Sara has a boo-boo, thank goodness for insurance!

[Kimmikins]

She's had this little red bump on her leg for about 5 days now - we thought it was a bit of an itchy-scratchy, or maybe she'd scratched it and made it sore. We've been dressing it and putting Sudocrem on it, and when she hasn't been able to get at it it doesn't look as red, it just looks bald. She was due for her annual vaccinations anyway (OH's dog, so he pays cos I don't agree with them!) so we booked her in with my best friend. We were expecting some antibiotic ointment or a steroid shot....but instead we had a fine needle aspiration to check for cancer   It could also be a hystiocytoma, which is benign and will clear on it's own, or even some inflammation though she thinks it unlikely. So 5 needle stabs in it later, we have some samples being sent off and should hear by Monday. Hopefully it's the hystio-thingy! It could also come back inconclusive, as it was really hard to get any cells from it where she's so skinny and it's on a very skinny part of her leg. If that's the case, we give it a week and it it's still there it gets removed to minimise risk and get sent away to be tested.
Thank goodness for insurance, because the needle jabbing alone costs £75!!

[Jordan]

Oh no Kimmikins that's not so good I hope the needle aspiration got the necessary cells to give a conclusive answer, hopefully nothing sinister. At least you don't have a long wait for an answer. got everything crossed for you.

We had sad news last week, Dominos girlfriend Cally another Springer, developed lumps all over her body quite rapidly and was losing a of of weight, blood test showed something was amiss so they did an x-ray and found she had a very fast growing invasive cancer so her mum never brought her home. Just goes to show how quickly things can change. You just cant be too careful.

As for insurance .........definitely a life saver, Dominos vet bill for the 2 operations, scans etc hit the £6,000 mark.

Good luck Sara Xxxxx

[Kimmikins]

Oh, that poor family! That must have been so hard, especially with no time to prepare and process what happened.
And £6000...yikes!! It's painful enough handing over a couple of hundred, definitely thankful for insurance!

I'm hoping the biopsy is just a necessary precaution, but any finger crossing is gratefully received

[kristina]

Sorry to read about Sara.hope all will be well with her,a friend of mine has a little rescue that had a very nasty lump on her leg 1 vet said it was  a nasty cancer growth and she should be PTS,my friend took her to another vet for a second opinion!! they removed the lump and this little dog is now running around and healthy,the rescue that she got the dog from thankfully paid the bill.
I was bitten badly for not having insurance when my old shepherd got Tetanus but she was only 17wks old then but cost me £2,500 and that was now 15yrs ago,plus she had a major shoulder op,another £600,so my little girl is fully insured,hopefully I will never need it and it's money gone but peace of mind too.
I did wonder about Domino and did think you must have insurance for him Jordan wow £6000 but hey you have a lovely happy dog.Kristina

[Kimmikins]

The biopsy results came back, and while it isn't cancer they have asked to do a further test to test for Leishmaniasis as they found some cells that, while not classically shaped, they want to be sure as she's a Bulgarian "import" Was hoping for the results today but it looks like I'll have to wait until tomorrow. If the results come back negative, they'll remove the lump to get it fully biopsied, and if it's positive she'll begin treatment before the lump comes off. It's looking much better though, so I'm hoping it disappears on it's own and there's no need for surgery!

[kristina]

Well thats a start Kimmikins have to say never heard of that very long word? beginning with L ! Wish you all the best for her,sure she will be fine though,you would notice if she was unwell in herself and to me she looks pretty good and very healthy she is a beautiful dog.Kristina

[Jordan]

So pleased cancer has been ruled out , any news on the further tests?

[Kimmikins]

We got the results on Thursday I think, and they were negative for Leishmaniasis. They still want to remove it though, as these things can have a tendency to keep flaring up throughout their life. Still hoping it'll disappear of it's own accord - even if it defers it for a while and we remove it next time...this time of year is not ideal for this kind of expense!

[Adrianne]

glad to hear that Sara is ok x

[Kimmikins]

She had her operation yesterday to remove the lump, and it went very well. She has an incision about 5cm long with some stitches that will come out in 10 days. Until then, because it's on her leg, she can't go out for a walk to prevent infection - especially as the vet wants it open to the air from tomorrow. So we have to go and get her a collar, because even though we're home with her all the time, she's so ninja-like that in the time it takes you to go to the loo...she's chewed off her bandages! So she'd have her stitches out in minutes.

[Kimmikins]

Well, the Sara saga continues - trust our girly to be difficult, lol!

The stitches came out today, although we had to revert to the cone of shame over the weekend because she just kept getting to it. Did you know that doggy and kitty saliva breaks down the soft tissue? Neither did we! That's why it looked like it wasn't healing, but apparently the internal stuff was knitting together, it was just the very top layer that wasn't. So she may end up with a nasty scar at that bit, but the rest of it has healed beautifully!

As for what it was, it turns out to be a fungal thing. Because, you know, Sara couldn't just have a lump an be done with it...ohhhhhh no, she has to go on anti-fungal treatment, lol! So it's great that we had it removed quickly and can get it treated and hopefully done and dusted!

I have photos, but will post them in a bit once I'm off my phone. I'm on Sara anti-licking duty at the moment!
Today will also be her first walk in 10days - we took her to our favourite coffee shop after her stitch removal and you can tell she is one cooped up doggy. A half hour walk shoul help take the edge off...hopefully!!

[Kimmikins]

Ok, here's the photos!


Here's the wound with the stitches out - that scabby bit at the end is the bit she kept ninja-licking!


Here she is chilling out at the coffee shop:


And here's how she spent the evening - in her pink cone of shame, miserable and insisting on flopping it right on my lap. My tv was viewed in a lovely shade of pink for most of the weekend!

[Adrianne]

its a lovely clean wound, and apart from the cone she looks ok with it all xx good to know its over and done with

[Kimmikins]

She hasn't looked to be in pain or discomfort at all, which is good, and the wound is now lovely and (nearly!) healed. She's currently sleeping off a long walk and a bath, and doesn't have her cone on...and isn't licking at her leg. So we're pretty much done with the wound side of things. Yay!

And the treatment for the fungal side of things is 4 weeks of baths, once a week, in anti fungal shampoo. Which turns out to be Malaseb, my favourite go-to product for Scrumpy Jack so we have it in spades! She had her first bath today, so is all fluffy and fungus free, lol!!

[kristina]

Just caught up with this too Kimmikins so pleased Sara ok,can't afford to be away from here for too long I miss stuff going on.Kristina