Overview
The dog has seven cervical vertebrae. C7 is the last and shows transitional features: its spinous process is clearly taller than in the preceding cervical vertebrae and its body is shorter. Unlike C3 to C6, it has no transverse foramen, because the vertebral artery enters the transverse canal from C6 onward.
Key features
- Caudal costal foveae: small facets on the caudal border of the body that, together with T1, receive the head of the first rib.
- Transverse processes: simple, without the ventral lamina typical of C6.
- Articular processes: cranial surfaces facing dorsomedially and caudal surfaces facing ventrolaterally, as in the rest of the neck.
- Wide vertebral canal, carrying the cervical intumescence of the spinal cord.
Clinical relevance
The cervicothoracic junction (C6-T1) is the usual site of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy ("Wobbler syndrome") in large breeds such as the Dobermann and the Great Dane, with canal stenosis, disc protrusion and spinal cord compression. It is also a hard region to assess on lateral radiographs because the scapulae and shoulders overlap it.