Online Veterinary Advice

Today was another day full of spays!  I thought I would describe for you guys how a spay is done.

Anesthetic

The animal is given a sedative first.  We often use a mixture of drugs called hydromorphone, acepromazine and glycopyrrolate.  After about 10 minutes the animal is usually quite sedate.

We then place an IV catheter.  The IV fluids help to keep an animal’s blood pressure up which helps to support the kidneys while she is under anesthetic.  Also, if there was an emergency under anesthetic then we have quick access to administer emergency drugs intravenously.

We then do an injection of a medication which will cause the animal to be completely unconscious.  This is usually either a mixture of ketamine and valium or a drug called propofol.  When the animal is totally out then we place a tube in her trachea and she will breathe a mixture of oxygen and a gas anesthetic called isofluorane.  This will keep her asleep for as long as we need.

Preparation

The animal is then shaved on her belly and the skin is prepped.  We do a series of scrubs with chlorhexadine soap, alcohol and then an iodine type solution.  This is the best way to keep the area as clean as possible.  She is then moved into the surgery suite.

The surgery

The animal is laying on her back and we make a very small incision about an inch or so below the umbilicus.  Once we are in the abdomen we use an instrument called a spay hook to find the uterus.  Then, we pull the ligament that is attaching the ovaries and this allows the ovaries to be pulled up into the incision.

We then tie a stitch around the blood supply to the ovary.  The same thing is done for the second ovary.

Next, the uterus is pulled out so that we can see the area where the uterus attaches to the cervix.  Each uterine vessel is tied off with suture and then we put a big stitch around the body of the uterus.  It is then ready to be removed.

We usually close the body with three layers of stitches.  The first is the most important as it keeps the muscle layers closed.  We then close the subcutaneous tissues.  I usually put in buried stitches after this, but some vets will place stitches that have to be removed within 10-14 days.

Recovery

After this is done, we turn off the gas anesthetic and wake the animal up.  We will give an injection of some anti-inflammatory such as Metacam for dogs or Tolfedine for cats.

They are usually up an walking within the hour, but we don’t send them home until several hours later.

It is amazing how fast cats and dogs will recover from a spay!

Have a question for Dr. Marie?  You can ask an online vet question here.

I had a dog in today with a big lump on his toe.  We did something called a fine needle aspirate so I thought this would be a good topic to blog about today.

What is a fine needle aspirate?

This is a procedure where we use a very small needle (usually 22 gauge) and insert it into a lump.  The needle is usually attached to a large syringe.  Then, we pull back several times on the syringe to obtain some cells from the lump.  Sometimes instead of using the syringe we will simply stab the lump a few times with the needle instead.  Next, the needle is removed from the syringe, air is drawn into the syringe and the needle is put back on.  Then, we quickly depress the plunger on the syringe, causing whatever cells are in the hub of the needle to be expelled onto a glass slide.

We then smear the cells by using another glass slide.  Then, the slide is either stained in the clinic or sent to a pathologist to be examined under a microscope.

What is a biopsy?

A biopsy is a procedure where a piece of tissue is taken from a lump (or an area of abnormal skin).  This can sometimes be done with the help of a local anesthetic but some animals need to be under a general anesthetic to have this done.  The tissue is placed in a bottle of formalin and sent to a pathologist for examination.

Why do we do these tests?

There are a lot of things we can learn from a fine needle aspirate or a biopsy.  Here are some examples of what can be determined:

• Is this tissue likely to be cancerous?
• If it is cancer, what type is it?
• If it is cancer, do we need to make a very large around the lump to remove it?
• Is this lump likely to metastasize (spread) to other parts of the body?
• Does it look like there is infection in the area?

Which is better – FNA or biopsy?

There are pros and cons to each procedure.  While a fine needle aspirate can usually be done without any sedation, a biopsy almost always requires a local or general anesthetic.  A fine needle aspirate is also less expensive than a biopsy.  However, a biopsy is much more accurate as we are seeing a good chunk of tissue as opposed to a few cells.

I hope this information was helpful!  Is your dog or cat having a fine needle aspirate or biopsy done?  If you have questions about your pet’s condition you can ask an online vet question of Dr. Marie.

Do you have any experiences to share about fine needle aspirates or biopsies?  Feel free to leave a comment below!

I have a busy surgery day booked today…a dentistry and also five cat spays.  Most of the cats are in heat! 

While cats can go in and out of heat regularly (unlike dogs who usually go into heat every 6 months) we seem to see a real increase in cats in heat when spring is a couple of months away. 

It is best to spay an animal when they are not in heat.  However, it is often difficult with cats because their heat cycles are so unpredictable.  When an animal is in heat the blood vessels are larger and the uterus is more “friable” which means that it can rip very easily.

How do you know your cat is in heat?  You may see the following symptoms:

• Increased vocalization
• Wanting to be around you all the time
• Raising her bum in the air
• Rolling on the floor

A cat’s heat can last a few days or a few weeks.  When a cat is in heat she will have a very strong desire to be bred, so be sure that she doesn’t get outside!

Ideally it is best to spay a cat before their first heat.  We recommend spaying them between 5 and 6 months of age for this reason.  Studies have proven that spaying a cat before her first heat cycle greatly reduces the risk of mammary (breast) cancer later on in life.

Well, I am off to do surgery now….many uteri to remove!

Dr. Marie

Want to talk to Dr. Marie?  Click here to ask an online vet question.

Hi guys!  Just wanted to let you know that I have finally finished my book : “Save Money on Vet Bills“.

I have been working so much on my book that I have neglected my blog!

Ask A Vet Question is really taking off!  I’d like to thank all of you who have tried the website out.  I am really enjoying answering your veterinary questions.

So, let me update you on what is going on with my life.  My little girl is almost 2 years old now.  She is such a sweetheart!  Today she had a blast in the McDonald’s playground.  She loves when mommy is home to play with her!

It has been extremely busy at the animal hospital.  Usually the winter months are slow but we have been fully booked almost every day.  I think this is a good sign that the economy is doing well.

We’ve unfortunately had a number of cats with a urinary tract blockage in lately but we have managed to treat them all and all are doing well to this point!  We’ve also had a rash of ACL tears lately.  I usually find that we see these more in the summer time when animals are running free at the cottage and parks but we have seen several in the last few months.  These cases always make my heart drop because I know it is going to cost the owners so much money.  We usually end up calling in our orthopedic surgeon to do a TPLO surgery which can cost $2500-$3000 or so.

The other thing we are seeing lots of is cats with upper respiratory tract infections.  But again, almost all of them are being treated successfully.

I look forward to updating you on how my cases are going!  Stay tuned!

Dr. Marie

I thought I would write a little bit about what kind of cases I have seen lately. People often ask me what it is like being a vet so every now and then I will post a little bit about my work.

I had some interesting surgeries this week.

Amputation:

On Tuesday I did a hind leg amputation for a poor little puppy who fell from a balcony and broke her leg in several places. She is doing very well and should have a completely normal life.

Cherry eye:

We had the usual amount of spays and neuters this week. One of the neutered dogs also had something called a cherry eye (prolapsed nictitating membrane). This is a condition where the third eyelid pops out. It looks something like this:

In some cases, when a dog gets a cherry eye it will pop back into place.  (I saw a dog last week that would have her cherry eye pop out a few times a year and then we just gently replace it for her).  However, most of the time these dogs need surgery to tack it into place and keep it there.  Sometimes we get frustrating results with a surgery like this because the gland can sometimes work its way back out.  If we have tried twice to keep it in and it keeps popping out then we consider removing it.  However, this gland is really important for producing tears so we do all we can to avoid removing it!

Intestinal biopsies:

Yesterday I did a surgery to take biopsies of a cat’s intestines.  This poor little girl has had diarrhea for over a year and we just can’t figure out why.  We have done loads of tests and trials of foods and medications, but have not had success in stopping her diarrhea.  Hopefully the biopsies will tell us what is going on, and hopefully it is not something serious like intestinal cancer.

Care to share or comment about any of these cases?  If so, leave a comment below!

If you have a question for me (Dr. Marie), you can click here to Ask A Vet Question.

Here’s another great video. This dog does the best “play dead” I have ever seen! Very realistic!

Dr. Marie.
www.askavetquestion.com

I thought I would share a great video with you. This owner thought of a great way to exercise his dog!

Dr. Marie.
www.askavetquestion.com

Welcome to another installment of Guess the Diagnosis! Here is case #3:

This is Barley, a female 10 year old Bernese Mountain Dog:

Barley’s owner brought her to see Dr. Marie because she has been panting a lot lately, especially after exercise. At times her bark seems to be a little hoarse as well.

There will be more information posted in the days to come. (If you would like to be notified by email when a post is made, click here.)

If you think you know the answer, leave a comment. Or, if you would like to ask more information about the case, leave a comment with your question. The first correct guess wins a free question on www.askavetquestion.com!!!

Have fun!

Dr. Marie has written a new article about canine spinal injuries. In it, you can find information on intervertebral disc disease (IVDD), fibrocartilaginous embolism, and degenerative myelopathy.

There are also a number of links to sites where you can purchase canine incontinence pads, dog orthopedic beds and dog wheelchairs.

You can find the article here: Canine spinal injuries and dog wheelchairs.

Have a question for Dr. Marie? You can ask your vet question for $5.00 at www.askavetquestion.com.

Welcome to another installment of Guess the diagnosis! This one is a little different.

Can you guess what this cat ate?

Here is the radiograph:

The red arrows are pointing to the cat’s stomach. Can you tell what is in there?

The first correct guess wins a free question on www.askavetquestion.com! Leave your guess as a comment below. You can have one guess per day.

Want to be notified by email when a new post is made to Guess the Diagnosis? Click here for email notification.

Want to ask Dr. Marie a vet question? Want to see questions that other people have asked? Check out www.askavetquestion.com.