What is a transitional vertebra?
The spinal column is composed of individual vertebra through which runs the spinal cord and spinal nerves. Each vertebra comprises of a large cylindrical body the top of which is a tube through which the spine runs. The vertebral bodies are attached to each other by intervertebral discs that act as shock absorbers and by facet joints that allow movement. There are also large bony protrusions or processes to which the muscles are attached, the dorsal spinous processes can be felt in the midline of the back (humans and dogs) while the lateral processes in the chest have developed to become the ribs. The spinal column is divided into segments and these are the neck or cervical spine, the chest or thoracic spine, the lumbar spine and the sacrum that forms part of the pelvis. Each segment has characteristically shaped vertebrae. A transitional vertebra is one that lies at the junction of two of the segments and tries to take on the shape of the vertebra of both segments. A transitional vert
