Surgery

Rupture (partial or complete) of the cranial cruciate ligament is one of the most common orthopaedic injuries in dogs. The injury can occur as a chronic degeneration and stretching of the ligament, or suddenly as an acute trauma. Repair of the unstable knee joint is typically performed by removing any torn ligament and meniscus and by placing a stabilising suture between the femur and the tibia.  Owners may instead elect to be referred for a more specialised procedure which involves realigning the angle of the tibial plateau. Regardless of the technique opted for, surgery is followed by carefully planned rest and rehabilitation and a staged return to exercise.

Our fully equipped surgical suite at Selwood house allows us to perform a range of orthopaedic procedures that your pet may require. In addition to cranial cruciate repair, the most common orthopaedic surgery for dogs, we conduct procedures such as fracture repair, patellar luxation repair, coxo-femoral luxation repair, bone grafting and amputations for severe injuries or bone cancer. More specialised orthopaedic surgery such as TPLOs or spinal surgery will need to be referred to specialist orthopaedic surgeons.

At Selwood House we conduct a wide spectrum of soft tissue surgery in dogs, cats and other small animals. Surgeries range from skin mass excisions, lump removals, traumatic wound surgery, skin grafting, hernia repair, biopsy, organ tissue biopsy, exploratory laparotomy, splenectomy, caesareans, bladder surgery and eye surgery to name a few. Our fully equipped surgery is designed for and governed by the highest standards of anaesthesia, monitoring and sterility to minimise the risk of surgery.

At Selwood House we recommend that unless a dog or cat is intended for breeding, they should be desexed around six months of age. This is because there are multiple health and behavioural benefits from doing so, plus there are strong public policy and animal welfare reasons for reducing the unwanted pet population. Similarly, there are good health and behavioural benefits from desexing rabbits, guinea pigs, rodents and ferrets. Desexing surgey is a day procedure and is considered routine in veterinary practice.