A Border Collie in Cumbria is set to celebrate her 14th birthday after making a full recovery from emergency surgery to remove a cancerous tumour. Callie underwent the operation after a routine blood test revealed a serious health issue.
Callie had been taken to Ashlea Vets for her regular six-month check-up by owners Jane and Graham Arnott. Although she appeared healthy and showed no outward symptoms, blood tests identified pancytopenia, a condition in which levels of all three types of blood cells – red, white and platelets – are low. Further investigations revealed a 1.2kg mass attached to her spleen, which posed a risk of rupture.
The mass was removed in a two-and-a-half-hour operation performed by vet Kathryne Hodgson. Callie returned home the same day and has since made a full recovery, allowing her to celebrate her birthday on 15 April.
Vet Kathryne Hodgson said, “A successful outcome for Callie was only possible due to the care of the whole team, and it highlights the importance of senior health screening to pick up this silent disease that could otherwise have ended very differently. While blood screening in an otherwise healthy older dog can seem unnecessary, Callie’s case highlights it can sometimes be lifesaving.”
Kathryne added that the early intervention by the veterinary team, prompted by the registered veterinary nurse Sarah Findlay, was critical. “The reason Callie is still here to celebrate her birthday is thanks to her owners taking up the advice of Sarah.
“Fellow vet Alex Ruiz and I were then able to identify the tumour on her spleen and operate to remove it. Without this intervention, there was a high risk that the tumour would rupture and bleed, and she may not have survived that.”
Callie returned to the practice this week for an early birthday celebration with the veterinary team. Her owner Jane said, “It came as such a shock when we heard we had to rush her back after they received the blood test results, because she wasn’t displaying any outward symptoms.
“We’re just so relieved we went ahead with the blood tests as, if we hadn’t agreed, it would have been a completely different story as the mass would have ruptured. Ashlea Vets were absolutely superb. It will be a special birthday for her and for us now she is back to health.”
