Lucky Kirsch


   Lucky Kirsch is a 9yr old female/spayed Jack Russell Terrier that was presented on November 16th for Dr. Grosser to check her toe. Lucky had been bitten by another dog in the foot. The owner had wrapped the bite wound but Lucky removed the wrap and was licking her foot. The toe was nearly bitten off resulting in a fracture of the 2nd bone on the outside toe of the left front foot. The toe was attached only by skin and tendons. 
  



Lucky had surgery the next day and Dr. Grosser repaired the toe. Lucky was sent home with her foot bandaged and instructions to have the bandage removed in 48hrs and the foot rechecked. She was sent home on Metacam for pain and inflammation and Simplicef as her antibiotic. Upon the 48hr recheck the toe was healing well and we rebandaged the foot. Lucky did not tolerate her e-collar well and would chew off the bandage and lick her surgical sight. We changed her antibiotic to Baytril and stressed that Lucky keep her e-collar on at all times. The toe continues to heal and she does have use of it again. but has devoloped a secondary moist dermatitis from licking.

  Bella Richardson




This is Bella Richardson, she is a 6 month old Pit Bull that we first saw in August after being attacked by another dog. She had an ear laceratio that required general anesthesia to repair. Her ear was sutured back together and healed nicely. One month after Bella's initial visit she was presented to Post Pet Hospital with vomiting, diarrhea and anorexia. She tested positive for Parvovirus, a common virus in unvaccinated or immumocomprimised puppies. Parvo causes vomiting, bloody diarrhea, anorexia, dehydration and weight loss and sometimes death.

We hospitalized Bella placing her in intravenous fluids, and administered antibiotics, antacids and antiemetics (anti vomiting) by injection. Bella only vomited once in hospital but had multiple episodes of bloddy diarrhea. She was hospitalized for the weekend and by Monday her vomiting and diarrhea had resolved. We discontinued her intravenous fluids and started her on oral medication and Probiotics, and she was discharged Monday evening. By Wednesday Bella was eating well at home and giving her owner a hard time when trying to medicate her. Bella has been through a lot for her age and still remains a happy Patient

                

Goldie is a 10yr old male/neutered FIV postive domestic shorthair.  He was first diagnosed with cystitis (inflammation of the bladder) on June 2nd, 2009 and ended up having a cystotomy (cutting into the bladder) to have urinary stones removed on July 22nd, 2009.  After several rounds of antibiotics the owner opted to have radiographs taken of Goldie's bladder, which gave us our diagnosis of bladder stones and led to the cystotomy.  Dr. Grosser removed one large stone made of 3 stones clumped together, a smaller "clump" of stones and one smaller stone.  Goldie was urinating in his litterbox 24 hours post-operatively and bright and alert.  Stone analysis results diagnosed calcium oxalate crystals and Goldie was placed on a prescription diet to maintain his urinary health.  Goldie continues to do well at home and eats his new diet happily.

Jake Phillabaum is an 11yr old male/neutered Pug.  Jake is full of personality but on June 15th he was presented to Post Pet Hospital with lethargy, anorexia and a ruptured anal sac.  After a full physical exam, Dr. Grosser also noted periodontal disease.  Dr. Grosser then recommended we keep Jake for the day to treat the ruptured anal sac and perform a dental prophylaxis.  We ran preoperative bloodwork and placed an IV catheter prior to anesthesia.  Jake had a dental cleaning and 12 teeth were extracted.  We also flushed Jake's ruptured anal sac and infused it with medication.  Jake stayed in the hospital for a week after his procedure so we could care for him while his owner was in the hospital. Jake recovered nicely and began eating quite well.
Our staff got a big kick out of Jake, he's very entertaining and a pleasure to have around and work with.
Since Jake's stay with us he has returned for his annual vaccines, heartworm check and stool check.  Mr. Phillabaum's wife is still in the hospital but he hopes that she will be moving to a nursing home soon so her and Jake can be reunited.  Jake is missing her terribly but now is in tip top shape to be able to visit her as soon as he's able to.

Murphy Keith



Murphy is a 1 1/2 yr old male neutered beagle mix. He first presented in February as a new patient to Post Pet Hospital. Murphy had a midshaft fracture to his left femur, that Dr. Grosser repaired. He recovered quickly and was using the leg by the time he returned for his suture removal. By April Murphy was using the leg so well that he bent the pins Dr. Grosser had used to repair the fracture. We confirmed this with radiographs but recommended leaving the pins in for 3-4 more weeks for optimum healing. On May 8th Murphy came back for his pin removal; at that point he was non-weight bearing on the leg and a seroma had formed over the pins. Dr. Grosser removed they pins and by the next morning Murphy was bearing weight on the leg again and bouncing around like his normal , happy self. It is always a pleasure to see Murphy and his owner, Lonnie.

                                            Day of Surgery

                                        Bent pins

 
Sid Corbin


Sid is a 3yr old MN Pug that has been coming to Post Pet Hospital since he was a puppy.  Sid was seen by Noah's Emergency Clinic on 4-24-09 for vomiting, with a history of ingesting foreign bodies.  Initial radiographs were done at that time with no significant foreign body noted.  Sid was treated for the symptoms of vomiting and sent home with instructions to recheck with Dr. Grosser if vomiting persisted.  Dr. Grosser saw Sid later that morning, Sid was lethargic and anorexic but was not vomiting.  Radiographs showed some gas in the stomach with decreased gas in the intestines (not radiographic sign of an obstructed bowel), Sid was sent home on Famotidine and a bland diet.  A call back was done the next day and Sid seemed to be feeling better but still had not eaten yet.  By Monday 4-27-09, Sid had been vomiting all weekend, what looked like mulch per Sid's owner.  We took another radiograph before prepping Sid for an enterotomy.  Dr. Grosser found three toothpick sized sticks perforating the duodenum and had to resect that portion of the bowel.  Sid stayed overnight at Post Pet Hospital receiving intravenous fluids and antibiotics along with pain medication.  The next morning Sid walked outside but did not perk up until a visit from his owner.  We kept Sid for the remainder of the day and then discharged him on the evening of 4-28-09 in the capable hands of his owners.  Sid's owners are Brent and Claire Corbin and they are no strangers to post-operative care for foreign body surgeries.  Sid had a previous foreign body in April of 2008 and Sid's housemate, Sienna a 2 1/2 yr old Doberman Pinscher has also had two foreign body surgeries!  Sid continues to do well at home and is recovering nicely from his surgery, we look forward to his suture removal visit and many more years of caring for Sid and Sienna Corbin.


Sid after surgery

  Sid and Sienna

 
Last object removed from Sid

Lilly Turner



   Miss Lilly is a happy and vibrant 10 month old female Shepherd mix. She
presented to Post Pet Hospital for her first visit this past February to have a limp checked. Lilly had been limping on her left front leg for about 1 month and had a wound on the top of her left front paw.

   Dr. McReynolds diagnosed Lilly with brachial plexus avulsion, a tearing away of the nerves in the brachial plexus. This is usually a result of some type of trauma like being hit by a car.  The brachial plexus is a combination of multiple forelimb nerves. The severity of symptoms is dependent on which nerves are damaged. In Lilly's case the nerves that supply the triceps muscle were affected causing her to limp on that left front leg and her paw to knuckle over. 

   Treatment for this type of injury is daily physical therapy, to prevent tendon and muscle contraction. Regrowth of injured nerves is slow and may take months. A sock, boot or bandage is recommended to protect the paw and prevent abrasions, which Lilly already had. 

   In worse case scenarios amputation is considered if there is self mutilation or no improvement in motor abitilies.

   Lilly's wound in her paw bacame a source of infection and after bandaging at home the skin began to necrose causing an open wound that was beyond repair and an amputation was recommended.

   One month after Lilly's initial visit an amputation was performed by Dr. Grosser. For Lilly he decided to remove the whole front limb- shoulder blade, upper arm as well as lower leg. If the shoulder blade or part of the upper arm bone (the humerus) were left on Lilly her continueing muscle atrophy (loss of muscle tissue) would cause those bones to protrude and possibly come through the skin. By removing the bones we plan to leave her with a smoother contour to her chest and less weight to carry on her right leg. This technique allows the surgeon to remove the leg without having to cut through the bone thus decreasing operating time and post op pain.

   The operation involves - cutting the muscles that attach the shoulder blade to the body wall. The nerves to the leg are cut and the blood vessels are tied off. The muscles that attached the scapula are sutured back to the muscle that attached to the opposite side of the bone. The skin is then sutured closed and we put on a chest wrap for the first few days. 


  Lilly was up and about within a few hours of surgery. She was feeling much better with the removal of the necrotic (infected) tissue. She walked out on day 2 wagging her tail.

                          Oreo Dean

                   


    This is Oreo Dean, our 16 1/2 yr old male neutered cat. Oreo was surrendered to Post Pet Hospital in April of 2005. He came to us with hyperthyroidism, a disease of older cats that is a benign tumor of the thyroid gland causing the thyroid to secrete excessive amounts of thyroid hormone. Thyroid hormones stimulates the body's metabolism. The disease causes accelerated heart rate, ravenous appetite but weight loss and ultimately they can develop heart disease and kidney failure. 

   The thyroid tumor can be eradicated with radioactive iodine. The tumor can also be removed with delicate surgery. The surgeon must be careful to preserve the parathyroid gland as it is essential to maintain calcium levels in the body.

   Management of the disease requires a daily to twice daily medication called Methimazole or Tapazole. The medication has side effects such as vomiting and anorexia with the most common side effect being depression. Management requires a minimum of an annual exam and bloodwork to monitor the level of the replacement thyroid hormones in the bloodstream.

   In Oreo's case, management with medication had been started by the previous owner and we continued that course with success for the first few years. Oreo did suffer from the side effects of the medication but we managed to keep his thyroid hormone level in the normal range until January when it sky rocketed to 10.1 with the normal range being 0.8 - 4.0.

   After a staff consensus was reached Oreo was scheduled for a thyroidectomy performed by Dr. Grosser. Surgery was a success and Oreo has gained not only 8 oz since the surgery but a new lease on life as well. He has become much more affectionate and outgoing. To know Oreo is to love him, he has obviously won the hearts of our staff and many of our clients!

   Sadly, Oreo was euthanized in June, 2009.  We are comforted with  knowing he had a happy 4yrs with us at Post Pet Hospital and the best veterinary care possible.



                    
                           Oreo's incision after suture removal

  

Hank Byerly

Hank

 Let us introduce you to 'Hank' Byerly, a 10yr old male/neutered Cocker Spanel. Hank is well known among the staff members of Post Pet Hospital for his frequent visits addressing his 'itchy' skin and his 'piddle' behavior when we lift him onto the exam table. Hank is a happy, well behaved boy that was brought in on January 15th for something other than his itchy skin. He was lethargic, not eating and seemed weak, definatly not himself. Initial bloodwork revealed a low hematocrit, red blood cells and hemoglobin. Hank started on treatment for hemolytic anemia. That night Hank went home, ate A/D, drank and seemed to improve. The next day Hank returned to PPH, his hematocrit had dropped even lower and he was unable to walk despite treatment that was started - it was time for a transfusion.

'Lyle' was more than willing to donate to the cause and was 'Hank's' donor dog. Lyle belongs to one of our staff members, they were both happy to help.

Lyle

 After Hank's transfusion he was trying to jump out of his cage so he was sent home with his family and they were instructed to return the next day for a recheck. By January 20th Hank had gotten much worse and Dr. Grosser recommended a Splenectomy (removal of the spleen). A cross match was performed to find a donor that was compatible to 'Hank', three dogs were ruled out before finding a match to Hank, this time it was Dr. Grosser's dog 'Aristotle'.

Aristotle

  During surgery Hank received his transfusion, the spleen was removed (it was three times the normal size), all lymph nodes were normal and there were no tumors or metastatic tumors. Postoperatlively Hank recovered very well and his hematocrit went up into the normal range. Histopathology results ruled out any form of neoplasia (cancer) and confirmed some type of autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

Thus far Hank continues to do well and is enjoying all the extra special attention from family and friends.

Shelby Lynn Abner

    Shelby is a 1yr old female/spayed Golden Retriever that presented to Post Pet Hospital on December 13th for vomiting.Shelby had been vomiting for one week. Normally Shelby is very active and into everything. Abdominal radiographs showed material in the stomach and gas distended loops of bowel.

  
          (the black is gas in the loops of the bowel)

        On Monday December 15th Shelby returned not doing well and pre-operative radiographs comfirmed the "material" had not left the stomach and there was increased gaseous distension of the small intestine indicating a blockage. Shelby had an emergency enterotomy revealing 9 perforations of the intestinal tract and an additional incision into the stomach necessary to remove the remnants of plastic, cloth, hair and various other unknown material not able to be extracted through the intestine.

after surgery

        Post-operatively Shelby continued to vomit and the Doctors were concerned about her developing septicemia and/or peritonitis. Shelby was on several medications and improved with each day. At Shelby's suture removal she was back to her normal self.