2014 - 83 (2)

Excepting a few standard books on horses and horsemanship, no veterinary manuals were publishedbefore 1750 (cf. part 1 of this study by Bols and De porte (2014). This might not be surprising since noformal veterinary education was organized until the second half of the 18th century. In this second part,published information available to the students of the first veterinary school (Lyon, 1761) is described.In 1750, Bourgelat, founder of this school, published one of the first veterinary handbooks in modernhistory ‘Elemens d’Hippiatrique’ (1750-51-53), and his future opponent, Phillippe Etienne Lafosse,delighted the veterinary world with the publication of several outstanding books, among which hisfamous ‘Cours d’Hippiatrique’ (1772). As from then, veterinary medicine was no longer solely basedon empiricism, but gradually evolved to what might be called evidence-based medicine. Furthermore,the interest in species other than the horse emerged and increased. However, the hegemony of the horselasted until well beyond the 19th century. All this needs to be seen against the background of gradual butvery important social changes that ultimately led to the French Revolution. This turning point markedan explosion of knowledge of good farming practices in general and of the establishment of formalveterinary training more specifically.

A 10-year-old French Bulldog was presented for acute vomiting. Ultrasonography andcomputed tomography of the abdomen revealed a well-delineated mass encircling the celiacartery, close to its emergence from the aorta. Surgery permitted complete excision of the mass.Histopathology combined with immunohistochemistry yielded the diagnosis of paraganglioma.

A 12-year-old English Cocker spaniel was referred because of front leg lameness due to a mass onthe right cranioventral thoracic wall. Radiographic examination showed that the limited external masshad a large intrathoracic component. The patient was staged, and based on the results of computedtomography, surgery was planned and the tumor was removed en bloc. An osteosarcoma with metastasisin the regional lymph nodes was diagnosed on histopathology. Consequently, chemotherapy wasinstituted. The disease-free period lasted four months, after which respiratory discomfort developeddue to pulmonary metastases. The dog was euthanized five months after surgery.This case illustrates that a sufficiently aggressive, multimodal treatment may prolong life expectancyin case of an advanced, malignant tumor.

In this case series, the development and successful treatment of pulmonary edema aredescribed in two obese animals (a horse and a dog) in the postoperative period. This rare butsevere complication is normally fairly easy to diagnose, but the cause is usually multifactorialand difficult to determine. Potentially contributing factors are discussed. Both animals respondedsuccessfully to therapy and were discharged without further incidents.    

In this case report, the diagnosis and ultrasound-guided retrieval of an intravaginal grassawn in a dog and a cat are described. The dog was presented with chronic vaginal discharge forover two years. The cat was presented for acute lethargy and bloody vaginal discharge and atwo-week history of a perivulvar leakage. Ultrasonographic diagnosis included the visualizationof a linear, hyperechoic and spindle-shaped structure and mild thickness of the vagina. The grassawns were successfully retrieved non-invasively, under general anesthesia using ultrasoundguidedHartmann forceps inserted into the vagina. Ultrasound-guided grass awn retrieval fromthe vagina appears to be a safe and inexpensive procedure.