March 2019 - EVH Emergency Vet Hospital

Emergency vet now open in Wangara

Background

In 2015, the emergency vet hospital was opened by Tracey Roberts. As City of Wanneroo Mayor, her opening address highlighted supporting the local community. This is through providing timely infrastructure and access to services that are needed. As one of Australia’s largest councils, the council faces many challenges. One in particular is the rate of growth in the region. This is quite large and estimated that 21 new residents and 8 new dwellings join the local community every day.

Hospital

The after hours and emergency vet hospital was establish to support this growth. Many families need to have convenient access to a vet hospital which is open after hours. Being in Wangara the hospital is quite accessible to many of the most northern suburbs in Perth.

Experienced Team

The hospital has a team of trained veterinary nurses and experienced emergency veterinarians. The vet hospital works closely with you. This is to ensure that families understand what is happening with their pet. From there, discussions and care options are organised collaboratively.

Modern Vet Hospital

There are three consultancy room treatment management and procedure preparation area. It has two operating theatres, digital x-ray facilities, oxygen, ultrasound, blood and fluid analysis. All of this support equipment is available should it be needed to help care for your pet during stressful times.

Location

The hospital is located at 1 Chokolich Street WANGARA WA 6065. It is only a couple of streets up from Wanneroo Road and is easily accessible off Prindiville Drive. The opening hours are every night of the year from 5pm. The hospital is also open 24 hour across weekends and public holidays.

Need assistance

Call 9200 4460

Dogs

Cobra survives his under carriage being impaled

Meet Cobra; a larger that life character with lots of energy to burn. He lives the dream on a semi rural property. Late one afternoon, he decided that it was a great idea to play with the horse. This did not go so well. While playing, he jumped over a tree log and a 20 cm stick impaled his undercarriage. The stick went in behind his penis and right out the other side.

His family decided to bring him in as it looked quite serious and an unexpected injury. As soon as he arrived the veterinarians gave him an injection to relieve the pain. Once he was in less pain, the vets and nurses organised for Cobra to have some x-rays. These were necessary to understand the extent of his injuries and how best to care for him while in hospital. With an injury to that region of the body, there is an increased risk of damage to body parts such as the colon, bladder and penis. Thankfully x-rays showed there was no internal damage. With much relief, his family agreed to the emergency surgery that night to safely remove the stick.

The vet surgeon flushed the wound to remove all the debris and put in a drain put in so that fluid didn’t build up. Cobra quickly woke up from surgery and was transitioned to the recovery ward. His recovery went very well and his family picked him up the next day. Within three weeks Cobra was back to his usual activities.

The take home message is that if your pet has a penetrating injury leave the weapon in place and head to your nearest vet hospital. Trying to take it out has been known to cause even more damage.

Dogs

Bloat – what it is, the signs and what to do

What is bloat in dogs?

Bloat or gastric dilation and volvulus (GDV) is where the stomach twists and inflates with gas preventing it from emptying. It is a life threatening condition which requires urgent medical assistance.

What are the common symptoms?

Distended stomach
Pacing
Unsuccessful vomiting
Vomiting up foamy saliva
Restlessness
Inability to lie down
Pawing at or looking at their belly
Rapid shallow breathing and pale mucus membranes

What causes dog bloat?

Unknown, but contributing factors may include:

Anatomy
Body structure
Genetics
Environment factors

Possible contributors to bloat can include:

Exercise after a meal
A dog bowl that is lowered
Dogs that eat from a raised bowl
Fast eaters
Certain breeds including; German Shepherds, Great Danes and large deep chested breeds

Below is Jess’s Mums recollection of her recent scare with bloat.

‘My husband noticed something was wrong with Jess two and a half hours after eating. She was agitated, looking at her abdomen and walking in circles.

It was though she wanted to lie down but couldn’t. I took her outside to see if she needed to vomit and she did. She then ate it. Thinking she would be fine, she came back inside where she still looked uncomfortable and in pain.

I have read up on bloat as I am aware German Shepherds are prone to it. On checked her abdomen, there was no sign of blowing up, but I was worried as she was very agitated. I decided not to waste any time and go to the vets as quickly as possible (no speed cameras, phew!).

On the drive she became extremely distressed, crying continuously (as did I) and trying to vomit. By the time we arrived, she was in shock and in 40 minutes her stomach had blown up to the size of a balloon.’

When she arrived at the vet hospital she was immediately seen by the veterinary team who diagnosed her with bloat. With her family’s consent she was taken to emergency surgery. The surgery was successful and she coped well in recovery.

As it is such a significant operation Jess stayed hospital until recovered enough to go home. She returned for her veterinary recheck, to make sure everything was healing as expected. This photo of Jess is five weeks and two days later, playing soccer and moving beautifully.

“I could not have asked for better care for Jess and myself. Thank you so much, not only for the lifesaving surgery but for taking care of me at the same time. Allowing me to wait while you operated. Making me coffee. Coming out with updates. Checking I hadn’t collapsed in a heap on the floor. I will be forever grateful.”