Today, I spoke to two experienced dog groomers today regarding their business successes as they brought their puppies for vaccination.. Their location is in middle-class areas.
GROOMER 1. Couple. Over 40 years old. Children. Vet surgery nearby.
Challenges.
1. Too many young unqualified groomers underprice
2. Not easier to hire good help.
Advantage:
A vet practice nearby. As the vet does not do grooming, this couple is in an envious position of getting grooming clients. Apparently, a tenant in the laundry business blocked the view of their signboard. I have not visited this shop.
GROOMER 2. A gentleman in his 30s. He was born into the pet shop business and I could see that he had developed the pet shop well. The mother is an experienced groomer. I knew the father for over 10 years and recently visited the shop and had a long chat with him. The father had an accident and was discharged from the general hospital on the same day. He became comatose at home and passed away recently. I was shocked as I had talked to the father about his high cholesterol levels.
1. Underpricing is not the way to sustain the profitability.
2. Quality clientele is the way to go.
3. Dog owners who go for the cheapest quote are not wanted.
4. Important point for growing the business is that the dog must look forward to grooming, not being abused and goes home happily.
CONCLUSION
It is the groomer's service that brings in the cases rather than the pricing.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
37. Non-closing midline wound
Every vet will encounter non-healing of a long midline surgical wound. Stitch breakdown is one complications of surgery. This Cocker Spaniel is normal but the wound just will not close some 4 weeks after surgery to remove the stones in the intestines by Vet 1.
The dog went home and the stitch broke down. So Vet 1 had to stitch up the wound again. Yet, the wound just does not heal as the tension in this area is very great. I could see the stitches cutting through and the gap getting bigger.
The assistant applied antibiotic powder daily for the last 2 weeks. The wound was moist, as if exudate leaked from below the skin prevents granulation tissue from forming. Thus the long wound persists and the family members esp. children could not stand the sight of a long moist channel in the belly or underside of their dog.
What can be done to resolve the problem so that the dog can go home? This case study of the management of non-healing wounds in a normal dog would be good for Tanya, the intern.
1. Remove all stitches.
2. Wash the wound daily with clean warm water.
3. Use trimaxazole antibiotic powder. Do not apply cream.
4. Pack gauze onto surface of wound.
5. Bandage the lower chest and abdominal area to prevent exudate formation or irritation by the dog's paws. Although a big e-collar was in place, I suspect that there was some way the dog could lick the wound or the stitches were irritating.
6. Remove the bandage daily and repeat steps 1-5.
7. Antibiotics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory would be given to effect.
Today April 22, 2010 is the first day of bandaging. I took a picture yesterday. I have told Tanya to expect granulation in 14 days if the above procedures were done diligently. Let's see.
Basically, a wound will heal by granulation if it is kept clean and dry. Somehow, this dog's wound had not healed and I suspected that the dog had been irritating it when nobody is looking. It is my hypothesis. Whatever it is, all the owner wants is for the wound to close and the dog to go home.
The dog went home and the stitch broke down. So Vet 1 had to stitch up the wound again. Yet, the wound just does not heal as the tension in this area is very great. I could see the stitches cutting through and the gap getting bigger.
The assistant applied antibiotic powder daily for the last 2 weeks. The wound was moist, as if exudate leaked from below the skin prevents granulation tissue from forming. Thus the long wound persists and the family members esp. children could not stand the sight of a long moist channel in the belly or underside of their dog.
What can be done to resolve the problem so that the dog can go home? This case study of the management of non-healing wounds in a normal dog would be good for Tanya, the intern.
1. Remove all stitches.
2. Wash the wound daily with clean warm water.
3. Use trimaxazole antibiotic powder. Do not apply cream.
4. Pack gauze onto surface of wound.
5. Bandage the lower chest and abdominal area to prevent exudate formation or irritation by the dog's paws. Although a big e-collar was in place, I suspect that there was some way the dog could lick the wound or the stitches were irritating.
6. Remove the bandage daily and repeat steps 1-5.
7. Antibiotics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory would be given to effect.
Today April 22, 2010 is the first day of bandaging. I took a picture yesterday. I have told Tanya to expect granulation in 14 days if the above procedures were done diligently. Let's see.
Basically, a wound will heal by granulation if it is kept clean and dry. Somehow, this dog's wound had not healed and I suspected that the dog had been irritating it when nobody is looking. It is my hypothesis. Whatever it is, all the owner wants is for the wound to close and the dog to go home.
36. Exclusion of the mum at the award
"It is not the right thing to do," I said to my god-daughter. There would be an award presentation for her at the University. The top 2% of the cohort would be given awards and she asked mum not to attend. After so many years of bringing a child up as a single mum, I would say that this mum should attend since she could afford the fares. But the daughter said no as she had no accommodation for mum. "Most likely no time for mum," I said to her. "As your examinations are just round the corner and at least 3 of your friends had visited you recently, taking up much study time."
Mum was understanding and did not insist. Yet it is one of those very rare occasions in motherhood because out of 100 students, only 2 would be given awards for academic excellence. Maybe the awards should be given at the end of the examinations?
Mum was understanding and did not insist. Yet it is one of those very rare occasions in motherhood because out of 100 students, only 2 would be given awards for academic excellence. Maybe the awards should be given at the end of the examinations?
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
35. Looks can be deceiving. Circum-anal tumour
How to make internship interesting and entertaining? Young people can get bored easily. The following case had some elements of humour for the quiet and serious vet intern whom I tested her on her powers of observation. A 9-year-old male black Labrador Retriever was limping on right fore and walking on 3 legs yesterday. So the careful groomer brought him for consultation. He was to shave this dog bald every 2 months and was worried that if he lifted the leg to clip, the dog would get worse. Possibly he could be blamed for a lame dog after grooming. So, he pre-empted blame by consulting the vet first. This was smart of him.
EXAMINATION OF LAMENESS
How to make internship for Tanya interesting? One method is to ask her what the problem was and to ensure she is hands-on. In this case, I asked the groomer to walk the dog outside the surgery and then trotted as I would do as a racehorse veterinarian. The dog moved normally but suddenly collapsed on her left fore during running. This should make an unforgettable impression on Tanya as the dog was OK now, according to the groomer who had seconds thoughts of consulting me. He was busy and had many grooming cases and therefore he would prefer not to come.
To save time, I got the dog to lie down on the floor, muzzled her and palpated each digit and toe to the shoulder of the right fore. I flexed and extended all joints of the right fore limb, as I did when I was a racehorse veterinarian some 20 years ago.
LOCATION OF PAIN
Palpation at right fore, 4th digit, between phalanx 2 and 3. The dog reacted by withdrawing and whining in pain. So this was the pain location and the diagnosis was sprain of the ligaments in this area. Not a serious problem.
OBSERVATION
"Is that the dog's testicle near the tail?" I queried Tanya as the dog had a big swelling below the tail and near the anus. "Yes," she said immediately. The powers of observation need to be enhanced with age and experience and so Tanya's answer was expected.
"Are you sure?" I asked again. From general observation, it sure looked like one to the lay person. Tanya was sure. "It is in the wrong position," I told Tanya. She had just passed Junior College and so could not be expected to know dog anatomy. On first impressions, this looked very much like the scrotum. This was one of nature's tricks on interns who will be starting first year vet. Looks can be deceiving. A detailed hands-on examination on the table should be done in many cases. The vet or intern must be hands-on.
"The normal testicle is nowhere near the anus or tail in the male dog," I said. "Where is the anus actually? Please push the large spherical swelling to reveal the anus." Tanya used her hand to move the circum-anal tumour to the right as the dog was trying to sit down. There it was. "Is the tumour very near to the anal opening?" I asked. "Yes," she was convinced that this was no testicle.
IS THE MALE DOG NEUTERED?
The vet must be thorough in checking. This dog has no scrotal sacs. "This dog has been neutered," the groomer stated. This is another trick of nature. No scrotal sac does not mean that the dog is neutered. The vet has to be hands-on..
The dog was reluctant to stand for long. However, I had to get him standing and showed Tanya where to locate the two undescended testicles under the skin near the penile area. The groomer tried and felt nothing. The testicles had swollen in size but not excessively. These could be the start of testicular cancer. The only signs of a feminising testicular tumour were that this dog had put on weight and had a very shiny coat. I did not pursue the matter further as the owner was not interested. Undescended testicles do become cancerous and circum-anal tumours are best removed when they are small. But each dog has his own destiny. This dog had interesting teaching material for the vet intern but I don't know she will remember this case during her 4th year which will be in 2015.
CONCLUSION
Neutering of the 9-year-old male dog, especially removal of the two undescended testicles in this dog when he was young would have prevented testicular tumours and circum-anal tumours to develop, in most probability. It is not a guaranteed thing but removal of undescended testicles early will have been best for the older dog as no testicular cancers will be present in old age. Dog owners all over the world seldom give old dogs much notice or time unlike puppies and therefore neutering young ones may avoid much of the hormonal or gender-related tumours in our companion dogs. The vet's responsibility is to inform the owner via the groomer about the circum-anal tumour and a few black ones below the anus. The owner did not want any surgery.
EXAMINATION OF LAMENESS
How to make internship for Tanya interesting? One method is to ask her what the problem was and to ensure she is hands-on. In this case, I asked the groomer to walk the dog outside the surgery and then trotted as I would do as a racehorse veterinarian. The dog moved normally but suddenly collapsed on her left fore during running. This should make an unforgettable impression on Tanya as the dog was OK now, according to the groomer who had seconds thoughts of consulting me. He was busy and had many grooming cases and therefore he would prefer not to come.
To save time, I got the dog to lie down on the floor, muzzled her and palpated each digit and toe to the shoulder of the right fore. I flexed and extended all joints of the right fore limb, as I did when I was a racehorse veterinarian some 20 years ago.
LOCATION OF PAIN
Palpation at right fore, 4th digit, between phalanx 2 and 3. The dog reacted by withdrawing and whining in pain. So this was the pain location and the diagnosis was sprain of the ligaments in this area. Not a serious problem.
OBSERVATION
"Is that the dog's testicle near the tail?" I queried Tanya as the dog had a big swelling below the tail and near the anus. "Yes," she said immediately. The powers of observation need to be enhanced with age and experience and so Tanya's answer was expected.
"Are you sure?" I asked again. From general observation, it sure looked like one to the lay person. Tanya was sure. "It is in the wrong position," I told Tanya. She had just passed Junior College and so could not be expected to know dog anatomy. On first impressions, this looked very much like the scrotum. This was one of nature's tricks on interns who will be starting first year vet. Looks can be deceiving. A detailed hands-on examination on the table should be done in many cases. The vet or intern must be hands-on.
"The normal testicle is nowhere near the anus or tail in the male dog," I said. "Where is the anus actually? Please push the large spherical swelling to reveal the anus." Tanya used her hand to move the circum-anal tumour to the right as the dog was trying to sit down. There it was. "Is the tumour very near to the anal opening?" I asked. "Yes," she was convinced that this was no testicle.
IS THE MALE DOG NEUTERED?
The vet must be thorough in checking. This dog has no scrotal sacs. "This dog has been neutered," the groomer stated. This is another trick of nature. No scrotal sac does not mean that the dog is neutered. The vet has to be hands-on..
The dog was reluctant to stand for long. However, I had to get him standing and showed Tanya where to locate the two undescended testicles under the skin near the penile area. The groomer tried and felt nothing. The testicles had swollen in size but not excessively. These could be the start of testicular cancer. The only signs of a feminising testicular tumour were that this dog had put on weight and had a very shiny coat. I did not pursue the matter further as the owner was not interested. Undescended testicles do become cancerous and circum-anal tumours are best removed when they are small. But each dog has his own destiny. This dog had interesting teaching material for the vet intern but I don't know she will remember this case during her 4th year which will be in 2015.
CONCLUSION
Neutering of the 9-year-old male dog, especially removal of the two undescended testicles in this dog when he was young would have prevented testicular tumours and circum-anal tumours to develop, in most probability. It is not a guaranteed thing but removal of undescended testicles early will have been best for the older dog as no testicular cancers will be present in old age. Dog owners all over the world seldom give old dogs much notice or time unlike puppies and therefore neutering young ones may avoid much of the hormonal or gender-related tumours in our companion dogs. The vet's responsibility is to inform the owner via the groomer about the circum-anal tumour and a few black ones below the anus. The owner did not want any surgery.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
31. Incredible but true Singaporean gangster story
Year: 2003 SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome)
Location: Singapore, Desker Road Coffee Shop
Yang: Hokkien Peranakan. Late 30s. Retrenched. Jobless. Estrangement. No kids.
Big brother: Triad chief of Desker neighbourhood
Pig face: A look-out
Susan: Coffeeshop drinks operator
Setbacks in life occur for many people. For one of my old clients, this story was narrated to me some 2 days ago.
In 2003, the SARS virus affected the world economy and people like Harry lost his sales job and could not find any for several months. His marriage was on the rocks and his mum sided with the daughter-in-law. He had to move out.
He decided to open a food stall in a corner two-storey coffeeshop at Desker Road selling mee-siam and mee-goreng. As to why he set up a stall in this notorious red-light district, I forgot to ask him but I made him show me the real place. Not that I don't trust him. His tale was too incredible to be true.
I met him for lunch two days ago. I wanted to keep in touch and learn some secrets of his success as a sales person for a corporation. Learn from the best. Lately, I had been meeting men and women in dire straits and so meeting Harry was so much positive for the spirits.
During lunch at Hans eating his favourite sweet and sour fish , Harry recalled the setback in his life in 2003.
"One day, a young man on a bicycle beckoned him with a finger to come out of his stall to extort money. "Brother, I can give you free food," Harry said. "I have no money to give you." The extortionist was not pleased.
"Why so depressed?" Susan, the coffeeshop lady asked me one day. "Susan is the wife of Tenant and controls the drinks stall," Harry elaborated. "She will barter free drinks for my food. But no beer."
"I don't want to cause trouble," Harry told Susan what happened and Susan told him that he would see some fireworks soon.
"So, what happened?" I asked.
"The gangster chief came for dinner and I served him. Two eggs for his mee-goreng." And I thought the triads and secret societies were wiped out by the number "999" in Singapore since 1990. Many secret societies had numbers but somebody told me that the only gang in Singapore is "999" nowadays. Even in the red-light district of Desker Road. For the benefit of readers, "999" refers to the Singapore police force.
Harry said, "The gangster chief asked his man to get Pig Face (the extortionist on the bicycle).
The gangster chief cursed Pig Face with all the swear words in the Hokkien vocabulary. "When my mother does not cook my dinner, I come here to eat. Why are you harassing Yuan?"
Seeing me perplexed, Harry explained that "Yuan" meant "Handsome" in Hokkien. More expletives. Then his men kicked Pig Face. Pig Face fell and he was kicked more times. Harry is a Hokkien Peranakan and understood the Hokkien foul words well. "Every word from the gangster's mouth is a foul word as he reprimanded Pig Face," Harry did not repeat those expletives as he was the type who does not do it in my presence.
Extortion and violence are part and parcel of secret societies but I did not associate with such elements and this was the first time I had heard of the culture of the gangsters at Desker Road.
"I presume the gangster chief and his men get free meals from you for protection," I said to Harry.
"He always pay for his meals," Harry said to my surprise. "Do you know what Pig Face does for a living?"
"No," I said.
"Pig Face's job was to cycle up and down the alley between Desker and Rowell Road. Whenever he sees the police, he will sound the alarm or ram his bicycle into them. This will alert the sellers of pirated CDs and pornographic material." Since Playboy magazine is prohibited in Singapore, there must be a demand for such items amongst the young national servicemen."
Harry said, "Pig Face is a runner." But runners can be ambitious too to rise up the corporate ladder. Only that he picked the wrong person to extort. All the characters of 2003 had disappeared although the coffee shop, now taken by a new management, still exists.
Harry is now a very successful sales person and earns at least $5,000 per month. He still works for various corporations. But legal ones. He is the type who is afraid of starting up but he has the network and supporters over the past 10 years to support him if he knows how to be an entrepreneur. He has the guaranteed salary at the end of the month. So, why bother getting out of his comfort zone and being at risk of no income. He never takes kick backs when he works for the corporation. Nor does he go for the wine and women.
So, his reputation remains good and there is a great demand for excellent sales person in his industry. Gangsters still exist in Singapore but they are emasculated and not so fearsome as before. They used to be identified with tattoos but many young Singapore females tattoo themselves and therefore, we can't be sure who is the real gangster.
When the chips are down, Harry started a food stall rather than borrowing money from friends and strangers and conning Singaporeans of their money. He is the sort of rare person who is an asset to any business and a role model for young men.
Location: Singapore, Desker Road Coffee Shop
Yang: Hokkien Peranakan. Late 30s. Retrenched. Jobless. Estrangement. No kids.
Big brother: Triad chief of Desker neighbourhood
Pig face: A look-out
Susan: Coffeeshop drinks operator
Setbacks in life occur for many people. For one of my old clients, this story was narrated to me some 2 days ago.
In 2003, the SARS virus affected the world economy and people like Harry lost his sales job and could not find any for several months. His marriage was on the rocks and his mum sided with the daughter-in-law. He had to move out.
He decided to open a food stall in a corner two-storey coffeeshop at Desker Road selling mee-siam and mee-goreng. As to why he set up a stall in this notorious red-light district, I forgot to ask him but I made him show me the real place. Not that I don't trust him. His tale was too incredible to be true.
I met him for lunch two days ago. I wanted to keep in touch and learn some secrets of his success as a sales person for a corporation. Learn from the best. Lately, I had been meeting men and women in dire straits and so meeting Harry was so much positive for the spirits.
During lunch at Hans eating his favourite sweet and sour fish , Harry recalled the setback in his life in 2003.
"One day, a young man on a bicycle beckoned him with a finger to come out of his stall to extort money. "Brother, I can give you free food," Harry said. "I have no money to give you." The extortionist was not pleased.
"Why so depressed?" Susan, the coffeeshop lady asked me one day. "Susan is the wife of Tenant and controls the drinks stall," Harry elaborated. "She will barter free drinks for my food. But no beer."
"I don't want to cause trouble," Harry told Susan what happened and Susan told him that he would see some fireworks soon.
"So, what happened?" I asked.
"The gangster chief came for dinner and I served him. Two eggs for his mee-goreng." And I thought the triads and secret societies were wiped out by the number "999" in Singapore since 1990. Many secret societies had numbers but somebody told me that the only gang in Singapore is "999" nowadays. Even in the red-light district of Desker Road. For the benefit of readers, "999" refers to the Singapore police force.
Harry said, "The gangster chief asked his man to get Pig Face (the extortionist on the bicycle).
The gangster chief cursed Pig Face with all the swear words in the Hokkien vocabulary. "When my mother does not cook my dinner, I come here to eat. Why are you harassing Yuan?"
Seeing me perplexed, Harry explained that "Yuan" meant "Handsome" in Hokkien. More expletives. Then his men kicked Pig Face. Pig Face fell and he was kicked more times. Harry is a Hokkien Peranakan and understood the Hokkien foul words well. "Every word from the gangster's mouth is a foul word as he reprimanded Pig Face," Harry did not repeat those expletives as he was the type who does not do it in my presence.
Extortion and violence are part and parcel of secret societies but I did not associate with such elements and this was the first time I had heard of the culture of the gangsters at Desker Road.
"I presume the gangster chief and his men get free meals from you for protection," I said to Harry.
"He always pay for his meals," Harry said to my surprise. "Do you know what Pig Face does for a living?"
"No," I said.
"Pig Face's job was to cycle up and down the alley between Desker and Rowell Road. Whenever he sees the police, he will sound the alarm or ram his bicycle into them. This will alert the sellers of pirated CDs and pornographic material." Since Playboy magazine is prohibited in Singapore, there must be a demand for such items amongst the young national servicemen."
Harry said, "Pig Face is a runner." But runners can be ambitious too to rise up the corporate ladder. Only that he picked the wrong person to extort. All the characters of 2003 had disappeared although the coffee shop, now taken by a new management, still exists.
Harry is now a very successful sales person and earns at least $5,000 per month. He still works for various corporations. But legal ones. He is the type who is afraid of starting up but he has the network and supporters over the past 10 years to support him if he knows how to be an entrepreneur. He has the guaranteed salary at the end of the month. So, why bother getting out of his comfort zone and being at risk of no income. He never takes kick backs when he works for the corporation. Nor does he go for the wine and women.
So, his reputation remains good and there is a great demand for excellent sales person in his industry. Gangsters still exist in Singapore but they are emasculated and not so fearsome as before. They used to be identified with tattoos but many young Singapore females tattoo themselves and therefore, we can't be sure who is the real gangster.
When the chips are down, Harry started a food stall rather than borrowing money from friends and strangers and conning Singaporeans of their money. He is the sort of rare person who is an asset to any business and a role model for young men.
33. Breast nodules in 6-year-old Maltese
As many Singapore dog owners want the cheapest veterinary surgery, many breast tumours in dogs are not sent for histopathology. In this 6-year-old female Maltese which I operated to remove the closed pyometra womb and recorded in:
http://www.bekindtopets.com /dogs/20100135Video_Education_Closed_Pyometra_ToaPayohVets.htm,
the nodules were analysed. The report is as follows:
GROSS DESCRIPTION. A piece of tissue measuring 1.7 cm x 1.5 cm x 0.7cm.
MICROSCOPIC DESCRIPTION. Section shows skin with a well circumscribed nodule in the dermis. It consists of elongated and dilated ducts lined by hyperplastic columnar epithelium with papillary infoldings and which join up to form lobules. A loose fibroblastic stroma is present within the vicinity of the lobules and other areas show lobules of mature cartilage. No malignancy is seen.
DIAGNOSIS
Breast tissue. Benign mixed tumour of the skin
I was surprised. I thought it was a breast tumour. The lab doctor said this was a skin tumour which happened to be over the breast. She would consult another doctor for a second opinion.
Human pathology is applied to this case as the lab does human. She gets dog and cat growth from various vets in Singapore. Mast cell tumours from the limbs in dogs from her experience. Overall, tumours are classified according to human medicine and she said there were differences.
"I believe a cancerous cell is the same, whether from the dog and cat or from human beings," I said.
"There was a vet pathologist I knew many years ago, I can't remember her name," she said. "You know, you can send your biopsy samples to a veterinary pathology lab in Singapore. I don't know why vets send samples to us. We are doing the vets a favour as we do human histopathology," the lady doctor said over the phone.
"I have never heard of a veterinary pathologist in Singapore," I said. "Vet pathologists are post-graduate specialists and I don't know of any vet who is this specialist. Pl let me know the name of the specialist."
"I will phone you back after I find it," she said.
Her text message: "The lab that accepts animal histo is CVL-AVA tel 6316 5172". The lab is in my "backyard!"
http://www.bekindtopets.com /dogs/20100135Video_Education_Closed_Pyometra_ToaPayohVets.htm,
the nodules were analysed. The report is as follows:
GROSS DESCRIPTION. A piece of tissue measuring 1.7 cm x 1.5 cm x 0.7cm.
MICROSCOPIC DESCRIPTION. Section shows skin with a well circumscribed nodule in the dermis. It consists of elongated and dilated ducts lined by hyperplastic columnar epithelium with papillary infoldings and which join up to form lobules. A loose fibroblastic stroma is present within the vicinity of the lobules and other areas show lobules of mature cartilage. No malignancy is seen.
DIAGNOSIS
Breast tissue. Benign mixed tumour of the skin
I was surprised. I thought it was a breast tumour. The lab doctor said this was a skin tumour which happened to be over the breast. She would consult another doctor for a second opinion.
Human pathology is applied to this case as the lab does human. She gets dog and cat growth from various vets in Singapore. Mast cell tumours from the limbs in dogs from her experience. Overall, tumours are classified according to human medicine and she said there were differences.
"I believe a cancerous cell is the same, whether from the dog and cat or from human beings," I said.
"There was a vet pathologist I knew many years ago, I can't remember her name," she said. "You know, you can send your biopsy samples to a veterinary pathology lab in Singapore. I don't know why vets send samples to us. We are doing the vets a favour as we do human histopathology," the lady doctor said over the phone.
"I have never heard of a veterinary pathologist in Singapore," I said. "Vet pathologists are post-graduate specialists and I don't know of any vet who is this specialist. Pl let me know the name of the specialist."
"I will phone you back after I find it," she said.
Her text message: "The lab that accepts animal histo is CVL-AVA tel 6316 5172". The lab is in my "backyard!"
Monday, April 19, 2010
31. Old dogs take a longer time to heal
Young people recover fast. But old people take a longer time to recover from illness and surgery. Does this apply to old dogs? Yes.
Each vet has his or her own idea on whether to spay a dog presented with breast tumours and excise the tumours in one anaesthesia and surgery. I always advise spay first and tumour removal 2 weeks later so that the old dog had a higher survival rate during and after surgery. Spaying a dog would take some time. Breast tumour removal takes more time.
As most Singaporean owners are interested in economics, one procedure would satisfy the owner. If the dog does not die. If the dog dies, too bad for the owner. He still has to pay up as he has had signed a surgery and anesthesia consent form informing him of the risks involved.
What about the interest of the old dog? This ought to be paramount. Survival rates are much higher if the anaesthesia is not prolonged as the dog's health is not so good. But the owner has to be sophisticated and educated to understand. And many don't. I had a case of closed pyometra and breast tumours. After spaying to resolve the pyometra problem and not excising the breast tumours at the same time so as to shorten the anaesthetic time and enhance survival rate, the owner forgot about the breast tumour removal advices. That is the typical attitude of many dog owners of older dogs.
So, some vets may feel that it is better to spay and excise breast tumours at one go and this is OK if the dog does not die.
In one case I encounter, the dog had spay, breast tumour removal and dental scaling by a vet. This 13-year-old Pom just looked half dead the next day. I thought it was the end. A maroon redness spread over the breast area. The next day, the sternal area was also red maroon. That meant the whole belly and groin area was dark red due to scratching or licking. The dog seemed to feel very painful despite pain-killer medication.
The dog would not eat and had to be hand-fed with canned food for the next 7 days but she looked brighter on day 7. I/V drips were given. Medication too. Still the dog would not eat on her own.
"Was there any blood test done?" I asked the owner. Apparently not. The couple was lucky to have a dog alive. In such cases, much depends on the vet's decision and the consent of the owner to take the risk in a 3-in-one operation. If the dog lives, it is considered "lucky". If the old dog dies after surgery, it is considered "unlucky."
Each vet has his or her own idea on whether to spay a dog presented with breast tumours and excise the tumours in one anaesthesia and surgery. I always advise spay first and tumour removal 2 weeks later so that the old dog had a higher survival rate during and after surgery. Spaying a dog would take some time. Breast tumour removal takes more time.
As most Singaporean owners are interested in economics, one procedure would satisfy the owner. If the dog does not die. If the dog dies, too bad for the owner. He still has to pay up as he has had signed a surgery and anesthesia consent form informing him of the risks involved.
What about the interest of the old dog? This ought to be paramount. Survival rates are much higher if the anaesthesia is not prolonged as the dog's health is not so good. But the owner has to be sophisticated and educated to understand. And many don't. I had a case of closed pyometra and breast tumours. After spaying to resolve the pyometra problem and not excising the breast tumours at the same time so as to shorten the anaesthetic time and enhance survival rate, the owner forgot about the breast tumour removal advices. That is the typical attitude of many dog owners of older dogs.
So, some vets may feel that it is better to spay and excise breast tumours at one go and this is OK if the dog does not die.
In one case I encounter, the dog had spay, breast tumour removal and dental scaling by a vet. This 13-year-old Pom just looked half dead the next day. I thought it was the end. A maroon redness spread over the breast area. The next day, the sternal area was also red maroon. That meant the whole belly and groin area was dark red due to scratching or licking. The dog seemed to feel very painful despite pain-killer medication.
The dog would not eat and had to be hand-fed with canned food for the next 7 days but she looked brighter on day 7. I/V drips were given. Medication too. Still the dog would not eat on her own.
"Was there any blood test done?" I asked the owner. Apparently not. The couple was lucky to have a dog alive. In such cases, much depends on the vet's decision and the consent of the owner to take the risk in a 3-in-one operation. If the dog lives, it is considered "lucky". If the old dog dies after surgery, it is considered "unlucky."
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