KENNY

Kenny is a 23 week old English Pointer X male who came to the clinic with an eye problem.   During his clinical examination, the vet noticed that he still had all 4 of his deciduous (temporary) canine teeth, causing the emerging permanent teeth to erupt out of position.  The lower ones were emerging more medially (nearer the tongue) than they should, causing them to begin to damage his upper gums (see the area highlighted in the photo).  The vet recommended that once his eye issue was resolved, he should return for a general anaesthetic and extraction of all 4 of his deciduous teeth.

Two weeks later, Kenny returned to the clinic where, under general anaesthesia, his canine teeth were firstly x-rayed to see the extent of the roots of the deciduous teeth.  He was given pain medication and then these teeth were removed by open extraction (the gum incised and some of the bone burred away) in order to remove the teeth quickly and with much less risk of breaking the root during the procedure.  Kenny’s gums were sutured and he recovered uneventfully.  On discharging him, the vet recommended that he should be given an over-sized ball to chew on, in the hope that it would encourage his adult teeth to move towards their more normal position. Kenny’s owner reported that the next day he was bounding around, back to his normal self!

Rocky

Rocky is a 6 yo male Jack Russell Terrier who came in as an emergency to the clinic.  He had just been attacked by a much bigger dog which had managed to escape from its collar and lead.  On arrival, Rocky was assessed by the vet who noted that he had a very large skin wound and the flap extended from his back down to his sheath; the muscle underneath was only slightly damaged.

Rocky was swiftly admitted for a general anaesthetic and surgery.  Whilst anaesthetised, Rocky received pain medication, antibiotics and fluids.  The wound was clipped and cleaned and painstakingly replaced using both absorbable and non-absorbable sutures.  A penrose drain was sutured in place in case fluid accumulated under the skin post-operatively.  Rocky’s owner was warned that he would most likely need further surgery in the future as the blood supply to parts of the skin often become compromised with a dog bite, leading to death of parts of the skin flap.  This is indeed what happened but after a further surgery and several re-visits to the clinic Rocky’s wound is doing very well.