Emergency surgery saves cocker spaniel after car accident

A road traffic accident left 8 year old cocker spaniel, Ziggy, with serious injuries. The vets spent six hours operating on the dog after her owners rushed her to the vets, with injuries consisting of fractured ribs, a crushed liver lobe, blood clots in the heart, internal bleeding, and a punctured lung.

Veterinary nurse Fiona Walker coordinated a team of three vets and five veterinary nurses to perform a number of intricate medical tests on the spaniel. They worked for hours on end to try to keep Ziggy from slipping away.

After her surgery, the brave patient stayed in the hospital for 10 days in order to recover. During this time, she could not eat or stand without assistance, which meant she had to be tube fed for 5 days following the operation.

In addition to supportive care and pain relief treatment, Ziggy was given physiotherapy and massage therapy to address her neurological problems and regain her ability to walk.

Dr Fiona Walker said “Ziggy’s injuries were life-threatening, and she needed emergency surgery to her abdomen and chest to repair the fractured ribs and stop the internal bleeding. During the operation we had to breathe for Ziggy, and our nursing team gave her artificial respiration for four hours to keep her alive. She lost a lot of blood and needed an emergency blood transfusion.”

“Ziggy’s recovery was a slow process, but every day she made a little bit of progress and gave us something to celebrate. To come back from such horrendous injuries was truly inspirational, and everyone at the hospital was willing her to get better. Ten days after the accident all of our efforts were rewarded when Ziggy stood up and took a few wobbly steps. It was the highlight of my 12-year career as a vet.”