THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Pet Owners whose dogs have kidney issues can breathe easy now. On Thursday, the state government’s Multi-Specialty Veterinary Hospital at Kudappanakunnu saw a new imported continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) hemodialysis machine making a trial run. It had 14-year-old Nirma, a golden retriever, as first patient on Thursday.
Animal Husbandry Minister J Chinchu Rani will launch the project on November 23. There has been a sharp increase in renal cases among pet dogs. On Thursday, 15 veterinarians from across the state witnessed the trial run. It cost Rs 15 lakh. Kerala State Veterinary Council Registrar Dr P Nagaraj told TNIE the department was planning to buy the machine for some time as it could help address the spurt in the number of renal cases among pet dogs.
“It was dialysis specialist Dr M Chandrasekhar, professor, department of veterinary clinical medicine, Veterinary College, Chennai, who did a demonstration at the Multi Specialty Hospital,” said Dr Nagaraj.
The trial run took 2-2.5 hours on Nirma who was having Pyometra, a condition where accumulation of pus in the uterine cavity had resulted in the enlargement of the uterus.
Multi-Specialty Veterinary Hospital assistant director Dr T Rajeev said: “There has been a steady increase of renal failures among pet dogs in the state due to tick fever and leptospirosis. Many pet owners shy away from providing treatment to their loved ones especially due to lack of dialysis facilities.” Cardiac diseases are increasing among pet dogs. It causes kidney failure in the second stage. The rate for hemodialysis has not been fixed yet. Materials for it alone will cost Rs 6,000, he said.