Anesthetized Sprague-Dawley weanling rats were scanned for bone mineral density (BMD) values after 7 days treatment to determine if resorption/growth at the proximal tibia can be quantified by pQCT scanning techniques. Because the weanling rat is in a rapid growth stage, all groups showed significant increases in change from baseline values of BMD. Bisphosphonate treatment produced significant dose-related changes in BMD with average increases of 195% and 241% (10µg/kg and 20µg/kg) versus 86% in control rats. We further characterized this model to determine effects of steroids on growing bone. Graded doses of glucocorticoid (3.5, 7.0, 10.5, 14.0, 28.0 and 42.0mg/kg/week) caused no significant differences in trabecular BMD in 7 days between control and treated. Significant decreases in growth (weights) and increases in cortical bone area were observed indicating this model may be useful in comparing effects of non-steroid, anti-inflammatory alternatives on juvenile bone. Although the relevance of this model to adult disease remains to be elucidated, it also provides a tool for mechanistic evaluation of therapeutic modalities, or efficacy assessment for dose selection for longer term models.