Kanab Veterinary Team saves K9 officer’s life

When Kanab Veteri­nary Hospital received an emergency call from Deputy Felish of Mo­have County Sheriffs K-9 Unit that his serving K9 dog, Officer Brutus, was in sudden and painful destress, our team jumped into action. Officer Brutus had developed Gastric dil­atation-volvulus (GDV), a serious condition and is fatal if left untreated. Commonly referred to as “bloat,” GDV occurs when a dog’s stomach fills with gas, food or fluid and subsequently twists. GDV develops without warning and can progress quickly. It is ALWAYS an emergency!

Brutus in recovery immediately after surgery. He continues to improve.

With all hands-on deck, K9 Officer Brutus was rushed into surgery. After flipping and untwisting Brutus’ stomach, it was discovered that his spleen was purple due to lack of oxygen from his twisted stomach. Fortunately, color soon began to re­turn to the spleen once it was relieved of pres­sure from the stomach. All concerned breathed a sigh of relief. At this point, Brutus’ vitals were returning to normal so the veterinary team pro­ceeded to work on tacking the stomach to prevent any future repeat of such an emergency.

From receiving the emergency call until Bru­tus was taken into recov­ery, the Kanab Veterinary Hospital team had been working on him for al­most five hours. Provided Brutus’ spleen heals well, Dr. Ballard is hopeful that Brutus will be able to return to work in about a month.

There is a continuous our-pouring of well wish­es for Brutus and of grati­tude to the Kanab Vet­erinary Hospital team. Desiree Felish posted her deep gratitude on Face­book, which read:

“We cannot thank Kanab Veterinary Hos­pital enough! Dr. Ballard and his staff are true angels. and I don’t think we’d have our Brutus here right now if it weren’t for them. He wouldn’t have made it to Vegas. This all happened SO fast. and time is critical with this type of incident. I know our Vets all over are spread so thin, and they are working tire­lessly for us. and living in a rural area makes this harder. but I can­not express our sincere appreciation for what happened this morning. THANK YOU, a million times, over Dr. Ballard and staff!”