The streets can be tough.

The streets can be pretty rough for our pets, especially if they don't usually leave the house. For example, this is Papi, a little dog visiting DogLover Animal Hospital after behaving rather oddly. A day before coming, his adoptive parents noticed he seemed sad (a rare thing for him), they found a lump on his chest and then remembered he had recently gone out. He could have been ran over! Seeing him like this, they decided to bring him as soon as possible.

Upon physical examination, it was clear that Papi was having some serious trouble breathing. He had a couple of broken ribs, the movement in his chest was erratic, there was a subcutaneous emphysema and also a nasty bruise on his abdomen. What kind of adventures did he get into away from home?

We suggested hospitalizing Papi and running a couple of tests as soon as possible. The x-rays, for example, confirmed what was seen in the physical exam, but now we also discovered a pneumothorax and we knew exactly which ribs were fractured.

We were able to successfully perform a thoracentesis to help with the pneumothorax, draining it to prevent the lung from collapsing, but not being a candidate for surgery, Papi's prognosis wasn't exactly good. 4 hard days of hospitalization, pain management and a lot, but a lot of rest, Papi actually improved a lot.

His next X-ray showed no evidence of emphysema or pneumothorax, so we were able to send Papi home not long after. Today he is with his family, as if nothing had happened (asides for a slightly crooked rib).