A Veterinary Journal by Claire Poole
March
Chapter 3 - Page 5
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Thursday 12th & 13th March
Thursday 12th March
Despite a cold, snowy start, morning surgery is busy and we also have quite a full ops list. Before too long, the routine procedures are finished, and we turn our attention to our inpatient, Yoyo. He came in as an emergency case at 10 p.m. last night. Arriving home late, Yoyo’s owner found the 15-year-old poodle holding his left hind leg awkwardly, and obviously feeling miserable and sore. He was settled in a comfortable kennel overnight, having been given a mild sedative and a painkilling injection. Today, we gently administer an anaesthetic, and examination of the unconscious animal suggests a dislocated hip; an x-ray confirms the diagnosis. After some manipulation, the hip pops back into place without much trouble. I am relieved that the job is not too hard, but caution is still necessary. Sometimes the easier it is to replace the hip, the easier it is for it to redislocate. Yoyo will need to be restricted in a cage to allow the hip to settle down. Every cloud has a silver lining, and this is the case for Yoyo. For over a year, I have been trying to persuade Mrs Henderson to allow us to sort out his disgusting mouth, but she has been too anxious about the anaesthetic to give permission, despite my assurances that the risks are small - although old, Yoyo checks out well medically. We have had to anaesthetise him for the dislocated hip so we took the opportunity to give him a thorough makeover – full dental, matts trimmed from coat, nails clipped and ears cleaned. When Yoyo comes round, he is a different dog, standing on all four legs, wagging his tail happily - a satisfying case.
Friday 13th March
Friday 13th - unlucky for some and especially for poor Yoyo. Linda discharged him during evening surgery, heavily stressing the importance of keeping him restricted. Yoyo was so named due to his incessant bouncing up and down, so proper restraint was vital and we lent his owner a cage for the purpose. A very sheepish Mrs Henderson returned 15 minutes later – she left Yoyo in the car while collecting some groceries; on her return, he was on the floor, miserable and shivery - the hip dislocated again. So this morning is a rerun of yesterday’s procedure. Fortunately, all goes well and, like flicking a switch, Yoyo is once again transformed to his cheerful, tail-wagging self. When Mrs Henderson collects him, she vows that he will stay in his kennel or firmly clutched in her arms until we check him again on Monday. Time for a quick walk up the hill in the sunshine. Sitting on my favourite vantage point, I see the first bumblebee of the year and enjoy the sound of the skylarks high in the blue sky. Something suddenly catches my eye - a rusty piece of metal protruding from a tussock. This turns out to be a rather magnificent old horseshoe - at least 9 inches long. I can imagine a large Clydesdale steadily plodding across the fields, dragging a heavy wooden plough. The horseshoe now has pride of place at the surgery door - open ends upwards to keep the luck in.
Copyright Claire Poole 2005
