Margie Finds “New Life” With Her Wheels

When Portland, OR dog owner Cierra Steele saw that her dog Margie’s hind legs were failing, she knew exactly why.

Cierra adopted Margie in June 2022. Due to Margie’s distinctive coat pattern, Cierra suspected there was some Australian Shepherd in her breed mix. She decided to find out for sure with an Embark Breed + Health Test.

Keep reading to see what else Margie’s DNA revealed, and how this result connected Margie and Cierra with Team Embark in an unforgettable way.

Margie’s Embark results

Margie’s breed results revealed that she does indeed have Australian Shepherd in her DNA—and so much more! Her ancestry also includes Australian Cattle Dog, Labrador Retriever, Great Pyrenees, and German Shepherd Dog.

But there was more to discover in Margie’s DNA. Her health results revealed that she had both markers for Degenerative Myelopathy (DM), the dog equivalent of Lou Gehrig’s disease—a progressive degenerative disorder of the spinal cord. This result does not mean that Margie has the disorder, but she was at higher risk for developing it. This information made Cierra feel prepared, and she knew what signs to look for.

Later that same day, while taking Margie for a walk, Cierra noticed that Margie was slightly dragging one of her paws on the ground. Cierra thought it might be an early sign of DM. It turned out that, unfortunately, she was right. 

Living with DM

After that day, Margie’s condition slowly progressed. Cierra and her husband noticed changes to Margie’s gait, starting with her left hind leg. Margie had always loved to walk, but it became harder for her to walk long distances. Sometimes, Cierra or her husband took Margie out for a walk, but carried her home when her legs couldn’t continue on.

While there is no cure for DM, Cierra contacted the Embark team to share Margie’s story and tell us about how Margie’s Embark results helped her prepare.

“Without our Embark results, we would not know what is going on with Margie,” Cierra shared. 

She told us that while it has been difficult to watch Margie’s mobility decline, Cierra and her husband took comfort knowing the reason why. Instead of worrying and putting Margie through a series of expensive tests at the vet, they could instead focus on making her comfortable and keeping her happy.

“Because of Embark, we are able to give Margie her best life with her remaining years, instead of going to the vet a lot and stressing about it. We can also accommodate her to make her final months more comfortable because we know what her condition is. When funds allow, we’ll be giving her a wheelchair so she can start enjoying walks outside again, as that is her most favorite activity!”
—Cierra Steele

Margie finds new life with her wheelchair

When we heard from Cierra, we knew we had to get Margie back to outdoor walks as soon as possible so she could make the most of her remaining time. The Embark team got in touch with Cierra and covered the cost of Margie’s custom wheelchair from Walkin’ Pets.

We’re thrilled to hear that since receiving her wheelchair, Margie is walking outside again and loving it! Cierra posted a video of Margie’s before and after on TikTok.

“In the weeks since she’s gotten the wheelchair, her mood has gone way up. Before, she could only manage 2-5 minutes of a walk, but now I can take her for 20-30 minutes and when we start to go up the driveway, she starts pulling away because she wants more! She’s so excited to walk every day and she’s like a puppy again. It has increased her quality of life 100%.”
—Cierra Steele

Get started with Embark

At Embark, we’re all about bringing humans and their dogs closer together. Join Margie and dogs like her by testing with Embark, the dog DNA test trusted by millions of dog owners.

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