of active life with a natural stem cell treatment.

"Bane invested in us," Ames told WISN 12 News. "He put his life out there and the best thing we can do is give back and do what we can for him."

"The cells that we're injecting come from the innermost layer of the placenta," Singh said. "It's unlikely that the body is going to try to attack them."

Ames said this is the first time this stem cell treatment is used to treat DM in Wisconsin; usually it's used by vets to treat wounds.

"Trying something that really isn't heard of in in Wisconsin, I think that makes a big difference," Singh said. "We are always trying to improve our outlook on what is possible."

"He's terminal," McManus said. "So to me, I looked at it as if we're doing minimally invasive trial products, what do we have to lose?"

McManus told WISN 12 News if you can get past the physical appearance of the disease. The silver lining here is that Bane is quite comfortable.

"We're pretty sure it's mostly pain-free. I think the pain he has, or the discomfort is just from being an 11-and-a-half-year-old German shepherd as opposed to the degenerative myelopathy," McManus. "I don't see it in his face that he's sad he can't run after something, or he can't go do something because he was always the work smarter, not harder type of dog anyway."

"The spirit is still there," McManus said. "The will to survive is still within these animals. It really is a disability, you know?"

This is Bane's second stem cell treatment.

McManus said after the first one in January, she noticed a change is his movement within 48 hours.

While Bane's medical team monitors his progress with this treatment, it's not necessarily a cure for his disease.

"The disease doesn't scare me as much as the impending loss that I'm going to have," McManus said. "There is a line that I won't be able to cross with him, and that I know that at that point that'll be the time when he tells me it's time I need to respect that."

McManus said this Bane's way of still serving his community even after being retired. She says the goal is to raise awareness about DM and help other dog owners who might be going through the same thing.

Singh said a dog diagnosed with DM usually lives anywhere from six months to two years.

McManus adds a life-size bronze statue of Bane will be built outside of the St. Francis Police Department by this summer.

There are ways to help with Bane's medical and treatment expenses. He has a fund set up here.

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Retired K-9 creates awareness about his terminal nerve disease - WISN Milwaukee