Gary Galah goes walkabout! - March 2012

‘Gary' (we don't know his name so have made one up for him) arrived on our doorstep this morning, courtesy of a kind passer-by who had found him and brought him in to us. Unlike wild Galahs, he was very friendly and obviously used to human company.  He loves a scratch on his head or under his wing and is more than happy to jump up onto a hand or a shoulder. He is very inquisitive, loves to dance and comes out with a very varied string of calls, whistles and songs!

If handled from an early age, Galahs can develop into fantastic pets and can become very attached to their owners (and vice versa!). They are playful and active and great mimics. They love to dance (up and down) and whistle or ‘purr' when happy. Wild Galahs, on the other hand, hate being handled (and let you know all about it), and will use their beaks to very good effect!

There is no question that ‘Gary' has been brought up in human company and has managed to get himself temporarily lost. Unfortunately, when this happens, a captive bird has often lost the ability to look after itself in the wild and can be susceptible to starvation and predation. In Gary's case, he has probably not been lost for very long and is still in great condition although he is probably very much missed by his owners at the moment.

It's not unusual for lost pets to be dropped in to us at Gawler South. In most cases, a distraught owner will turn up sooner or later and we work with the Gawler council to re-unite pet and owner as promptly as possible.  We're very hopeful that Gary's owners will appear shortly.  If not, there is a line-up of volunteers keen to take him on and give him a new home!

Gus Blakemore - February 2012

Gus is a three-year-old ‘Westie' cross dog and was brought in to us by his owner, Ann Blakemore, with a complaint of having been completely off his food for the previous three days. He had also been drinking more than normal for some time.

On examination, Dr Carolyn Ellis was concerned about Gus' water intake and general condition. She promptly ran some blood screens using our newly installed ‘in-house' pathology system. We had the results back within ten minutes and these indicated that Gus had an elevation of kidney enzymes (potentially consistent with acute kidney failure) but also a change in sodium and potassium levels.

The change in electrolytes can be seen with a condition known as Addison's disease, which is caused by an abnormality of the adrenal glands. Addison's disease is known in the veterinary world as ‘The Great Pretender' as it can cause a multitude of clinical signs and can mimic many other diseases (kidney failure in Gus' case).

Dr Carolyn suggested to Ann that we run a separate test, which would confirm our diagnosis. As one of only 4 veterinary hospitals in South Australia to have this facility, we were able to run the test immediately and to have a result within an hour. During this time, we had started Gus on intravenous fluids to improve his hydration levels and to correct the electrolyte imbalance we had already seen. Once the diagnosis of Addison's disease was confirmed, we were able to start immediate treatment, and by the following morning, Gus was feeling much happier. He went home the same day on tablets and will be checked again on a regular basis.

Addisons is a relatively easily controlled condition and Gus has a good prognosis. He will need ongoing testing and possibly adjustments to his medication dosage. He will also need ongoing medication for life. Other than this, however, he should be able to lead a normal happy, healthy lifestyle!

Within the space of twenty-four hours and with the help of our new pathology equipment, we had been able to make a complete diagnosis, start treatment and send Gus home feeling much happier. This is a fantastic result! Well done to our Dr Carolyn Ellis and our nursing team and to Gus' owner Ann for picking up so quickly on the early signs of disease.

Cougar Stevens - January 2012

Haemolytic Anaemia, Hepatitis, Arthritis, Sore Feet, Etc, Etc!!

‘Cougar' is a very happy, 9-year-old Staffy Cross owned by the Stevens family. He first came to us a little over a year ago with a history of recent lethargy and weight loss. Blood-work showed that Cougar had developed a condition known as Immune-Mediated Haemolytic Anaemia (IMHA). This was caused by red blood cells being destroyed by Cougar's own immune system and is a condition we see occasionally in dogs.  Cougar was started on immediate treatment to try and control the immune reaction and to prevent any further loss of red blood cells. Without treatment, IMHA is a rapidly fatal disease and the Stevens' were determined to do whatever they could to save Cougar.

Initial treatment was complicated by the development of hepatitis (an inflammatory condition of the liver) and also of a heart murmur (leaky heart valves). Secondary bouts of enteritis made Cougar feel pretty unwell and he continued to lose weight. For several weeks, it was touch and go as to whether he would pull through and the family were seriously considering whether they might be going to lose Cougar. After several blood tests and multiple courses of both anti-inflammatory drugs and antibiotics, we finally started to see an improvement in Cougar's blood picture.  After about 3 months of treatment, our veterinarians felt they could start to reduce the dosage of immune-suppressant drugs.

Cougar has remained stable ever since although he is still (and probably always will be) on medication. Not content with causing his owners so much grief with the Anaemia, he has since developed shoulder arthritis and a painful condition of his feet! The arthritis is being well controlled with a series of injections. Juliet Stevens discovered that covering Cougar's feet caused a huge improvement in his walking and so we ordered in some special boots to protect his feet (Staffy's may look tough but they often have quite thin, sensitive skin!). The result (as you can see in the photo) is a happy and bouncy Cougar who, despite his multiple challenges,  has remained a delightfully cheerful dog throughout all of this.

His successful treatment is a testament to the determination of his owners and has been a delight for us all to see at Gawler South Vets. Well done to our treating veterinarians Dr Beck Thompson, Dr Steve Crouch and Dr Carolyn Ellis (as well as our dedicated nursing staff) who all had a part to play in Cougar being around to celebrate another Xmas.

Pug Knox - November 2011

Diabetes Mellitus 

Pug is a gorgeous 10-year-old Burmese cat owned by Sandy Knox. Last September, Sandy started to notice that Pug was drinking a lot more than normal and so brought him in to Gawler South for a check-up. After examining Pug, Dr Carolyn Ellis decided he needed immediate hospitalisation and treatment for what turned out to be Diabetes Mellitus (some people know of this as ‘sugar' diabetes). Diabetes is a relatively common condition in older cats and, if left untreated, will progress to keto-acidosis, a dangerous and potentially fatal disease. Pug was started on intravenous fluids and insulin and had multiple blood tests to check his blood glucose levels. After several days of hospitalisation,, Pug went home feeling considerably better and with the secondary effects of the diabetes under control. 

Sandy is a very dedicated owner and was very pro-active in checking glucose levels and administering Pug's insulin injections. Over the next few weeks, Sandy had to bring him in numerous times to monitor his progress. During these visits, Pug had his blood glucose levels checked and his insulin dosage fine-tuned until we felt he was under good control. As part of his treatment regime, Pug was started on a special diet made by Hills and designed to help reduce insulin requirements in diabetic cats.. Over the next couple of months, we saw a dramatic improvement in Pug's condition and were able to reduce his dose of insulin. Finally, by late March, we were able to take him off insulin completely and maintain him on his specially-formulated diet. 

Since that time, Sandy has monitored Pug very closely and, to date, he is managing very well on just his Hills diet. Although he will probably need to stay on this diet for life, he is now able to lead a very normal lifestyle without the need for daily insulin injections. He has regained the weight he lost while he was unwell and both Sandy and Pug are very happy with the outcome! Well done to Dr Carolyn Ellis and all of the fantastic team at Gawler South, to Hills for producing this great diet and to Sandy Knox for doing such a great job with her little boy!

Artex Pham - October 2011

'At Gawler South, we are frequently asked about some of the interesting cases we see and how we go about treating them. As this seems to strike a chord with a lot of our clients, we thought we should share some of these stories with you!'

We feature the most interesting case from each month and these are listed below.

Artex is a lively, bouncy German Shepherd dog owned by Selina Pham. He's a very happy-go-lucky dog, very active, and, as you can see from his photo, the picture of health.

Things didn't always look so bright for Artex, however. As an eight-month-old, he was diagnosed with bilateral elbow dysplasia. This is a developmental condition and one we see relatively often in German Shepherds.. Left untreated, this leads to progressive and crippling arthritis and a reduced life expectancy (not to mention quality!).

Luckily, this was picked up early enough for us to perform corrective surgery. Fragments of detached bone were removed from both elbows and Artex made a full recovery. At this stage, he shows no ill-effects from the dysplasia and the surgery has been a great success. He has no more chance of developing elbow arthritis than any other dog and, much to the delight of Selina, he has a great quality of life and normal life expectancy!

'Kitty' - September

'Evie' - August

'Buster' - July

'Molly' Sharp - June

‘Foxi' Haynes - May