Pip

Pet of the Month - Pip April 2013

PIP IS A LOVELY 11 YEAR OLD SPRINGER SPANIEL. DURING A ROUTINE CHECK UP FOR HIS BOOSTER VACCINATION IN FEBRUARY IT WAS NOTICED THAT HIS LOWER LEFT INCISORS WERE DEVIATED.

AFTER CHATTING TO HIS OWNER IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT TWO MONTHS PREVIOUSLY SOME INCISORS HAD ALSO FALLEN OUT.

ON CLOSER INSPECTION, AN ABNORMAL PATCH OF TISSUE WAS SEEN IN THE MOUTH IN THE SAME AREA AND UNFORTUNATELY IT WAS SUSPECTED THAT THIS COULD BE AN ORAL TUMOUR! PIP WAS IMMEDIATELY BOOKED IN FOR SOME PRE-ANAESTHETIC BLOOD TESTS AND WAS URGENTLY REFERRED TO RACHEL PERRY (OUR VETERINARY DENTIST)

RACHEL STARTED BY ANAESTHETISING PIP AND OBTAINING X-RAYS OF THE MOUTH. THESE SHOWED BONY DESTRUCTION OF THE JAW AROUND THE LOWER INCISORS WITH ONE OF THEM APPEARING TO BE “FLOATING IN THE AIR”

SHE THEN EXAMINED THE MASS (WHICH APPEARED CAULIFLOWER LIKE) AND TOOK A 6MM PUNCH BIOPSY OF THE ABNORMAL TISSUE.

THE RESULTS CAME BACK AS A POSSIBLE SQUAMOUS CELL CARCINOMA (WHICH IS AN AGGRESSIVE TUMOUR) SO PIP WAS BOOKED IN FOR TUMOUR REMOVAL. BECAUSE OF THE LOCATION OF THE TUMOUR AND THE NEED TO GET A 2CM MARGIN AROUND THE MASS A “ROSTRAL BILATERAL MANDIBULECTOMY” HAD TO BE PERFORMED.

THIS MEANT REMOVING THE FRONT OF THE LOWER JAW ON BOTH SIDES. RACHEL (OUR DENTIST) AND PETER (OUR ORTHOPAEDIC SURGEON) WORKED TOGETHER IN THEATRE AND SUCCESSFULLY REMOVED THE SECTION OF JAW THEN SENT IT OFF FOR ANALYSIS.

PIP HAS RECOVERED REALLY WELL AND APART FROM HAVING TO BE HAND FED AT THE MOMENT BECAUSE HE HASN’T YET LEARNT TO SCOOP UP HIS FOOD HE IS BACK ENJOYING HIS WALKS AND LOOKING AS HANDSOME AS EVER! WE ARE STILL WAITING FOR THE FINAL HISTOLOGY REPORT BUT SO FAR THINGS ARE LOOKING GOOD.

THIS CASE SHOWS THE IMPORTANCE OF THE ROUTINE ANNUAL BOOSTER CHECK UPS AND THAT THEY ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN JUST A VACCINATION. IF THIS HADN’T BEEN SPOTTED WHEN IT WAS, IT MAY HAVE BEEN TOO LATE FOR SURGERY!