Tough blows for Boxer
TOO often in my career, I’ve worried about things needlessly. But I was right to be anxious about Charlie.
This amiable young Boxer had more than his fair share of woes.
First, there was the loud heart murmur that indicated a significant issue. In his breed, the most common cause would be narrowing of the aorta, the main artery leaving the heart. Sudden death is a possible outcome.
Then there was the fairly obvious absence of a testicle. Careful palpation failed to reveal its presence and so it was assumed to be abnormally retained inside his abdomen, where it has a ten-fold increased chance of becoming cancerous.
And then there was his stenotic nares. In simple terms, his nostrils were anatomically pinched so close together that he sounded like Darth Vader with a head cold when he breathed. This condition is linked with lung problems, as the inspiratory effort required to get oxygen is huge – which is also not good for his heart.
Luckily for Charlie, his owners have a wonderfully philosophical attitude to his life. They want him to be the best he can be.
They are keen for him to enjoy the good things in life. And they are able to balance the risks with the benefits.
Which is why, after careful discussion, Charlie came to be on my operating table, with heart and respiration monitor bleeping away comfortingly and veterinary nurse concentrating calmly on his vital signs.
The removal of his normal testicle was routine and ■ Tay Valley Gun Dog Association’s limited show in Arbroath Community Centre at 10.30am. ■ Irvine and District Canine Club’s open show in Lanark Leisure Centre at 10am. February 25 ■ Scotland Boxer Club’s open uneventful. A small incision was made in his abdominal wall and (delightfully, because it could have been anywhere from the base of his kidney to the extreme posterior of his abdomen) the retained testicle was readily located, exteriorised, ligated and removed.
Our patient was then repositioned on his front, with his head supported, so that there was good access to his nose.
You can’t have a faint heart to fix those nostrils. A size 11 scalpel blade, which is shaped like a small sword, is plunged deep into the tissue.
A second incision allows a triangular wedge of tissue to be removed. Careful suturing pulls the central curved part of the nostril outwards, so that the nasal passage is enlarged. As you might expect, there is a fair bit of blood.
But in Charlie’s case, it didn’t stop running… ● Continued next week. show in Hareleeshill Sports Barn, Larkhall, at 10am. ■ Bernese Mountain Dog Club of Scotland’s open show in the Cochrane Hall, Alva, at 11am. ■ Catrine Canine Club’s open show in Lanark Agricultural Centre at 9.30am.