A Halifax veterinarian is using stem cells to treat dogs suffering from arthritis.

Eamon Draper, a vet at the Fairview Animal Hospital, said they take stem cells from the dog's fat and inject that into its joints.

The procedure takes a few hours and Draper says the improvements can last for years.

"What we're looking for is an animal that's more comfortable and moving around more easily," he said.

The $1,900 process encourages extra blood flow and repairs damage.

David Peyton's 12-year-old black lab Athena was hobbled by arthritis, but the procedure helped her.

"She was sore moving. Getting up and out of her bed and taking her out for her walk, she would come back limping and sore," he said.

A week after the treatment, he said she is moving easier. He's planning a long walk with her at Point Pleasant Park this weekend.

"We wanted to make sure that the last few years of her life were comfortable and pain free and that she can still have a nice quality of life for her senior years," Peyton said.

Draper has treated eight dogs so far. It's a new use of the technology.

"For us it's very new. The technology in the human field has been around a few years, but it's pretty ground-breaking stuff at this stage," he said.

"I think it will become more and more prevalent as time goes, but we have an advantage in the veterinary field that we can push ahead a little bit faster than humans."