PETE WEDDERBURN Animal Doctor
dehydration, it’s often possible to treat the animal at home rather than needing hospitalisation.
Other blood tests include red and white blood cell counts and measurements of a wide range of biochemicals, including enzymes, which inform the vet about the internal functions of the intestines, liver, pancreas, kidneys and other organs. The results of these tests are crucial: this is often how a vet is able to make a definitive diagnosis about the underlying problem.
A urine sample may seem like a strange request when dealing with a digestive problem, but it can provide useful extra information about a pet’s state of hydration, as well as other clues about kidney function.
A faeces sample is less useful than you might think: this tends to be needed only on rare occasions for more complex illnesses. The sample may be sent off to the external laboratory for full analysis and to be cultured: some serous causes of digestive problems (like Salmonella) can only be identified by such tests.
In many cases, the collection of samples from the animal is sufficient to make a full diagnosis of the cause, but sometimes, the next stage is needed: diagnostic imaging. This uses modern technology to visualise the internal structures of an animal. The two methods that are most commonly used are xrays and ultrasound. CAT and MRI scans are possible in theory, but are only rarely used, in long term, serious illnesses such as cancer.
X-rays are the equivalent of black and white photos of the internal organs: they provide useful information in cases like obstructions caused by ingested foreign bodies. You can actually see many objects, like stones, on x-rays, and while other objects (like sponges) may be invisble on x-rays, there are gas patterns that can strongly suggest that something is causing an obtruction.
Ultrasound allows vets to see more of the precise structure of the inside of the abdomen, and it’s a moving picture, like a video. This allows far more detailed analysis of what’s going on.
Sally, the vomiting dog, needed a full work up to discover why she was vomiting. It turned out that she’d swallowed a cornon-the-cob husk that had become lodged in her intestines. A vague shadow was visible on the x-ray, and ultrasound confirmed it. She needed an operation, but here’s the good news: it saved her life.