830. Sunday's Jan 22, 2012 interesting case (Chinese New Year's Eve)

Sunday, bright. sunny. Most vet practices close in the afternoon as there would be no clients. Toa Payoh Vets open till 5 pm. In the afternoon, no clients as at 3 pm when I am writing this report on a new client whose poodle, male, neutered, vomited blood yesterday and vomtied without blood today.

General exam was normal.
ABDOMINAL PALPATION
The dog arched his back when his ant aabdomen was palpated. "Hunched" said the lady owner. Mild pain in the liver, kidney, gastric area. The lady owner said: "Hunch back."

HISTORY
Since young, the dog had been vomiting every 1-2 months. Usually threw up without food. Vet 1 said nothing was wrong. I proposed X-ray or ultrasound after the Chinese New Year. For the time being, put on antibioitcs for 10 days.

TREATMENT
1. Dextrose saine 500 ml IV drip + anti-spasmogesic + antibiotic. Goes home later.

ADVICES
My hypothesis. Most likely the dog had been eating outside objects on the grass when walked by the domestic worker during the evening. Domestic workers meet their friends when they walk the dog and so it was possible that the dog gets fed some food or had gone onto the grass to eat anything . It is hard to say.

Blood test, X-ray and ultrasound can be done a few days later if vomiting continues. Cost is nto a problem with this owner. I said: "It is also possible that this dog has a small gastric foreign body that can't be vomited out nor passed through the intestines and so the dog vomits 1-2 monthly due to gastric inflammation and irritation by the movement of this foreign body and bacterial infection of the stomach (gastric mucosa)."

RIGHT EYE TEARING AND ITCHY
Swollen eyelids of the right eye due to rubbing. "Fluorescein eye stain is useful to check whether the eye cornea has ulcers or not," I put the fluroescein strip under the upper eyelid of both eyes. "Can you see the green stain on the cornea?" I shone the white light tangentially at the the right eye. "Yes," the lady owner said; "Green patches in the central cornea and at 12 o'clock and 2 o'clock. What is an ulcer?" she asked me as she could not understand. "It is a wound like the skin that has been cut, you will get a skin ulcer. A broken surface." She understood and translated it into Mandarin. I don't know how to translate ulcers in Mandarin. I must learn Mandarin as there are more Chinese Nationals nowadays and many Singaporeans speak Mandarin!

3 EMERGENCY CASES
1. One year old, female, Corgi, itchy back, wet areas. Their Vet is off, but the dog is still v. itchy. "Very good appetite after Shincort inj by Vet 1," the owner said. Wife and young son came. I advised clipping all bald just as Dr V wanted to clip just the back half. "There may be other areas and it is best to get hairs grow together." Owner said he saw "flea dirt," although Vet 1 saw a tick. A flea bite allergy not controlled by Vet 1's Shin cort injection?

2. Westie now not eating again. Wanted to see Dr Vanessa.

3. A dog with loose teeth or bad teeth. Made an appointment. Saw Dr Jason Teo yesterday.