Alpha was brought into the Ranfurly Veterinary Clinic as he had been straining for the past few days and just not himself. An initial inspection showed Alpha had a painful tummy and a swelling beside his rectum.

Alpha had developed a perineal hernia, this is where the muscles next to the rectum created an opening from the abdomen to under the skin. In Alphas case, his bladder had gone through this opening, and had become stuck under the skin beside his rectum. This created quite a complex problem; not only did Alpha’s bladder need to be replaced and the muscles repaired, but also his kidneys were struggling as Alpha was unable to urinate.

The Ranfurly Veterinary team worked to initially stabilise Alpha and he was then transferred to Oamaru for emergency surgery. Against the odds, Alpha did really well during surgery, his bladder was returned to his abdomen, then the muscles beside his rectum were repaired and his abdomen flushed.

Over the next few days, Alpha remained in Oamaru’s hospital receiving antibiotics, pain relief and plenty of fluids to support his kidneys. Alpha was also started on a special diet designed to help protect the kidneys going forward.

Alpha recently came back into the Ranfurly Veterinary Clinic for his 2 week check-up. We are all very happy to report, despite such an ordeal, and with the help of the Veterinary Centre team Alpha is doing very well.