Today is the 11th Birthday of my dear first pug, Ch. Kates Jampa Mae. She almost didnt make it to this birthday. Jampa’s regular vet, Rob Erdeman, with recognized that she was very ill and recommended that she be taken to Marin Pet Emergency and Specialty Center for an abdominal ultrasound. She was diagnosed with a gall bladder mucocele and had surgery on July 30 just before her gall bladder ruptured. She tolerated the surgery well and was in intensive care for 4 days on IV fluids, pain meds and antibiotics. I am now on nurse and chef duty, hoping my food offerings will restore her appetite and speed her recovery. I found this on the web: Although gall stones in pets are rare, the gall bladder can become blocked with excessive mucus combined with bile salt “sludge”. Once the flow of bile is blocked, the gall bladder becomes more and more distended. The wall becomes thinned and bacteria can more easily grow in the gall bladder leading to a serious infection. The mucus contents of a blocked up gall bladder is referred to as a mucocele (pronounced Mu-ko-seal). A gall bladder filled with a mucocele is at high risk for rupture. Once a gall bladder ruptures, a pet will experience severe abdominal pain, vomiting, and shock. Without immediate surgery all pets with ruptured gall bladders will die. Even with prompt surgery and intensive care, 30-50% of patients will not survive. Her zipper will come out in two weeks.
Posted on: Mon, 04 Aug 2014 19:59:52 +0000