Toes and Butts

Every veterinarian has their own closet full of medical "disaster" skeletons. Those cases and illnesses that have bitten our butts, burned our egocentric self esteem, and reduced us to mere mortals in search of Blackwell's 5 Minute Veterinary text book with each simple case of flea allergy we think? we have.

We have one bad experience with a drug, or a disease, or a surgery, and it is our natural knee-jerk reaction tendency to shun it away like an apple offered from a snake in a tree.

We all have them, all of us. A little bit of paranoia, a hint of doubt, or an irrational fear that we are unable to explain to those who don't bear a chain of responsibility that pulls you to the depths.

To put mine on paper: 1. whopping doses of dex---, I remember the old-timer vet I once worked with would push these enormous syringes (like 30 mls for an 80 pound dog) of straight out of the 100 ml bottle of dexa---(well--anything, sodium phosphate,-asone), whatever he found, into a dying dog. It was the last ditch effort of Pulp Fiction stab to the heart of epinephrine (2. that never works either), they never worked, but they did scare me to death!. 3. Robaxin iv. it kills, every time I touch it. 4. Lasix iv, not in my comfort zone..5. chest tubes, 6. black intestines, 7. any pet who arrives with a temp over 106, (all have died).

Now these items scare me because for the cases I have used them with, the outcomes were BAD!!! The cases were disasters from the moment I saw them. Most of these pets were beyond anyone's ability to save them, but, for me, I still associate the outcome with my treatment. SO, I remain weary of these drugs, diseases, and treatment options.

As for the other items in my paranoia closet?

Butts, and toes.

Toes; 

I get hyper-obsessive about bumps on toes.

If a toe mass comes in on my watch I jump on it like a kitten in a butterfly house.

I examine them, I radiograph them, I prescribe an antibiotic, a steroid, and a firm "come back if it doesn't look a hundred times better in 3 days OR immediately if it gets worse!" finger pointing.

I have too many toe bumps that are cancer stations. And I have had too many cancer stations that have discovered the internal highway system and spread to the whole pet before I can even yield my surgical sword at them.

My message to my clients, "Be proactive, be diligent, and take that toe off for a biopsy if we can't resolve that bump in a timely effect manner."

What is the sequela to my soapbox speech? Well, I amputate a lot of toes.

Butt Holes;

My experience with butt tumors is very much like my experience with toe bumps.

There is a high incidence of "bad cancer" when we see bumps on the feet and anus.

Be swift, be compliant with the instructions from the vet, and definitely schedule a follow up at your initial visit.

 This is Buggs.

He had a large problematic mass just inside his rectum. It was so large that it became very painful and difficult for him to defecate. To complicate an already sad situation the mass would bleed profusely every time he tried to poop, and sometimes just because it was so large and friable.

It is impossible to stop a mass like this from bleeding. The only treatment options available to his mom were to put him down (he was after all bleeding everywhere), or to remove the mass. The veterinarian who saw him initially was very worried that he would lose his ability to defecate voluntarily if the surgery was done, so she did not recommend it.

So, after a few weeks of persistent bleeding that was unmanageable, she came in to see me with the intention of putting him down.

I however never give up on a pet without trying every other option first. After all, what the heck did Bugs have to lose?

He was scheduled for surgery the next day.

With the laser I was able to quickly and easily remove the tumor.

Thanks to the laser, Bugs did not lose much blood during his surgery. As he woke up he had anal tone (a wink from the anus tells you that the nerves are still functioning and that the anal sphincter should have normal control).

He recovered from his surgery quickly and easily, and has had no further bleeding or trouble defecating.

Was it a bad tumor? Yes, it was an anal sac adenocarcinoma.

Is his mom happy that he is still here and very comfortable? YES!

Is this the best we could do for him? Well, it is not the ideal with respect to all that medicine has to offer, but it is what his mom could do for him, and so far (its been about two months) Bugs is doing wonderfully.

If you have any questions for me about anything pet related you can find me @pawbly, or @FreePetAdvice, or you can ask me a question directly at Pawbly.