Our patient of the month this edition is a three year old male Pomeranian cross called 'Bianco'. Bianco presented to us at the clinic when his owner noticed that he seemed to be straining to urinate and that he was occasionally dripping blood. Suitably worried about this he was brought in to see us!

On examination, Bianco had a very full bladder and was very uncomfortable in the abdomen, so we sent him off for some xrays to see if we could find out what was going on. The xrays came back to show us that his urethra was blocked with calculi, or bladder stones. Due to the serious nature of this condition, Bianco was immediately sent for emergency surgery to remove the blockage and clean out his bladder and urethra.

While he was under anaesthetic, an incision was made into his urethra and his bladder, where a number of small and large stones were removed and his bladder then lavaged (washed out) with saline. He recovered very well from his procedure and was sent home on a special prescription diet to help prevent the reoccurrence of these stones in his bladder.

If you have noticed that your dog is exhibiting similar symptoms to Bianco, such as straining to urinate, discomfort toileting, or dribbling blood from the urethra, we recommend you call us straight away for advice.