Animals "R" Special, New Albany, Ohio

Dr. Zinni said this infected uterus is one for the books! It is the largest one she has ever removed.
We want to thank all the wonderful staff and Dr. Sue Zinni, DVM at Animals"R"Special, 88 N. High Street, New Albany, Ohio for saving our sweet, loving, loyal Golden Retriever, Ching-Ching, from a very serious infection and for the great job she did during the emergency surgery to save Ching-Ching's life.

A couple weeks ago, we noticed that our special girl wasn't eating, looked sad and was drinking tons of water, but we attributed it to her 6-month cycle. After 2-weeks of poor appetite, I decided on a Thursday afternoon that she might need medical attention. Veterinarian Dr. Zinni's office quickly opened up a spot and gave Ching-Ching a thorough examination.

The diagnosis was Pyometra, a serious, sometimes fatal infection commonly seen in older female dogs who have not been spayed. An x-ray confirmed that her uterus was seriously enlarged with infection and needed to be removed in a delicate but critical surgery where the uterus must be lifted from a bed of engorged major blood vessels, while the fragile uterine tissue could have easily torn open - spilling poison into our dog's entire system.

After carefully explaining the procedure to me, she waited patiently for hubby to arrive from work, and she again explained the details in layman's terms to him. She showed us the x-rays of Ching-Ching's swollen, bacteria-filled uterus and tubes that should have been the size of a pencil, but was almost as big as a quart jar! Her white blood count (a sign of infection) was over 42. Normal for that is 16.

Ching-Ching was immediately admitted for emergency surgery. Although it was very difficult to leave our family pet behind in a strange place, the staff called us several times to update us on her progress. Even the fact that she wagged her tail at them or drank some water, was forwarded to her anxious 'parents'.

Everything Dr. Zinni told us was just as she said it would be - even the estimated cost for. Our pet was medicated for pain in a timely manner so she didn't suffer. The staff catered to her and took her outside several times so she wouldn't feel uncomfortable in her cage.

The doctor and staff worked after-hours on Saturday to discharge her after spending a lot of time explaining the surgery to remove the pus-filled uterus, her medications and feeding. She had even saved the pictures she took during the surgery. Dr. Zinni did want us to remind our family and friends that dogs should be spayed if they are not being bred for puppies to avoid this costly, painful, serious and sometimes fatal condition.

Even though my Jim isn't usually trusting of any vet, he developed a good camaraderie with Dr. Zinni and thanked her again for her professionalism and for saving his beloved pet. I really appreciated her knowledge, confidence and excellence bedside manner.

She could-have, but didn't scold us at all for not having our dog spayed even though Ching-Ching never had puppies, but she made sure to let us know this would have been avoided had we done so. This is something I want to encourage everyone who has a female dog to do. It is well worth the investment.

For our veterinarian's website click HERE or go to www.animals-r-special.com Their website includes this information:

Animals “R” Special Veterinary Hospital has been serving and caring for our New Albany community best friends since 1991. Dogs, cats, rabbits, and pocket pets (guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, rodents, etc.) have been receiving personal, quality care in preventative medicine, surgery, dental clean/polishing, senior wellness, nutritional counseling, obedience classes, boarding, daycare, puppy preschool, and grooming. Appointments at convenient hours, or drop off your pet, we cater to the individual. Dr. Sue Zinni and Dr. Karen Henry, and the friendly staff welcome you to visit us at our “home-town-like” hospital. Animals-r-special phone number is 614-855-0880.

Take Care on the Journey,
~Linda