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Goldfish receives rare surgery to save eyesight
Pictured: Dorothy (Dotty) the goldfish.

The surgery took place at McDonald Vets in Glasgow.

The sight of a beloved 12 year old goldfish named Dotty has been saved after a team of veterinary professionals from Glasgow operated to remove a tumour from her eye, as reported by Scottish news outlet STV.

Dotty's owner, a veterinary nurse named Caroline McHugh, became concerned for her pet after noticing a large red growth covering Dotty's eye and took the goldfish to McDonald Vets in Glasgow, where she works. 

The veterinary team operated on Dotty, in the first operation of its kind to be carried out at the practice. After adding anaesthetic powder to Dotty's tank, the team began to work on her.

Dotty's gills were kept hydrated by squirting her with a syringe filled with water, whilst veterinary surgeon Lee Shrigley cut around the eye and tied off the blood vessels.

As reported by STV, veterinary surgeon Lee Shrigley commented: “The biggest challenge was getting Dotty to sleep, but once she was the surgery went very smoothly.

“We added an anaesthetic powder to Dotty’s tank to make her sleepy, before laying her on a table and periodically soaking her gills to keep her hydrated.

“The tumour itself was fairly big, so we used the smallest kit that we have to cut around the eye and tie off the blood vessels.

“The tumour was pulling on Dotty’s optic nerve and would have been uncomfortable for her.

“We had to be careful not to pull on it any more as it could have caused her to go blind in her other eye.

“We put her back in her own tank water after the operation and she woke up within five minutes.

“Three days after the operation, she was back to eating and causing trouble in her aquarium.”

 

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Reporting service for dead wild birds updated

News Story 1
 The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has updated its online reporting service for dead wild birds.

The new version allows those reporting a dead bird to drop a pin on a map when reporting the location. It also includes a wider range of wild bird species groups to select from when describing the bird.

The online service, which helps APHA to monitor the spread of diseases such as avian influenza, can be accessed here. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
NI chief vet urges bluetongue vigilance

Northern Ireland's chief veterinary officer (CVO) has urged farmers to be vigilant for signs of bluetongue, after the Animal and Plant Health Agency warned there was a very high probability of further cases in Great Britain.

There have been 126 confirmed cases of bluetongue virus serotype 3 in England since November 2023, with no cases reported in Northern Ireland. The movement of live ruminants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland is currently suspended.

According to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), the virus is most likely to enter Northern Ireland through infected animals or germplasm (semen or ova) being imported.

Brian Dooher, Northern Ireland's CVO, said: "Surveillance for this disease within Northern Ireland has been increased to assist with detection at the earliest opportunity which will facilitate more effective control measures."

Farmers should report any suspicions of the disease to their private veterinary practitioner, the DAERA Helpline on 0300 200 7840 or their local DAERA Direct Veterinary Office.