Keds Medical Thread - not eating on own

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maggieP

Post   » Wed Aug 12, 2020 5:53 pm


Went to a second vet that is a bit closer to us to see if we could get some more eyes on her. We were supposed to see Dr. Sip (she is listed on your California vet page, but is no longer at Berkeley Dog & Cat but rather Groveway Vet Hospital in Castro Valley) but unfortunately she was out today so we saw Dr. Moffat who seemed pretty experienced. He seemed concerned about what he called 'lesions' on her back. I had thought these were normal incisions from her surgery, in addition to the main abdominal one. Is it normal to do additional incisions on the back for a spay? He was going to try and call Berkeley Dog & Cat (where we were going so far) to talk to them about it.

He mostly recommended the dental workout / molar trim under anesthesia, but seemed more concerned about the possible spurs than the earlier vet. I am a bit nervous about putting her under again so soon. He also wanted to do a small biopsy of the 'lesions'...? He said they seemed painful to her, possibly swollen, and did an antibiotic injection (doxycycline).

bpatters
And got the T-shirt

Post   » Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:16 pm


They could have done what is called a "flank spay," where they go in through the flanks and take just the ovaries out. But as far as I know, when they do that, they don't usually go in through the abdomen at all. However, I'm sure practices vary, and it could be that they just did the uterus through the abdomen and took the ovaries from the sides.

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maggieP

Post   » Wed Aug 12, 2020 6:27 pm


OK.. that's kind of what I thought but these are more on the 'top' of the back rather than the sides. Not sure if it's still the same thing. Would have expected this guy to know about that type of procedure though... seems strange

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Wed Aug 12, 2020 8:05 pm


Let us know what the clinic that did the spay has to say. If there is any infection, I hope it heals fine.

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maggieP

Post   » Fri Aug 14, 2020 9:48 pm


We went to Avian and Exotics Clinic in Monterey today (also on the recommendation page here). They did seem very experienced and confirmed that flank surgery is often done and said her back looks fine. Not sure what the Castro Valley doc was going off of, maybe he is not that familiar with GPs. They were able to get her in for a dental trim; her lower molars were definitely bridging. I’m a bit worried they trimmed the incisors too much as she is having trouble with veggies and picking up food... unsure if that was necessary or not. We’re on a new dosage of Meloxicam (.25 once a day, twice a day for a couple days first) and a new antibiotic- azithromycin. She said it was likely she has an oral infection as well based on the drool and apparently some odor there.

So far she seems much more interested in food and is taking the CC without as much protest as the past week. She ate some matchstick bell peppers with my help, which seems like progress. Hoping we see more over the next week.

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maggieP

Post   » Fri Aug 14, 2020 9:55 pm


Also, she said she suspected a possible URI. Keds did have some crackly breathing after the surgery which I thought was probably due to anesthesia, but it seems to be recurring a bit (not constant). And still a bit of crusty eyes.

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ItsaZoo
Supporter in 2023

Post   » Fri Aug 14, 2020 10:03 pm


I hope she starts eating better now that her teeth have been taken care of. Did the vet think the azithromycin would also take care of the URI? That's a lot to deal with at one time.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Fri Aug 14, 2020 10:16 pm


Some tips below on feeding guinea pigs whose teeth have been trimmed too short (you are right to worry). Unless the incisors are interfering with closing the mouth or there is another compelling reason to trim them, they generally should not be trimmed at the same time the molars are trimmed.
https://www.guinealynx.info/teeth_broken.html

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maggieP

Post   » Fri Aug 14, 2020 11:59 pm


Yeah, she thought this antibiotic would be good for both the respiratory and mouth issues.

Her bottom incisors did seem slanted and possibly too long but unfortunately it does seem like they trimmed them too much. Hopefully they grow back even and healthy quickly. She does seem to be doing less drooling and pawing at the mouth.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sat Aug 15, 2020 10:36 am


The bottom incisors were likely slanted due to malocclusion of the molars. When the molars are corrected, the incisors should self correct.

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Sef
I dissent.

Post   » Sat Aug 15, 2020 10:50 am


The one incisor likely needed to be filed down to remove the sharp edge, but I didn't think the bottom teeth looked like they should have been trimmed from the photo. Many vets make the mistake of taking too much off, though. As Lynx said, fortunately they will grow back fairly quickly.

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maggieP

Post   » Sat Aug 15, 2020 1:02 pm


I’m so upset she still can’t eat. Seems we traded one problem for another. Not sure if we should go back to Monterey again; they wanted to check and possibly trim again in four weeks.

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