Once in a while a patient comes along with such horrific injuries that I am left shaking my head in disbelief as to how they have survived. Monty, a 2 year old Springer Spaniel, was one such dog who was involved in a road traffic accident. This resul...
As Autumn has tightened its grip on the Hinckley weather the level of rainfall has risen substantially. Consequently the numbers of patients seen at Fairfield with summer allergies plummets. Those afflicted with the intense pruritus/scratching that i...
Here at Fairfield we receive many calls regarding local wildlife, including hedgehogs, rabbits, and even sometimes the odd bird of prey! We can treat sick or injured wildlife here at Fairfield, which we do to ensure animal welfare standards extend to...
Grass seeds are notorious for getting into all sorts of unusual places….and often being challenging to find and remove. In my career as a vet I have seen grass seeds in ears, up noses, in tear ducts and eyes, and also causing abscesses in many differ...
Making the decision to end your pets life is a highly emotive dilemma. Knowing that you are alleviating suffering can help to rationalise that choice. However, where pain is not the primary concern and evaluating the "quality of life" of a companion ...
Two young hedgehogs around 10 weeks old were recently brought to Fairfield. They had both been caught up in gardener's netting which had cut through their skin and muscles as they had struggled to break free. Sadly, my head nurse was only able to sav...
Puppies have 28 temporary or milk teeth. These are usually lost between 4 and 6 months of age as they are replaced by the 42 adult or permanent teeth. The roots of the temporary teeth usually resorb as the adult teeth erupt directly underneath. This ...
When "Qato" was first presented at Fairfield with the classic symptoms of severe weight loss, despite "eating for England", it didn't take my colleagues too long to determine a definitive diagnosis of feline hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid). As a...
I was walking into Hinckley town centre last week intending to watch one of the football internationals at a local hostelry when my phone beeped indicating I had received a message. Such is the situation with modern technology that no matter where yo...
The most common cause of hindlimb lameness in the adult canine patient is now attributable to "cruciate" disease. The anterior cruciate ligament provides the knee with stability particularly from twisting. As a result of a genetic predisposition or d...
As most of our clients will be all too aware The Fairfield surgical unit has been having a major refurbishment. No doubt many will also be familiar with the concept that whenever you have builders involved they are inevitably "behind schedule and ove...
Since the introduction of the Animal Welfare Act a few years ago there is an increased burden of reponsibility on owners to provide a legal duty of care for the welfare needs of their pet. It is therefore vital that should someone acquire an animal w...
When Joan and John Ward took their dog "Holly" to enjoy a lovely stroll around Bosworth Water Park recently they never anticipated the potential hazards. Whilst her owners were distracted by an angler who was reeling in a lively c...
Whippets are designed with only one thing in mind. Their sleek build and long limbs ensure that they can travel at speeds most dogs can only dream about. Sadly those aerodynamic features come at a price. For if they encounter an unanticipated obstacl...
Now that Spring has finally sprung and my small pond is filled with frog spawn (almost 4 weeks later than last year) our feline friends are renegotiating their territories. Sadly, youngsters like Tigger,at only 12 months of age, are new to this conce...
I can imagine that there are quite a few readers who have "had their fill" of eggs over the last couple of weeks but spare a thought for one of our most recent patients. Her owners had become aware that she wasn't quite right. She had appeared uncomf...
It is an unfortunate consequence of working as a veterinary surgeon that a significant portion of my professional time is spent delivering bad news. It has been postulated by some, that this accounts for my miserable countenance although a "design" f...
Pets with broken bones are amongst the most complex and expensive cases which we treat at Fairfield. Despite the variety of injuries that occur, bones tend to break along very similar patterns dependent on their inherent weakspots. The...
I was reading through my list of patients for the day on the computer when I noticed the name of "Chloe". She had been listed by reception staff with "blood in urine". Nice and straightforward I thought to myself, probably a simple case of cystitis. ...
To treat or not to treat that is the question. Predicting the eventual outcome and forecasting the future is never easy. When faced with a critically ill patient it becomes important to establish the probable outcome to allow the owner to make a deci...
