poor whippet!!!

Thursday Morning: May 27, 2010. A limping Whippet (forgot his name) was presented for check up. Apparently this dog was run over by a car (theirs) on monday and was presented to another practitioner for initial treatment. He was then taken home and was put on medications.

Radiography was recommended to further investigate the damage to the bones and the surrounding soft tissues. Fracture of the 2nd phalanx of the 2nd digit of the right limb was emminent, damage to the carpal bones were also seen (not clear on photograph), with too much tissue inflammation.

The bandage covering the damaged limb was removed to check the status of the limb (Apparently, the first and last time that the wound was cleaned was on Monday) Here's a few of those pictures:

There is severe damage to the soft tissues of the limb as well as the bones and they are not viable anymore. Putrefying stench also filled the room during the examination. The fractured phalanx is sticking out of the damaged tissues, carpal bones are visible as well as the tendons.

Amputation of the affected limb was recommended but they never returned. I wonder what happened...

In trauma cases like this, the wounds should always be kept clean. The trauma, aside from inflicting severe physical damage, may cause for the inoculation of contaminants and bacteria that can further cause damage and complicate the case. Some limbs may be saved from amputation if the affected area is still viable/living and may require intensive care and time to recover. Some may be recommended with amputation. Still others, even if the area is still viable but management of the wound is poor, may still result to amputation.

Accidents do happen, but sometimes, they can be prevented.

Remembering Barnie.

A few months back, Barnie, a 13-year-old Basset Hound was presented due to sudden enlargement of the abdomen. I suddenly remembered Lucy (one of my earlier posts). Bloat was my diagnosis.

I had to pass a stomach tube in order to release the trapped gas and then flush the stomach with saline solution. Blood results were unremarkable and she was declined for surgical treatment, thus we had to modify her diet and keep her under confinement. A week later, she was discharged but was returned due to the same condition three days after her release. Her recovery this time was slower but we were able to keep her stable. Days later, she went home.

I haven't heard from her owner until last month when we bumped into each other inside a mall. Barney never had another bloat episode after her 2nd release. However, since she was old and her liver was compromised, she deteriorated about 2 weeks after.

Reminder!!!

ALL SHOULD KNOW THAT COMMON PESTICIDES AND PETS DO NOT MIX.

ON TO BLOOD GROUP DETERMINATION

the following texts are taken from the package insert of RAPIDVET-H Blood Group Determination System for Identifying DEA 1.1 Positive and DEA 1.1 Negative Dogs.

"While it is broadly true that dogs do not posses isoantibodies to incompatible blood groups and thus will generally tolerate well an initial incompatible transfusion, sound practice of veterinary dictates that transfusions be avoided. The half life of the transfused incompatible cells will be quite short and, thus, the intended therapeutic result may not even be attained. also the potential future needs of the canine patient must be considered. Antiboides arising from a transfusion of incompatible blood may form in only 5-7 days and will have long-term viability. This eliminates the option of using incompatible blood in a future emergency situation.

Eight specific antigens have bee indentified on the surface of canine erythrocytes. The internationally accepted canine blood group system, the DEA (Dog Erythrocyte Antigen) is based on these antigens. It currently characterizes eight common blood groups, the antigens DEA 1.1, 1,2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.

DEA 1.1 and 1.2 are the most significant blood factors in the dog. Both are highly antigenic but DEA 1.1 is the primary lytic factor in canine transfusion medicine. Although all of the blood group antigens are capable of stimulating formation of isoantibodies, DEA 1.1 has the greatest stimulation potential. Thus most reactions resulting from the transfusion of incompatible cells occur when DEA 1.1 positive blood is given to a DEA 1.1 negative recipient. Clinically significant reactions to DEA 1.2 may occur but are less severe that reactions to DEA 1.1. DEA 7 may be a factor in transfusion reactions, but since it is a cold agglutinin and a naturally occuring isoantibody, it is considered to have very low clinical significance. The remaining antigens are considered to cause clinically insignificant transfusion problems."

Recently, I had a visitor. Troy, a previous patient of mine was brought not as a patient but to accompany another dog that showed signs of Blood parasitism during pregnancy. But this is not about her but Troy.

Troy was presented july of 2009 due to severe lethargy and weakness, bleeding from the mouth and  inappetence. Further investigation revealed Ehrlichiosis and severe anemia. we were able to stabilize him but blood transfusion was needed. 

On testing Troy's blood, we found out that he is DEA 1.1 positive. Our donor Diego is DEA 1.1 negative. Upon these findings, we prepared both the recipient and donor for the procedure.

Troy recovered swiftly and was discharged a few days later. I haven't seen him for follow up (grrr!) until today. He is now very healthy and is very active. The owners even joked that, he must be like this due to the Doberman blood. 

Diego the donor

I am way beyond schedule in posting new articles... Though while I was checking my files, I have a number of cases to be written and posted, my mind doesn't seem to synchronize with what I want. I'll just reorganize my thoughts and cases and probably be back blogging in time...

dveterinarian

BATTERY INGESTION

The chewed up battery was presented to me by the client together with the dog

Batteries will not power-up your dogs as compared to your remote control or other battery-run gadgets and appliances. Instead, they might suffer toxicity, muscosal and gastric burns- to a more severe note, gastric perforation and death.

It is our pet's nature to discover things around them. In contrast to us using our hands and other senses to discover things, dogs do use their mouth (by chewing), olfaction and sight. however, as owners, it is our responsibility to screen out things and even food that may cause problems to our pets, batteries being one of them. (You may also be familiar with my previous posts on rodenticides, needles, foreign objects, firecrackers and the like)

Discussing the components and the different types batteries can become too geeky and nerdy for this site and you may search for it somewhere.

Going back, batteries contain chemicals that may cause mucosal burns when in contact with the skin. Most dogs brought into the clinic that are suspected for battery ingestion may have oral burns and may have a recent history of chewing on a battery powered gadget. The owners may report a missing battery or will bring with them the chewed up battery. Doing a radiograph may reveal the location of the battery if swallowed.

If the incident happened very recently, emesis may be done, however it should only be done if the battery was swallowed whole without chewing especially button batteries. The leakage of the battery components and its contact with the mucosa may further cause chemical burns. In some cases, surgery may be warranted and in others, oral medications may work. However, It all depends on the case presented. If you knew you pet has ingested a battery, do not wait for several days as it may more be difficult to manage by this time and toxicity or poisoning may have occured.

Prevention is still better than cure. So be very careful with your things if you have a pet as you would be if there is a child in the house.

OVARIOHYSTERCTOMY

Uterus and ovaries of a cat that underwent ovariohysterectomy.
Note that this is not a normal uterus of a pregnant and a non pregnant cat.

I apparently forgot her name since this case was dated October 2008. However, this kitty came in for elective ovariohysterectomy or spaying. Her owner doesn't want her to get pregnant anymore since she is already old. Her one and only pregnancy was about 5 years ago and the owner was actually almost complaining of the monthly visitors = the tomcats looking for a mate and the kitty calling out for one.

Since her blood results were all normal, we then scheduled the next day for surgery.

During the surgery, i thought i was looking at a pregnant uterus, however, upon exteriorization, it does not appear to be normal at all. We then proceeded with the ligation and the cutting of the uterine horns with the ovaries and the uterine body.

Out of curiosity, I decided to open up the uterus to check what is inside. FLUIDS.

Ovariohysterectomy is usually done as an Animal Birth Control (ABC) measure. Aside from this, other reasons for ovariohysterectomy are prevention of mammary tumors, and ovarian and uterine neoplasia, treatment of choice for pyometra and metritis, and may be recommended for other conditions such as uterine cysts, torsion, uterine prolapse, endocrine abnormalities and dermatoses.

The cat went home after recovery and is in good condition.

BYE BYE BALLS

What the ...???

You are now staring at two testicles from a castrated cat.

Castration or orchiectomy is the surgical removal of the male gonads or testicles. This surgical procedure is done for both dogs and cats and is also performed in other species like rabbits, laboratory rats, goats, etc.

Most owners and enthusiasts have their pets castrated in order to prevent overpopulation (ABC=Animal Birth Control) and its possible effect on the male behavior, which is to decrease aggressiveness, marking of a territory by urination, roaming to look for a mate, and the like. However, castration is also beneficial to prevent and correct androgen-related diseases like prostatic diseases, perianal adenomas, and perianal hernias. Other than those mentioned, castration is also indicated for congenital abnormalities of the testicles, epididymis, neoplasia, abscesses, and trauma of the testicles, herniorrhaphy, scrotal urethrostomy, epilepsy control and control of endocrine abnormalities.

for further information regarding castration, ask your vet about it. ; D

REMINDER

Sales of firecrackers will increase in the days to come.
These firecrackers are readily available and anyone can get access to them.
Thus, firecracker poisoning may be a concern.
It is advised to check whatever you pet ingests especially when walked.
Please also educate your children or young siblings not to offer them to your pets.
Firecrackers can cause poisoning.
It's better to be cautious and avoid accidental ingestion.

If you are not comfortable with me as your veterinarian and do not trust my judgement, I think it's better to look for another veterinarian.

As a veterinarian, aside from the skills learned during college days and day to day training in the small animal practice, it is also important to develop people skills. You may see us talking to dogs and cats in order to calm them down during check ups but mostly, we are speaking with their owners and caretakers, explaining to them the different options for treatment, health management, vaccinations and other things necessary. That is called the client-veterinarian-pet relationship. this can further be simplified to the veterinarian-clent realtionship, client-pet relationship and the veterinarian-pet realtionship.

In order for these relationships to work properly, each individual should be able to communicate well, understand each other and respect one another. One must know their limitations and boundaries. In most cases, these relationships are going well. But if it becomes a roller-coaster ride, and the relationship gets bumpy, then you know there's something wrong.

Just like any other service, a client can choose their veterinarian and a veterinarian can choose whom to serve. Though as vetetinarians we have a noble duty to these dogs and cats (and other pets), their owners will still decide for them. Lucky are the pets with responsible owners. Thus, if a client is not satisfied with one veterinarian's service, he can go to another and another until he finds the one (and hopefully the pet is still alive by then). And us vets can decline to treat a patient if we think that the owners doesn't trust us, does not believe us and disrespects us.