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Franken-dog!
billwill
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey guys!
A week ago, I found a lump under the left side of my 15 year old cocker spaniel/golden retriever mix's (Bud for short) jaw. I took her to the vet, and after feeling it he said to bring her back in two weeks and then he'd feel it again to see if it grew at all.
Well, a few days later, it got massively bigger, so I took her in again. He said he wanted to take it out as soon as possible, so the following day (this past Wednesday) she had surgery and he took it out.
When I picked her up yesterday, I was greeted with what you see below. I was surprised, as I was thinking this would just be a small incision and then they would drain it (he had told me because it had grown so fast that it wasn't a tumor). Apparently, it is a tumor, and the surgery was a lot more complicated than they had expected, as they had to cut through muscle to get to it.
So now she looks like this:
The people at the vet clinic weren't very helpful at all about what I can do to help her. They gave me very ambiguous answers ("oh, I think the swelling will go down in a week" the secretary told me), so I just want tips from you guys. What can I do so it doesn't, I don't know, get infected? As you see, it's oozing a little bit; is that ok? Overall she doesn't seem to be noticing it, but like I said, the vet clinic didn't really tell me anything as "they haven't done this type of surgery in a long time so they don't know what to expect".
I'm supposed to take her in again in two weeks to get the stitches out, but I just would general advice in the meantime.
Thanks!
A week ago, I found a lump under the left side of my 15 year old cocker spaniel/golden retriever mix's (Bud for short) jaw. I took her to the vet, and after feeling it he said to bring her back in two weeks and then he'd feel it again to see if it grew at all.
Well, a few days later, it got massively bigger, so I took her in again. He said he wanted to take it out as soon as possible, so the following day (this past Wednesday) she had surgery and he took it out.
When I picked her up yesterday, I was greeted with what you see below. I was surprised, as I was thinking this would just be a small incision and then they would drain it (he had told me because it had grown so fast that it wasn't a tumor). Apparently, it is a tumor, and the surgery was a lot more complicated than they had expected, as they had to cut through muscle to get to it.
So now she looks like this:
The people at the vet clinic weren't very helpful at all about what I can do to help her. They gave me very ambiguous answers ("oh, I think the swelling will go down in a week" the secretary told me), so I just want tips from you guys. What can I do so it doesn't, I don't know, get infected? As you see, it's oozing a little bit; is that ok? Overall she doesn't seem to be noticing it, but like I said, the vet clinic didn't really tell me anything as "they haven't done this type of surgery in a long time so they don't know what to expect".
I'm supposed to take her in again in two weeks to get the stitches out, but I just would general advice in the meantime.
Thanks!
I hate you and you hate me.
billwill on
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Why?
OP, Why didn't you ask to talk to the vet instead of just quizzing the receptionist? If you want general advice, call the clinic the surgery was performed at. This is a medical concern and they're the ones who treated it. Ask for a callback from the vet who did the surgery. We don't know the specifics so we are not qualified in the least to give you advice on this.
Assuming your description of what happened is true, all sorts of red flags are going up right now.
If anything, you might have to take her back in cause in the picture, it looks like the incision is opening...
edit: Yes, definitely strange you didn't get debriefed by the vet or a vet assistant
Very odd to just get your dog back with no real instructions
The vet wasn't in when I picked her up Wednesday, but after a lot of forcing I got her to call the vet while I was there and ask questions. She then tried to tell me that they actually didn't know what it was that my dog had, which is why I made her call him again, which is when he said it was a tumor. Overall, I'm obviously going to go to a different clinic next, but my bank account is in the double digits and I don't get paid until the 27th (the surgery cost $320).
A vet assistant lady was out there with the secretary answering my questions, but again, all they said was:
a) We don't really know what to expect because we haven't done this type of surgery in forever.
b) She doesn't need any pain meds.
c) The swelling should go down after a week.
Every time my dogs has had surgery, blood drawn, vaccination or even a teeth cleaning, they've given me something to do to after the dog was returned to me and what to look out for. They should even do a follow up call to make sure she's okay the next day.
Please call a vet ASAP. If the dog scratches at the stitches, which it can very easily do, things will be very bad.
When my dog had a growth the vet asked us that visit about scheduling a removal. Then when they removed it, they had it sent to a lab for testing to check that it wasn't malignant. They also gave us pain meds and a full procedure sheet as well as the vet's cellphone in case of an emergency.
It was hardly even half an inch across. And it was on the surface of the leg.
Seems like something this extreme should involve a hell of a lot more information and direct face time with the vet. If they didn't know what they were doing, they should have recommended a different hospital.
This.
Very surprised you don't have a cone or painkillers
Wishing good things for your dog!
Did the vet send the removed tissue off for pathology? That is what I would be bugging the vet about now.