Algiz finally made the move to ABQ and now needs, seriously, your help (Santa Fe: house)

[Algiz]

Hey all - regulars might recognize me, finally did it, and loving it here, but I've run into a serious timely problem and hope you can help.

Do you know of any place - Veterinary Urgent Care or Emergency Care that can perform an abdominocentesis?

Right as we put our house in WA on the market early May, our young dog developed liver disease, then ascites.

Before leaving WA, we had to go to ER hospitals to have her abdomen drained 3x. Regular vets wouldn't do it in office. We had it done the day we drove out of WA three weeks ago.

Immediately upon arriving in ABQ, we found a vet, but the first appt was Aug 10. Have been calling daily to see if I can slip in to a cancellation, but no success. This vet does this procedure in office, says she does it often, no issue. I was SO happy, relieved. However, our dog's belly has now filled almost to capacity and must be drained very soon, can't wait until AUg 10.

So the vet office suggested three 24 hr Critical Care/ERs in ABQ: Route 66, Thrive, and VCS. I spent hours today driving to all three, then calling other vets they suggested, but none could do the procedure for various reasons, and she needs it done ASAP. I also called other vets, no success.

I'm going to try Roadrunner Emergency in Algodones tomorrow. They had me on a hold so long today I thought I'll just go in tomorrow and try in person like I did with the other places today.

I looked for ERs in Santa Fe, but maybe I don't know where to look b/c I found nothing.

If the Algodones place doesn't work, I'll drive to Denver to a Blue Pearl facility (Blue Pearl is where I went in WA) on Thursday. They likely will do the procedure, won't send me elsewhere, will have the ultrasound machine (HOW, please tell me, HOW can a 24 hr critical care ER not have an US machine?)

I hope most fervently to avoid driving to Denver on Thursday for an abdominocentesis.

If you know of any veterinary medical facilities closer than Denver that offer more than the basics and are ER/Urgent Care, I'd deeply appreciate your suggestions.

Thank you! ~A

[jiminnm]

If you are going to Algodones, also check with the folks here coronadopethospital.com. They are on 528 just south of 550. We used them when we had a cat.

[pathrunner]

My former vet office in Sapello, NM (Brainerd Animal Health Center) does abdominocentesis. They are willing to fit her in next Wednesday if you have vet records with you.

I know that Wednesday is still a long way off, and Sapello would be a 2 hour drive. I hope Algodones is successful!

Hopefully you can get established with someone on an ongoing basis. My former vet office is wonderful but it IS a drive from your area...

By the way Sapello is pronounced "SAW-pay-o". I was corrected immediately upon moving to NM!

[Algiz]

Thanks, Jiminnm and pathrunner!
I'm off now to Algodones and will check out Coronado Pet Hospital even if Roadrunner works out. I like what I see on their website. Have you brought any pets to Coronado, jiminnm?

I will really be surprised if I run into any problems with Roadrunner. They specifically state on their website that they have US and they address "abnormal fluid within the abdomen and chest."
Fingers crossed!

Oh, thanks so much, pathrunner, for finding out they can fit her in next Wed! A two hour drive is so much more appealing than a 6.5 hour drive to Denver. Even though it can't wait until then, I will check them out in case I run into this problem again.

Thanks for the pronunciation tip. I'm still wondering if AL-guh-dohn-es is correct. I guess I'll soon find out!

I'll report back and let you all know how things turn out.

~A

[pathrunner]

I really hope everything works out. And if you ever need Brainerd as backup, I'm sure they will take you.

It's AL-guh-DOAN-es. But I think you knew that

Oh and I wanted to add that with the recent devastating fires in the local area (Sapello) they are trying to give locals priority since so many domestic and wildlife animals were deeply affected.

[Algiz]

Originally Posted by pathrunner

I really hope everything works out. And if you ever need Brainerd as backup, I'm sure they will take you.

It's AL-guh-DOAN-es. But I think you knew that

Oh and I wanted to add that with the recent devastating fires in the local area (Sapello) they are trying to give locals priority since so many domestic and wildlife animals were deeply affected.

Well, yesterday went pretty well, thank you!

Roadrunner ER in Algodones is quite good. I was pleased, impressed by the staff, especially the support staff. The vet was good, too, but I learned that in ABQ in contrast to what I encountered in Seattle, belly taps are done in regular vet offices, and ERs try to refer, as I experienced the day before at the three ERs in ABQ. Thus, the ER docs may not have a lot of experience doing this procedure. There are a couple of techniques for belly taps, and one seems to produce better results and is more comfortable than the other. I'm beginning to see that the more experienced vets choose the "other" technique, and I've seen this allows for a more comfortable tap for ALL involved. However, it does take longer, I'm looking forward to going to a vet in practice and see which technique s/he chooses.

Again, thanks for the Brainerd Animal Health Center suggestion. Having options give me peace of mind given this is an appt that is hard to schedule. It depends on stress levels and who knows what else how fast her belly fills, or not!

[pathrunner]

That is such good news, Algiz! and thanks for the explanation about this condition. It's something I'd never heard of.

I guess it wouldn't help to schedule an appointment with a vet knowing approximately how often and when this situation needs addressing? Like, if you called Brainerd and made an appointment for a month from now? Or a standing appointment every 3 weeks...or? I realize it's unpredictable.

I hope you can establish a relatinship with a more local vet, like the August 10 office. In any case, make a connection with Brainerd in case you need to travel to SAW-pay-oh.

So glad for your pup!

[Algiz]

Originally Posted by pathrunner

That is such good news, Algiz! and thanks for the explanation about this condition. It's something I'd never heard of.

I guess it wouldn't help to schedule an appointment with a vet knowing approximately how often and when this situation needs addressing? Like, if you called Brainerd and made an appointment for a month from now? Or a standing appointment every 3 weeks...or? I realize it's unpredictable.

I hope you can establish a relatinship with a more local vet, like the August 10 office. In any case, make a connection with Brainerd in case you need to travel to SAW-pay-oh.

So glad for your pup!

Thanks again! I sure wish we could schedule but depending a variety of factors, but namely stress, the times between taps varies a great deal. So far, it's varied between 1 week to 6 weeks. However, now that we've had it done 4 times under various conditions, I've come to know that when she remains relaxed during the tap, her belly doesn't fill as fast. So, my guess is when I do get established with a regular vet who chooses the easier on the dog technique and lets me be with her, we WILL be able to schedule belly tap appointments,

Thanks for your encouragement and on-the-ground help, pathrunner! And yes, Brainerd in SAW-pay-oh sounds like a good backup plan.

~A

[pathrunner]

so glad everything worked out.