Body conformation in Great Danes with and without clinical signs of cervical spondylomyelopathy

•Body conformation of 15 Great Danes with cervical spondylomyelopathy (CSM) and 15 normal Great Danes was compared.•There were no differences in body conformation between clinically normal and CSM-affected Great Danes.•Severity of neurological signs was not associated with body dimensions in Great Danes with CSM.•Cervical vertebral body dimensions were not associated with body dimensions in Great Danes with CSM.•Head size, neck length, and body height and length, do not appear to be related to the development of CSM in Great Danes.

It has been suggested that a combination of large head and long neck cause abnormal forces on the cervical vertebral column and are involved in the pathogenesis of cervical spondylomyelopathy (CSM) in Great Danes. The aim of this study was to compare the body conformation of 15 clinically normal and 15 CSM-affected Great Danes. There were no statistically significant differences between clinically normal and CSM-affected Great Danes in any body measurements. There were no significant associations between body conformation and the severity of neurological signs or cervical vertebral body dimensions determined by magnetic resonance imaging in CSM-affected Great Danes. The results of this study do not support the hypothesis that differences in body conformation related to head size, neck length, and body height and length, play a role in the pathogenesis of CSM in Great Danes.