Blog Archives
An Unlikely Pair – Cat Breaks Through Cage to Snuggle with Kitten
Yesterday a vet tech alerted me to the fact that an adult cat had broken through a cage divider and was now in the same cage as a kitten. As I jumped up to address the issue, the tech added, “But now they’re best buddies!”
In disbelief I headed to their kennel to discover that they had, in fact, become fast friends (see video below).
Puppy Gets Eye Surgery for Distichia & Ectopic Cilia
An adolescent pit bull was noted by the shelter staff to be producing a lot of tears or discharge from one of its eyes. The veterinarians examined the dog closely and found tiny hairs growing out of abnormal areas of the dog’s eyelid and conjunctiva.
Ectopic cilia and distichia are terms used to describe abnormal eyelash or hair growth on the eyelid or conjunctiva of the eye.
This dog had three areas where there was abnormal hair growth around the eye, specifically around the lower eyelid. As you can see in the photo below, there is a hair that is sticking out from pink tissue (conjunctiva) to the right of the eye (around 3 o’clock), there are a few small hairs abnormally placed on the eyelid (around 6 o’clock), and there is an island of hairs arising from the junction of the eyelid and conjunctiva (around 8 o’clock).
Eye with Distichia and Ectopic Cilia
In The Field – Cat’s Head Trapped in Tiny Hole in Metal Shop Door
On the morning of June 24, 2014, I arrived to the shelter and before I could even put my things down, I was immediately notified that the Animal Services Officers would be needing my assistance in the field. A cat, presumably feral, had gotten its head trapped in a very small hole in a large metal door on the side of a metal shop in San Jose.
I gathered my equipment and headed out into the field with an officer.
The officer transported me to a warehouse-like building that was the metal shop. There were many large (and loud!) pieces of equipment within the building, and one wall had a several thick metal doors that were essentially continuous with the walls of the building. The doors had small holes in them that were about 1″ to 1.5″ in diameter, but there was one door that had a slightly larger hole. This was the hole that a cat decided to escape through. Unfortunately, it failed.
When I arrived, the original officer to respond to the scene was present and showed me to the location within the warehouse where the cat was located.
The cat was definitely stuck and was in an awkward position, groaning and periodically flailing trying to get free.
Inside the metal shop, the cat was found stuck in a small hole in the metal door. The towel and carrier were brought by the officers.
We moved outside and around the building to gauge how the cat looked on the other side. Unfortunately, he looked even worse on the other side. His head was wedged very tightly within the hole, and he had blood in his mouth. A streak of dried blood also ran down the door, and a small spot of blood resided on the ledge below his head.
On the outside of the metal shop.
Jonah – Puppy Surrendered by Owner for Euthanasia, Shelter Vets Reach Out to Specialty Practice for Life-Saving Surgery
Jonah, healing well from surgery!
One morning, a two-month old pit bull puppy was brought to me in the clinic. The front desk staff indicated that the owners claimed he was hit by a car and had a broken leg. The owners surrendered him to the shelter for euthanasia.
As if that wasn’t sad enough, I was also told that while the owners were waiting, they were on the phone with a dog breeder, arranging to get another puppy.
My heart sank.
I must give the owners credit for at least taking the dog to a veterinarian before bringing it to the shelter. However, paying a large sum of money for a pure-bred “special” breed of pit bull only to not be able to afford the care that it requires is irresponsible.
Braveheart – The Little “Tri-Pawd” Kitten That Could
Watch the video, read the story, or, better yet, do both! Either way, this kitten’s story is sure to warm your heart!
I am publishing this post on Father’s Day, as it is dedicated to my father, who gave me the strength to fight for what I believe in and the courage to leave my previous career to pursue the dream that is my life as a shelter vet.
Braveheart’s story is one that I’ve posted from start to finish on Facebook. It is an inspiring story of a 1.7-pound kitten that was brought to the San Jose Animal Care Center by a good samaritan who found him with half of his left front leg missing and a giant bulge in his belly. The good samaritan cleaned him up and took him to our shelter, hoping we would see potential in the kitten despite his small size.
Before & After – Total Makeover Edition – The Importance of Grooming Matted Hair Coats
While much of what I write about on this site has a lot to do with the medical care that my team and I are able to provide to the animals within the animal shelter, something that is often overlooked as not being medically related is an animal’s hair or fur.
Many animals that do not have short hair coats are in need of grooming on a regular basis in order to keep their coat healthy and prevent it from becoming matted. You may think that mats are unsightly more than anything else, but you may be surprised to learn that they do have health consequences.
Matted hair can be soaked in urine, feces, or tears, keeping these bodily fluids close to the skin and resulting in a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. What manifests can be a potentially serious skin infection.
Matted hair can also conceal wounds and overgrown nails, the latter of which have the ability to grow in 360˚ circles and straight into and through the paw! Ouch!
For this dog, getting neutered was also an opportunity to get a complete makeover! Check it out…
Before! About to undergo anesthesia, though we weren’t really sure what he looked like underneath all that hair!
Before & After – Maury – Surgery Turns Gruesome Tail Injury Into Cute Faux Manx Tail
I am so excited to finally be able to share this kitten’s story! Maury came to us in late February, and though he had quite a personality, there was something about him that drew our attention and concern – his tail!
Maury sustained a severe wound to his tail that left it mostly degloved (without skin) and severed with a vertebrae exposed at the tip. While he did not share his story with us, the injury he sustained did not dampen his spirit – Maury was a cheerful, playful kitten from the first moment I met him.
We provided Maury with a comfortable kennel with lots of soft bedding and good medication to relieve any pain he might be experiencing while we waited for an owner to come forward to claim this adorable little kitten. Yet no one came.
The Forensic Veterinary Examination
Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of my job as a shelter veterinarian at a large municipal shelter is that I get to be involved in veterinary forensics.
For those of you who have seen shows such as Animal Cops or CSI, you may have an idea of what this entails. Essentially, I work with animal service officers to investigate and prosecute cases such as animal abuse and neglect by performing examinations on the animals that are the focus of the investigation to determine whether my examination supports or fails to support the case.
Some of the interesting cases I’ve seen so far include:
- Dogs allegedly killed by other dogs
- Dogs that were allegedly abused.
- Dogs that were allegedly neglected, such as owners allegedly failed to provide the dogs with medical care after a substantial injury or attack.
- Dogs that were allegedly sodomized.
- Dogs that died from unknown causes and were found on a crime scene that was part of a police investigation.
Tails of a Shelter Vet 