Pet Stories – Page 17 – Dr. Sandra Truli Springer, Holistic Vet House Call Services

19 Year-old Cat Needs Emergency Dental Surgery

“My cat is 19-years-old, how could she survive anesthesia?”

Cleo was a skinny orange tabby cat who had not eaten for 3 days. Normally, I’d perform the physical examination, make my testing and treatment recommendations, and that would be that. In Cleo’s case, emotionally-charged decisions abounded because Cleo was born before my new kennel assistant. She was 19 years old!

“I don’t know if we should put her through blood tests. She’s so old,” her mom ventured.

“Old age is not a disease,” I countered. Continue reading “19 Year-old Cat Needs Emergency Dental Surgery”

Bella Learns Tug of War

“Before her tooth surgery, she never played tug of war. Now it’s her favorite game!”

Abandoned on Interstate 95, Bella was a surprisingly healthy 2-year-old Maltese in need of a good home. No one had registered her microchip number and the pet shop she came from was out of business.

“She’s yours!” I told her ecstatic rescuer.

Her new mom brought Bella for a check up and we found she had lots of dental tartar. When Bella came for her deep dental cleaning, even though her teeth looked sparkling, her dental x-rays showed a tiny black spot in her jawbone under her premolar. Continue reading “Bella Learns Tug of War”

When Bootsie Became Spider

“Who’s Bootsie?”

Persian Cat — Bootsie aka Spider Poses for a Close-up, He's Smiling (Honest!)

A black, orange-eyed Persian named Bootsie came to see me because he couldn’t get up, would not eat, and had not urinated in 24 hours. Of course, you’re thinking he had a urinary tract obstruction and was being poisoned by his own retained urine. And you’d be right!

Bootsie became obstructed in a unique way. Upon examining him, I discovered a scab blocking his urethra. He could not pee at all and it looked like he had been injured. But how?

Continue reading “When Bootsie Became Spider”

A Wolf in My E.R.

“Well, your wolf has a urinary tract infection.”

One hectic Easter Sunday…

“Hey Doc, the wolf in Room 1 is waking up!”

I couldn’t hear very well through the din of activity in the pet emergency room. “The what in the what is what?”

An exasperated nurse retorted, “the wolf, you know, from the wolf sanctuary, her sedatives are wearing off.” Continue reading “A Wolf in My E.R.”

Fastidious Himalayan Content with 2 Litter Pans

Two litter pans give a cat the choice of regular, soft, scoopable clay litter, which most cats appreciate very much, or even softer pelleted newspaper litter.

Giacomo was a 2 year-old Seal Point Himalayan cat with a penchant for (this cannot be put delicately) moving his bowels on the front hall throw rug. After laboratory tests, parasite screening tests, and a detailed conversation about his stresses (none) and his lifestyle (couch potato), his mom and I decided there was nothing wrong with Giacomo. He just liked going on that rug. Continue reading “Fastidious Himalayan Content with 2 Litter Pans”

(Near) Death by Biscuits

Sammy would have died if I hadn’t pumped the dog treats out of his distended stomach

One look at Sammy, and anyone would know he was in trouble.

At 120 pounds, Sammy was a gigantic, chubby yellow lab. But that night in the emergency room, he looked miserable. He was pacing around the waiting room and retching up mostly nothing with a little foamy phlegm every few minutes. He couldn’t even sit down for a second.

Sammy’s gums were almost blue and his femoral pulses were weak and thready. His stomach bulged out behind his ribs; he looked as if he had a soccer ball inside his abdomen. Sammy was in shock, and near total collapse. Continue reading “(Near) Death by Biscuits”

When a Twisted Stomach is Not Twisted

Sammy would have died if I hadn’t pumped the dog treats out of his distended stomach

One look at Sammy, and anyone would know he was in trouble.

25 Year Old Cat Arthritis Cured

“It’s like she’s 20 again!”

My oldest cat patient was 25 years old. She was a tiny little 5 pound calico cat named Sweetie. She had no ongoing health problems, no kidney disease, no hyperthyroidism, no heart disease, not even a heart murmur. She had escaped all of the older cat major maladies.

She came to see me about once a week to have her ears cleaned. It wasn’t difficult to do. Her owner could perform the task at home. However, she preferred to have Sweetie’s ear cleaned in the animal hospital. Why? (you may be asking…) Continue reading “25 Year Old Cat Arthritis Cured”

Dachshund Dumps Collar After 6 Years

A frisky Dachshund is treated for atopy, otherwise known as allergies from inhaled allergens.

Heidi came to me with a satellite-dish Elizabethan collar around her head and a terrible case of skin problems. She had lived the last 6 years in that collar, because her mom, Susan, told me that whenever Heidi had the collar off, she would immediately start to chew at herself until her skin bled.

I looked at the frisky little reddish-brown short-haired Dachshund, and from a veterinarian’s perspective I saw thickened folds of blackened, greasy skin turned thick and rolling down her hind legs. This is called hyperpigmentation and elephantitis. Heidi also had patchy areas of thinning fur and flakey, dry, dandruffy skin. I looked over her 4 inch thick pile of previous medical records, including dermatology consults, prescription diets, holistic raw foods diets, and acupuncture treatments, and I saw some things missing. Continue reading “Dachshund Dumps Collar After 6 Years”

Chocolate Lab Survives Because of Publix Free Antibiotics

“Free? What do you mean, free?”

I was waiting for my last patient of the day. “Chocolate” was a 2 year-old chocolate labrador retriever. He had been seen by an emergency vet the night before, and I was supposed to check him to see how he was doing. I was told he had bumps on his body, had a bunch of tests done, but still no one knew what was wrong with him or how to treat him. Continue reading “Chocolate Lab Survives Because of Publix Free Antibiotics”