A local dog owner has shared the emotional "rollercoaster" she experienced after her puppy suddenly went blind.
Sarah Millar feared for the worst when her beautiful Golden Retriever pup Gus woke up with no eyesight, with his case being one of the worst vets had ever seen.
Speaking about the ordeal, Sarah explained that she took on Gus knowing he had a slight side impairment, but was devastated when he suddenly became blind. Referred to Veterinary Specialists Scotland (VSS) in West Lothian, staff discovered that Gus was suffering from a huge amount of fluid on his brain, so much so it caused the sight loss.
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Sarah said: “Gus had MRI and CT scans and Alexandra was amazed. She said he had the biggest case of hydrocephalus (fluid on the brain) that she’d ever seen and it was swamping both sides of his brain.
“I was shocked and couldn’t imagine the pain he was in but Alex said the result wasn’t the worst outcome as there was a way to drain the fluid and ease the pressure on Gus’s eyes and brain.”
That was the start of a three-month battle to improve the young pup’s quality of life, however, Sarah admitted there were times when she feared she would lose him.
Sarah explained: “Gus needed to have a shunt fit to drain the fluid from his brain into his stomach but there were a series of setbacks along the way. First, he reacted badly to the anaesthetic, then he needed to have a second shunt fitted with a controller to govern the flow.
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“There were lots of tears along the way and it was a real rollercoaster of emotions. There were many times when we were worried to answer the phone in case it was bad news, the worst news. Instead, one morning we got the call to say that Gus had come off his sedation and had even been for a little walk outside.
“Not long afterwards, Alex said he could come home because she felt he would thrive even more with his family around him. It was a wonderful moment. Gus is actually my daughter Mia’s dog and he came home in time for her 16th birthday. She says it was her best birthday present ever.
“It was a real happy ending. He’s a fabulous dog, a one of a kind and we owe Alex and VSS everything. She put her heart and soul into saving his life and we couldn’t be more grateful.”
VSS, which is owned by Linnaeus, is one of the UK’s leading veterinary referral centres and clinician Alexandra said it was a challenging case throughout.
She explained: “A medium pressure shunt was placed and Gus initially showed very good signs of recovery but a few weeks later some neurological signs returned.
“Gus was in pain and obtunded and spent most of his day sleeping. I was concerned about overshunting, infection or less likely, migration of the shunt.
“A further CT scan confirmed overshunting with external hydrocephalus. I was quite worried about the possibility of subdural bleeding.
“This proved difficult to manage as we don’t have an accurate way to measure the intracranial pressure in dogs and surgery had to be repeated using a high-pressure shunt to improve control.
“When I placed this second shunt, I did not want to prep and drill the other side of the skull, as I was afraid of infections and further trauma, so I decided to go on the same side but reposition the shunt.
“Gus is far more responsive and interactive at home and I am delighted for him and for Sarah and the family.”
VSS is a specialist-led multidisciplinary referral centre offering industry-leading services in cardiology, dermatology, internal medicine (feline and canine), neurology, orthopaedics, and soft tissue surgery, supported by specialists in diagnostic imaging and anaesthesia and analgesia.
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