Optivet Referrals

*** Troy’s Story *** Troy is one of our special long-term patients with a long list of problems but constant energy and a wagging tail. He is currently in complete remission for lymphoma having had a full course of chemotherapy for this aggressive cancer which was diagnosed in September last year. Most recently he had benign swelling of the soft palate (soft tissue in his throat) which was causing breathing difficulties, this has responded well to a surgery to shorten the palate. Here is Troy sporting his nice new fur coat having been one of the minority of dogs that loose significant amounts of fur during chemotherapy - enjoy the sunshine Troy!

Optivet would like to share the story of one of our amazing clients!
Daisy underwent surgical intervention, but due to the severity of her glaucoma the discussion was made to remove both of Daisy's eyes to make her more comfortable and improve her quality of life! Glaucoma is a condition in which pressure is placed on the eye causing inadequate fluid drainage in the eye. This can be painful and easily gets out of control. Since Daisy's surgery, her owners report she is better... than ever! Daisy is enjoying her walks and playing with her toys already. There is absolutely NO stopping her now. No eyes no longer means no dog! Take a look at Daisy living her best life! Little inspiration! ❤
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Stanley first visited Optivet in January after being referred for a mast cell tumour on one of his toes which had spread to the local lymph node. Mast cells are part of the immune system that release histamine. A mast cell tumour is a cancer that arises from mast cells and are most commonly found on the skin. Normally surgically removal with wide margins is curative but in Stanley’s case his disease wasn’t that straight forward. Stanley had surgery to remove the toe and the l...ymph node and then underwent an 8 week chemotherapy protocol to kill any remaining cancer cells. Stanley is the most loving little chap but was extremely nervous for his treatments. We are happy to report that today was his last treatment! We will miss seeing you every week Stanley. Stanley will be monitored closely and regularly by us to check that things are continuing to go well for him.
Bye StanMan, See you soon
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My train journey to see my friends at Optivet Referrals 🐕🚉🐾

What a lovely email from one of our lovely clients.... Marble came into us Friday as an emergency, very unwell and sick. Her lovely owner has sent us this message-
I want to say a huge thank you to the wonderful front desk staff and the excellent thorough and diligent investigation by Kit to help bring my very sick lurcher back to the land of the living. I really am very very grateful.

***Spree’s Puppy*** Natalia, one of our specialist ophthalmologists had the pleasure of seeing this beautiful 5 day old puppy. Spree, the Australian Cattle Dog came in with her litter of puppies as her owner had noticed one puppy had been born with her eyes open. Premature eyelid opening can cause severe corneal ulceration; globe perforation and uveitis are also complications. Puppies eyelids usually open between 10 and 14 days after birth as their eyes are still developing. ...In this case, we believe this may have been caused by a difficult birth. We performed a bilateral (both eyes) temporal tarsorrhaphy, this is when the eyelids are sutured shut, allowing the eyes to continue developing and to prevent the complications occurring. The sutures were kept in place for 5-10 days and lubrication applied for a further 10 days. As you can see in the last photo, the puppy now has both eyes open and is getting up to mischief! We are happy to see all patients of all sizes, no matter how young or old!
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** Update. Dog owner has made contact with us and collected the little escapee. Thankyou for all the shares!**
Jack Russell found by Bedhampton ASDA. Please phone 01243 888091 if you have any information or know the owner.

Why we love our job...

Introducing handsome Archie. Archie was assessed as an emergency due to having an increased intraocular pressure in his right eye. After thorough examination specialist Rob Lowe diagnosed primary glaucoma and decided surgery was the best option for Archie. Archie underwent ECP, which uses an intraocular laser to reduce the production of intraocular fluid by the eye. He then placed a Molteno Gonio implant which is a drainage device to bypass the collapsed drainage angle in t...he eye. We are pleased to say Archie is recovering well, his owners are doing a fantastic job!
Here’s what Archie’s owners have to say...
“Our beloved 9 year old cockapoo, Archie was referred to Optivet Referrals on New Year’s Day, having spent New Year’s Eve hospitalised at the emergency vets. We initially saw the on call vet, Prado Cebrian Lopez who was so patient with Archie whose eyes were extremely sore. She ensured that he was more comfortable before he was seen the next day by Rob Lowe, who sadly diagnosed primary glaucoma. Rob has become Archie’s very own super-vet, carrying out laser surgery to try and save his right eye and restore some vision following the damage caused by the glaucoma. He has explained everything to us every step of the way. Archie spent two nights in hospital where he was cared for by the wonderful veterinary nurses, giving him a toy penguin to keep him company, as well as telephoning us to provide regular updates. Archie is recovering well from his recent surgery and we have been more than happy with the level of care he has received. Every member of staff at Optivet Referrals is so friendly, showing care and compassion to Archie. He will be under Optivet Referrals for the rest of his life, however we know he is in the best hands and feel very lucky that we live locally as we know that people travel far and wide to come to this specialist veterinary practice, where pets receive such a high level of care.”
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Did you know, here at Optivet we offer Pain Management Clinics?
The Pain Management Clinic, run by our anaesthesia and analgesia specialist team (Dr. Eva Rioja Garcia and Dr. Anastasia Papastefanou), is a new service offered at Optivet that provides evaluation, quantification and design of a treatment plan tailored to each individual patient.
Chronic pain is considered when it persists well beyond the normal healing time of the inciting cause (normally more than 3-6 months) o...r it can be the result of an ongoing noxious stimulus (E.g. osteoarthritis, cancer).
Do you have a pet or a patient suffering from CHRONIC PAIN?
Is the pain affecting their QUALITY OF LIFE and you want to improve it?
If the answer is YES, think about referring to our Pain Management Clinic.
For more information on this service please refer to our website, or call us on 01243 888091
http://www.optivet.com/pain-management-cl inic
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Meet the lovely Max, he is the grand age of 17!
He was brought in to us to see one of our medicine specialists, Matt Best, as he had uncontrolled hypertension (high blood pressure) and hyperthyroidism (over active thyroid). His owners weren’t feeling very hopeful and were worried about Max’s quality of life.
We are pleased to report that with some medication changes Max is six months down the line and doing amazingly! Well done to Max’s owners, you’re doing a fantastic job!

This is lovely Teän, she is a remarkable dog! Back on Boxing Day 2014 ophthalmologist Cleo removed her first eye. With our help and her owners care Teän remained sighted for a further three and a half years before her other eye also had to be removed due to glaucoma. Teän is doing really well and enjoying life! She loves her walks and her ball with a bell inside that she chases after with confidence - her owner says she amazes them! Dogs are so adaptable, and with patience and care can live happy lives without their sight. We hope Teän and her family had a very happy Christmas.

***Owlma*** Owlma the beautiful Tawny Owl is a resident at Brent Lodge Wildlife Hospital. She was brought to us for an examination as she was struggling to navigate her cage properly. Ophthalmic examination revealed cataracts in both her eyes. Unfortunately this means she should not be freed to the wild, but she should continue to have a good life in captivity. Brent Lodge do a fantastic job rehabilitating wildlife, and as a charity rely on donations and volunteers to continue the care they provide.

*** A Business of Ferrets***
Our ophthalmologists were lucky enough to have King, Rosa, Khaos and Nyx in the surgery for eye examinations. King has had a cataract in one eye for the last 2 years and is non visual in the affected eye. We discovered that Rosa also has a cataract in one of her eyes, she is still currently visual in both eyes. The cataracts aren’t affecting their quality of life and their owner reports them to be happy and well!
... We are always looking for exotic patients to come and see our ophthalmology team, and we offer free first consultations for exotic eye checks.
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We are so proud of our Head Nurse Laura, who completed a four day trek on the Inca Trail. Laura raised a total of £1851.78 for the Alzheimer’s Society, and her team raised £113,317. What a fantastic achievement!
We would like to say a big thank you to everyone who sponsored her.
... www.justgiving.com/fundraising/laura-larg an
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What a lovely post from one of our lovely patients. We really appreciate the comment and posting feedback on our page 💖 Hope little one is doing okay!

Duke is doing amazingly well. Thank you to his lovely owners for bringing Duke in to let us all know how well he has got on, with his lovely little Christmas ribbon too!
Duke's breathing is a lot better and exercise is a lot easier for him since his BOAS surgery.
One happy client!