When our vets received an emergency call at 11.30pm at night, they quickly responded and headed to the clinic to perform a lifesaving operation.
Bailey is a two-year-old German Shepherd who lives with her loving family in Goa. She is incredibly friendly and loves nothing more than greeting guests at the door!
One evening, she was so excited to see the family’s new visitors that she tried to jump the balcony to greet them. Her owner pulled her back to safety, but not before she got caught on the top ledge. She initially seemed unhurt, but by 6pm that evening her stomach had begun to bloat. She was restless, uneasy and began to retch. Her owners rushed her to several vets for help, but no one was available. Bailey’s breathing was becoming more laboured and her discomfort grew by the hour - by 10:30pm her condition was critical.
The WVS centre in Goa was called and our vets rushed back to the centre to receive the emergency. A team of six vets came together and began assessing her condition. Bailey was breathing rapidly and couldn’t stand up on her own. It was clear to see she was in a lot of pain and so after sedation, she was rushed in to be x-rayed for a digital confirmation of what was wrong. Our vets identified Bailey was suffering from Gastric Dialation Volvulus (GDV), a condition caused by the twisting of the stomach, which in turn, causes an accumulation of gas that has nowhere to escape to. It causes severe pain and distress and requires emergency treatment to prevent a rupture of the stomach and save Bailey’s life.
Her pulse was getting weaker and it was important to get the operation underway as soon as possible. The operation was successful, but our vets still had concerns about Bailey’s health and needed to monitor Bailey and ensure the problem was fixed. We needed to make sure that she was out of danger before we could let her go home, but her family were so relieved to pick her up.
Bailey was sent home at 2am and visited the clinic the very next day for a check-up. The vets were thrilled with how well she was doing as Bailey walked happily into the centre, showing no signs of discomfort or the ordeal she had been through only hours earlier. She received plenty of hugs from the vets who had saved her life and left our centre with a wagging tail.
A week later and she has been given the all clear from the WVS vets and is now eating and playing as normal!
With your support, we can continue to respond in times of emergency such as this. Please help us save more dogs like Bailey by donating today. Your donations will enable us to be there when it matters most, and provide lifesaving care. Why? Because every animal matters.