PET OF THE MONTH

CHIARA presented to the Avalon Veterinary Clinic with an acute onset of severe vomiting. She had also not been passing any faeces. These signs suggested an obstruction of the intestine and when the vet felt her tummy there was a suspicious lump in the intestine. She was admitted immediately and started on a drip. A general anaesthetic was given and an x-ray of Chiara’s abdomen was taken. This x-ray showed an area consistent with an intestinal obstruction.
The owner gave permission for an operation to remove the obstruction immediately.

When the vet examined the intestine during surgery, an obstruction was found. It was not clear what was causing the obstruction until the vet removed it. It turned out to be a large hairball.

Chiara recovered well from surgery and is back to her beautiful self.

Obstruction of the small intestine by hairballs is rare. As can be seen from the photograph above, Chiara is a Birman cat, a long-haired breed. She swallows a lot of hair when grooming, but usually vomits up hairballs without a problem. Since the operation the owners have been brushing Chiara even more frequently to try to prevent her swallowing so much hair.