Looked into renting a life raft for the plane and there are several companies available. It looks like around $300 for the week at Aviation Survival.com … money well spent! I will continue to look for the best deal, it will be important to have a safety net for the open water trip.
Abbey Animal Hospital is a place where the whole range of emotions occurs on a regular basis. We celebrate our successes and morn our losses. It can be mentally exhausting to go through a busy day. One recent case involved a very gentle and mature Skipperke dog named Trixie. She presented to our hospital with a very large and growing mass on her chest. The mass had grown so big that it was rubbing on the ground and causing excoriations and some bleeding. The owner and I were very concerned. The problem with masses that are so big is that the surgery to remove them is never easy… but something had to be done. Trixie still had a lot of life left in her and none of us were ready to put her down.
We put a surgical team together with some ideas on how to remove this very large tumor. One of the main complications about taking this tumor off is the size of the hole that is left. It takes some planning on where to take the skin to make the closure. I have experience with this type of closure but each time is still a challenge. I decided that the best form of closure in this case was going to be an advancement flap. This type of flap uses the adjacent skin to advance into the wound area. Fortunately there is some extra skin on the abdomen from which this flap can be made.
After making a rather large incision we had to clamp off the vessels which were extensive. We had to use all the clamps in one pack and most of the clamps in a second surgical pack. At one point I thought we might have to do a blood transfusion. Once we ligated all the vessels and removed the tumor, the real work started. It takes more time to close this type of wound then it takes to remove the mass. I was able to create the flap and secure it in place. I placed a drain to prevent fluid build up. I then closed the rest of the incision from side to side. I felt that I got a good closure but that there was more tension on this incision then I wanted. So it goes. It is now in mother nature's hands.
On the 5 day check-up Trixie was in good spirits. She did have some drainage from the incision, but it might be due to her increased activity. We were able to remove the actual drain with instructions to keep the incision clean and continue with the antibiotics. We will be rechecking in several days to keep an eye on the incision. It was great to see Trixie back with her owner!
Another Monday come and gone. Thanks to everyone for all the support. Stay tuned for more developments. Bye for now, Robin.
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