Perseverance is Rewarded – Vandal’s Story

Let me tell you about a great dog,….. great owners,…. and a bunch of great decisions that ultimately rewarded the dog, the dog’s family and two vet clinics full of staff!

The dog is Vandal, a 3 year old male Rottweiler dearly loved by Vera, Frank and family. About a year ago he presented with a shifting limp and one corner of his main digital pad of his left foot, the pad that bares all the weight from this leg, had a growth. It didn’t look nasty, it’s more that it appeared annoying. We took biopsies to be sure and it came back as an abnormality of this tissue but not cancerous so Vera and Frank went about resting Vandal, wearing a boot, using pad softeners and even sanding back gently the excessive pad.

Things were being managed well but then 6 months ago, over the course of 4 weeks, the growth rate increased, the size of the affected area increased and so did Vandal’s discomfort but to his credit never did he get aggressive with us….he kept on licking us instead! Concern grew, options and cost were considered but the best option was referral to the Veterinary Specialist Group (VSG) in Auckland where Dr Richard Jerram took on the case seeing the need for specialist intervention.
Dr Richard Jerram had only tried one of these procedures before. He amputated Vandals 5th digit and used the pad from this toe to transplant it onto Vandals main pad after the growth was removed. The surgery went very well. The mass removed was found not to be a tumour fortunately but due to the abnormal tissue growth, it had to come off. Vandal needed bandage changes every 2 days for 4-6 weeks and we used up every one of these weeks.

Vandal sat in the treatment room floor, fussed on by nurses and all vets, fed too many treats and never complained as his wounds were cleaned, re-dressed and bandaged right over Christmas and New Years, without a holiday break. The transplant looked better than had been hoped but to be sure Vandal had fortnightly checks with Dr Richard Jerram in Auckland with VSG where he also quickly became a favourite. He thought after his last check he’d be showing again and running around within 6 months.

We are so proud of Vandal for allowing us to look after him, proud of working with VSG on his case (photos, emails and phone calls on progress) and contact with his proud parents for such a great outcome. Last weekend at the Auckland Kennel Council Easter Shows Vandal made his grand return (Judge Lesley Chalmers from the South Island) where Vandal was awarded BEST of breed and BEST open class in Group then the following day (Judge Mr M Morse from Australia) – BEST of breed, BEST of group, BEST open class in group.

At a mere 50kgs he knocks me over and pulls his parents into the clinic where he knows his cute looks and charm will be rewarded with treats. Our clinic is now his home away from home and he is always welcome to swing by. Seeing the proud look on Vera’s face as she was telling me of his achievements and seeing clients in our waiting room loving the story made me realise what a great job we had all done for Vandal, for his parents and the satisfaction that came from collaborating with one of New Zealand’s finest veterinary surgeons and his VSG practice.

Perserverance was rewarded at the Auckland Kennel Council Easter Shows!

 

 

By Dr Nick Sygrove