Back to page

Brain Surgery for Princess from Timaru

  • Princess update

      4 July 2021

    It has been 6 months since Princess travelled from Timaru up to Auckland to see Dr Richard Jerram and his awesome team at VSA. Princess underwent a surgical procedure to create a permanent bony window into her brain to allow excessive fluid to drain out and prevent pressure on her brain.

    Princess sailed through all her pre-op scans, surgery and recovery so well that she was on her way home within a week!

    Princess has been great since, unfortunately she has still had the occasional seizure so we have kept her on anti-seizure medication (which she does NOT like to take!) and we hope to get her to the new VSA clinic in Christchurch when it opens so she can have a followup CT scan on her wee head.

    The whole team at Timaru's Family Vets is super grateful to all our supporters to allow Princess to go on her big adventure and have the opportunity to have surgery to relieve the pressure in her brain.

      0 comments  |  Login to leave a comment

  • Princess returns home.

      13 January 2021

    Princess underwent surgery at Veterinary Specialists Auckland (VSA) on Wednesday 6 January.

    During this procedure she had a small area of skull removed and the cyst was drained. Some of the cystic fluid and part of the cyst wall was collected and sent to a laboratory for analysis.

    The cyst wall was stitched open so to allow any future buildup of fluid to drain through the window left in the skull and be absorbed by the overlying muscle.

    As you can image for those of us that remained in Timaru, that day was a very tense one. This was relieved when we received word that surgery had gone well and Princess was in recovery. This took some time as she was kept sedated to ensure a smooth recovery and to prevent possible seizures.

    Princess recovered like a true champ, she was discharged from the awesome care and attention of the VSA team a day earlier than expected!

    The trip home was delayed with mechanical problems of the ferry but Princess arrived safe and sound to an excited team at Timaru's Family Vet at 6pm on Monday 11 January.

    Strict instructions of rest, no playing or jumping hasn't stopped Princess - she has slotted back into life in the clinic like a dream - with perhaps more snoozing than before the surgery.

      0 comments  |  Login to leave a comment