Loyatly and love. A Gypsy's life, repaid!!

We all know the importance of going to our own doctor each year for a check up but sometimes the craziness of life and the natural playful disposition of our pets can lead us to forget their very important annual and semi-annual exams. 

Having an established relationship with a Veterinarian that knows your pet is key to a full lifetime with your fur-baby. 

This true story, this happy tale is the perfect example of why:

Last week,  Gypsy, a 15 year old mixed breed female was brought in for her regular exam and vaccinations with Dr. Murphy. During her physical exam, Dr. Murphy felt something was wrong. Gypsy's abdomen felt firm, not the soft belly she was accustom to feel. Dr. Murphy spoke straight to the problem and recommended xrays to further evaluate the source of this change. The xrays showed a mass in Gypsy's abdomen. Upon ultrasound diagnostics, it was clear that the mass was on her spleen and that surgery was her best option. Within 4 hours, Gypsy went from the exam room, through diagnostics, into surgery and was onto recovery.

As with any surgery, a Splenectomy comes with it's own risks and potential complications but when caught and acted on quickly, the risks are at their lowest. If left alone the tumor could have eventually burst and then the outcome would be very different.

 As her name implies, Gypsy's is a  

 "...free-spirited wild child! Just kind of happy-go-lucky..."

Gypsy was a rescue that came to her forever home 8 years ago in pretty bad shape -heartworm positive, fear of affection/touch, food issues. As she settled in with her new family she blossomed into a wonderful pet! 

Her most prominent trait is her loyalty. She is her mom's constant shadow, always around to make sure everything is ok. Gypsy was the watch-guard of their other pup before she passed; always getting help whenever she would fall or get stuck in certain places. The day their son's crib was set up, Gypsy began sleeping next to it... months before his  birth. Upon his arrival she never left his side and loved him like he was his own baby. 

 "Gypsy even found the strength in her little arthritic body to get up on [our son's] bed and sleep with him the first night in our new house." 

While it is hard to watch a pet age and slow down, Gypsy's parents always re-payed her loyalty with the very best care possible. So when it was time for her vaccinations, an appointment with Dr. Murphy was a given. It was certainly a shocked to find her in surgery only a few hours after her exam having a 5 pound mass removed from her abdomen.
 
Because of the trust between Dr. Murphy and Gypsy's parents,this story ends well.
The care was swift and timely and Gypsy is now home with her family. 

The entire team at VCA HAH is proud to be a part of this story. There is nothing better then caring for animals and helping to keep our fur-families happy and healthy for as long as possible.

 
 

A note from Gypsy's parents:
 I want to tell anyone who will listen how wonderful Dr. Murphy is. I never hesitate or second guess anything she says or recommends... You can tell that she is in this field because she truly cares. I can't even find words to express how we feel about her... MY WHOLE FAMILY!!!! I started going to her with my very first dog ever when I still lived with my parents and now (a gazillion years later) I wouldn't go anywhere else. She is amazing and someone needs to write an article about her! She is super cool and she is our hero! <3

Your pet ate what? S. Florida vets share their most unusual finds.

Forget dog eat dog.
 http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-strange-things-pets-eat-palm-20140919-story.html#page=1

 Veterinarians say it's more like dog eat tube sock. And diamond ring. Chess pieces. Even lingerie.
They have seen it all — and removed it — from the stomachs and intestines of both dogs and cats that ingested far more than their allotted kibble or treats.

South Florida pet owners may be known to pamper their "fur babies" with hundred-dollar ball gowns, pet proms, doggie day care and "pupscale" pet lodges, but Fido and Felix can still get into stomach-turning mischief.

"We get a lot of crazy things," said Palm Beach Veterinary Specialists' veterinarian Dr. Robert Roy, recalling the yellow lab that swallowed a sewing needle and the cat that ate fishing bait — hook, line and all.

At Boynton Beach Animal Hospital, staffers recall a small Chihuahua/terrier mix that had ingested not only its owner's area rug, but her underwear, pantyhose, tampons and artificial plants, too. The household items were safely removed during surgery.

"It was like a Hoover vacuum," said surgical nurse Billie Gaetano, of the 15-pound dog with the bloated belly. "The owner had no idea the dog did that, until it started gagging and puking. I looked in its mouth, and I saw bits of rug, and I just kept pulling and pulling."

Here are some of the most unusual stories shared by South Florida veterinarians. All end happily, with the adventurous animals surviving to live, and eat indigestible objects, another day.
However, they offer a cautionary tale: Fido and Felix will eat just about anything when you're not looking. So watch out!

With this ring ...

Unlike many owners unaware of what's ailing their pet, the seasonal Palm Beach County resident who called the Boynton Beach Animal Hospital in a panic last year knew exactly what her Wheaten terrier had ingested: her 5-carat diamond ring. And she wanted it back.
Gaetano told her just how to get the dirty deed done: "Follow the dog around and wait for it to pop out" in one of the animal's daily bowel movements.
It worked. "It came out shinier than it was when it went in," Gaetano said, with a chuckle.

Ready to run
Don't underestimate a dog's ability to get what it wants.

One yellow Labrador treated at Boca North Animal Hospital in June leapt onto a kitchen counter and tore through an entire case of protein bars — boxes, bars, "wrappers and all," veterinarian Dr. Dwyatt Bull said.
It was a pet-sitting nightmare. The sitter had ordered the case off the Internet, and by the time the owner returned from an out-of-town trip, "the feces had hit the air circulator," Bull said.
Over the next few days, the dog released about a dozen wrappers on its own. Then it started exhibiting tell-tale signs — vomiting, diarrhea and loss of appetite. Bull figured only surgery would relieve the blockage.
He removed at least 15 more wrappers during the operation.
"There were a ton of them," Bull said. The dog suffered no lasting side effects.

'The needle dog'
While foreign objects often have to be removed surgically, some don't. Like the sewing needle that Palm Beach Veterinary Specialists' Roy took out of a yellow Lab's chest.
After the dog swallowed the prickly piece, it traveled through the esophagus, into the lungs and finally landed in the animal's chest wall.
Roy said he was able to put a scope into the chest and pull the needle out with a pair of forceps. The animal became known as "the needle dog."

Added crunch
Glass in my food? No problem. So it would seem for the Labrador that jumped onto the kitchen counter to eat from a bowl of meat, according to Roy.

The jostling knocked the glass bowl to the ground, smashing it in pieces amid the spilled food. The dog ate the entire mess, Roy said, adding that he eventually "took out fistfuls of glass" from the pet's stomach. It recovered without complications.

A corny predicament
The chocolate Lab puppy must really have been hungry to eat an ear of corn, whole. That's what the staff at Fidelity Animal Hospital in Boynton Beach figured last year, when they took an X-ray of the dog's swollen belly and found the cob stuck inside, said technician Kathy Parys.

"How it swallowed a whole corn cob is beyond me," she said.

The cob was surgically removed.

Gone fishing
Dogs aren't the only object-eating patients. Roy said he performed surgery on a cat that swallowed its owner's fishing bait, with the line and hook attached, because of the precarious way the fishing gear landed.
The hook had gotten snagged in the pet's aorta when its owner, noticing the line sticking out of the cat's mouth, yanked on it.

"That didn't do anything but hook it into its esophagus and aorta," Roy said.

After surgery, the cat made a full recovery.

The whole ball of ... cords?
A 15-pound domestic shorthair cat came to the Plantation Animal Hospital recently, vomiting for no obvious reason, veterinarian Dr. Lisa Feinstein recalled. An ultrasound revealed a good-sized obstruction in its intestines, but it wasn't clear what was causing the blockage.
The culprit: "tons of cords," like those used in window treatments, along with hair ties.
"Over time, it builds," Feinstein said. After surgery, the cat recovered nicely.

A not-so-merry Christmas
A Weston resident didn't know what to think when her 9-month-old golden retriever began throwing up and suffering bouts of diarrhea in December 2013, according to Chris Viotti, owner and manager at Weston Lakes Animal Hospital.

An X-ray revealed the results of the dog's attack on the family Christmas tree.Veterinarians removed four or five stuffed teddy bear ornaments from the pet's intestines, then all were able to enjoy the rest of the holiday season, Viotti said.

Penny for your thoughts?
A routine chest X-ray performed on a King Charles Spaniel turned up something troubling to doctors at Hollywood Animal Hospital: a foreign object later identified as a dissolving penny, said Linda Ream, the hospital's Communications Coordinator.

Pennies are toxic and can cause a life-threatening condition called hemolytic anemia. The coin was removed through an endoscopic procedure, Ream said, and the pet was fine. Coins seem to be quite popular, though. There was also a pregnant Pekingese with its intestines blocked by 13 pennies. The animal's owner brought the dog to the Hollywood hospital during a hurricane-induced power outage, forcing the doctors to extract the pennies by flashlight.

At Weston Lakes Animal Hospital, Viotti estimated doctors have removed about $10 in coins from pets' stomachs over the past year alone, in all denominations.

"Even foreign money. They don't choose," Viotti said of the animals, typically dogs. "They just pick it up and swallow it."

The re-offender
The 7-year-old Lab mix treated at Hollywood Animal Hospital for impacted foreign objects over the past few years has one heck of an appetite.

When it first showed up with something strange in its belly, doctors removed 14 tube socks, Ream said. The dog was back six months later after eating 3 pounds of garden stones, then five months later with couch cushioning in its stomach.

Turns out the pet wasn't just a voracious eater. It suffered from Cushing's disease, a hormonal imbalance that can induce pica, or an appetite for nonfood items like chalk, sand and dirt, Ream said. Once the dog's illness was treated, the pica stopped.

Re-offending foreign substance eaters, though, often have no causative medical condition, just an insatiable appetite, a curious nature and a lack of training, area vets said.

"Pets that eat foreign objects often do not learn their lesson the first time and will become re-offenders," Hollywood Animal Hospital veterinarian Dr. Anne Murphy said.

Tips to keep your pet safe

South Florida veterinarians offer these tips to protect your pet from nonfood items.

Remove the temptation. Keep objects off the floor, counter or other space that your pet can access, especially if you've already noticed the animal eating something it shouldn't.

Train your pet. Don't feed your animals anything but pet food, and train them not to misbehave. Seek advice or services from a professional trainer, if necessary.

Know the signs. If your pet has eaten a foreign object, it is likely to be exhibiting symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, gas, loss of appetite, changes in normal behavior, lethargy, abdominal discomfort or pain, and bloating or swelling of the abdomen.

Seek help immediately. Your pet's chances of surviving the ordeal are higher if you get quick, early intervention from a veterinarian.

Source: nbrochu@sun-sentinel.com
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/health/fl-strange-things-pets-eat-palm-20140919-story.html#page=1
Copyright © 2014, Sun Sentinel

July Patient of the Month Bubba, in memoriam.

This month we would like to highlight a patient that touched not just the lives of his owners but the hearts of many here at the HAH. 

Bubba, a 14+ yr old yorkie, was a regular visitor beginning January, 2013. After being diagnosed at his regular vet with chronic renal failure, Bubba was prescribed subcutaneous fluids to be administers twice daily along with intermittent injectable medications, making him a frequent flyer through our doors and therefore meeting many of our day and night staff.

While his care with us only spanned 5 months of his life, a mere fraction of the time he spent on earth, we got to know him and his family in a very personal way and when his fight was over we all felt the loss. 

 

“Our lives have forever been changed by the passing of our little angel, but during his long courageous fight to stay with us, we met some of the most amazing people at Hollywood Animal Hospital. We will never find the words to thank Dr. Murphy for being the most amazing, caring and loving person and for Liz, Nicole, Amanda, Sara, Tammy, Dory, Kyle, Stefan, Larry, Donna, Mel, Leia and all the rest who will be in our hearts forever.

We miss their smiling faces everyday and will forever be grateful for their compassion. Although we never wanted to say good-bye to our angel it was time, his fight was over and he let us know it was time.”- Suzi Schecter

In his final months, Bubba’s conditions worsened when it was the end, he was surrounded by the people he had grown to love and those that loved him, in a place he felt was his second home.

We are thankful to have been a part of his life and care.

Patient of the Month- Jackie deLaurentis!!

Jackie, a 9 ½ year old, female, JRT was 7 when she was diagnosed with diabetes. She had a long history with the HAH and with, Dr. Anne Murphy. Upon diagnosis the process of regulating Jackie began. However, she was very difficult to regulate and so her mom, Sarah, started to test and record her blood glucoses at home. Sarah was diligent in taking and tracking the blood results which made it possible for Dr. Murphy to make changes to her insulin as needed. However, it took almost a year to regulate Jackie’s blood sugar levels and in that time she developed diabetic cataracts.

Diabetic cataracts are common in diabetic dogs in fact; most will develop cataracts even if the diabetes is well controlled. The solution to the cataract is surgery. 

In Jackie’s case though, before she could schedule the surgery she developed Immune Mediated Hemolytic Anemia (I.M.H.A.) I.M.H.A. is a disease of the immune system that causes the body to attack its red blood cells causing a life threatening anemia. A steroid is needed to combat the body's desire to destroy these RBC’s  but that same steroid can cause insulinantagaism. This will increase the need for insulin in the body thus making regulating Jackie’s diabetes once again, very difficult.

Once her I.M.H.A was controlled, Dr. Murphy spent the next 10months focused on slowly weaning Jackie from the steroids and adjusting her insulin accordingly. Finally, in Oct of 2012, after 3months of no immunosuppressive drugs Jackie was cleared for eye surgery which was performed by Dr. Robert Swinger.

Today, Jackie is doing great! “She is like a new puppy!” She is once again staring out the window spying on the world as she once did. Her success is due to many factors. Her “original super hero”, as her mom would say, Dr. Murphy and the “remarkable” surgery by Dr. Swinger were paramount but a huge credit goes to Jackie’s owner.  Sarah’s determination, dedication and organization of Jackie’s bloodwork, diet and behavior made Jackie a perfect patient. Without that commitment to her care the story would have a very different ending. We are so pleased to honor Jackie (and in many ways her mother) as our Patient of the Month!!