house calls

Difficulty breathing

By JOSEPH A. D'ABBRACCIO, D.V.M.
Posted 11/11/20

Two weeks ago, I received a text message from the folks at the Dutchess County SPCA regarding a sick kitten they had. The kitten, named Rogue by the folks at the animal shelter, was having a horrible …

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house calls

Difficulty breathing

Posted

Two weeks ago, I received a text message from the folks at the Dutchess County SPCA regarding a sick kitten they had. The kitten, named Rogue by the folks at the animal shelter, was having a horrible time breathing when she was brought to the shelter. After further evaluation, their veterinarians found that the homeless kitten had a diaphragmatic hernia. The diaphragm is a thin muscle that separates the chest cavity from the abdominal cavity. This muscle can have a tear in it from situations such as birth defects or even traumatic injuries such as being hit by a car. This condition requires surgical correction and the folks at the shelter were in desperate need of finding a veterinary practice that would perform the surgery. The Dutchess County SPCA is located in Hyde Park, NY and many veterinary practices in that region of the area do not perform the corrective surgery; if they do, it’s at a cost of around $10,000. That is an extremely difficult task for a shelter as they have very strict budgets and always so many animals to care for.

Rogue was brought to Catskill Veterinary Services, PLLC, in Rock Hill, NY on a Monday morning to be admitted for her surgery. Upon admission, we were able to appreciate how sweet she is, but she was horribly afraid and having quite a difficult time breathing. During the surgery, we discovered that Rogue’s liver, gallbladder, small intestines and part of her colon were all in her chest cavity. This was causing an extreme amount of pressure in her chest around her heart and lungs. It certainly explained why she was having such a hard time actually catching her breath. The organs were all placed in their proper anatomical location and the defect in the diaphragm was closed and her lungs were allowed to properly reinflate with air. Rogue recovered from surgery in our intensive care oxygen chamber and under the watchful eye of our NYS-licensed veterinary technicians. Over the day, the oxygen supplementation was decreased until Rogue was comfortably able to breathe on her own. She was then transferred to standard hospital status. Rogue remained hospitalized for four more days following her surgery just to be sure that she was not going to have any significant post-surgical complications. She started eating and drinking well the day following the surgery and seemed enormously more comfortable as the days continued.

Rogue was discharged from Catskill Veterinary Services and was transferred back to the Dutchess County SPCA in Hyde Park, NY. She will be up for adoption and should go on to live a long and healthy life. We are so glad that Rogue was brought to the Dutchess County SPCA and given a chance at life. Please consider visiting the Dutchess County SPCA or our other local animal shelters to volunteer, donate, or even adopt a new friend.

Catskill Veterinary Services, PLLC
www.facebook.com/CatskillVeterinaryServices 
www.catskillvetservices.com
drjoe@catskillvetservices.com 

kitten, adoption, SPCA, Dutchess County, Catskill Veterinary Services

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