The Follow-Up

I took Charlie to our vet in Helena, Dr. Brenda Culver, for a thorough follow-up eye exam this afternoon.  Typically our ophthalmologist, Dr. Bill Yakely in Spokane, wants to see his patients one week after the cataract surgery to assess how their eyes are doing.  In our case, given our distance from Spokane and Brenda's ophthalmology skills and diagnostic tools, she can do the exam for Dr. Yakely and then report back to him.

A couple of days ago he talked with Brenda about the complication he had with the capsular tension ring in Charlie's left eye, and he sent her a drawing explaining what to look for and how to determine whether it had migrated any further.

In the photo at top, Brenda is checking Charlie's eye pressures with her Tono-Pen while vet tech Jayme holds him.  His eye pressures were perfectly normal. 

In this next photo, Brenda is using her slit-lamp (an ophthalmic microscope) to examine his eyes and in particular, the location of the capsular tension ring in his left eye:

She found it was still in the same spot Dr. Yakely had indicated it should be, meaning it hasn't migrated any further.  That is good news, and means we won't need another round of surgery to re-set it.

We are very fortunate to have Brenda as our primary care vet for many reasons, but this was yet another example of why we feel that way:  She's the only veterinarian in Montana that could do this kind of exam on behalf of an ophthalmologist ... and that saved us another trip back to Spokane!

Finally, here's a close-up of a Beagle eye that can now see:

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Wow -- still No. 2!

Please keep voting for us every day in The Animal Rescue Site/PetFinder's Shelter Challenge.  Thanks to your votes, we won $3,000 for the animals in the previous contest and would like to repeat that win -- or do even better -- in this one!  Enter "Rolling Dog Ranch" and our state postal code, MT for Montana, and it will bring up our listing so you can cast your vote.  Thank you!

Comments

[boundforglory]

We're so happy for a very deserving Charlie!

Thank you to the animals exceptional vet staff...you guys rock us all around the world!

[Ev]

His eye looks so clear and healthy! Amazing.

[Linecoach]

Charlie
I feel for ya. I get the hebeGebe's when I get my eyes checked. Very Glad you are mending well. Be Strong,eat well and enjoy a dog's life on the Ranch.

[Amy]

I was wrong! It's $20,000, not $10,000 for the Grand Prize! Yaahoo!

[Amy]

I'm glad that Charlie is doing so well. I'm sure he doesn't mind being poked and prodded if it means he can see who is doing it now! Does he still have to wear his cone?
I just voted for the day and there is a new note that says previous winners of the grand prize can't win any of the top three prizes. Does that mean even if RDR stays in second place to Best Friends throughout the contest, you will win the grand prize?! Am I understanding this correctly? I sure hope so! Imagine what the Ranch could do with $10,000!

[ginger]

It's so great that Dr. Culver is nearby & can communicate with Dr. Yakely so you don't have to take Charlie all the way back to WSU for the check up. Better yet is the Ring is where it's supposed to be so no further surgery will be needed! Bravo! What a terrific team effort to everyone involved including you, Charlie~! Big hugs to all,
ginger, Tobias & Tlingit