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As the largest RSPCA Branch Clinic in the country, an integral part of our work is to provide an essential veterinary service to thousands of lost, sick and injured stray animals and subsidised veterinary treatment for the pets of people on a low income, preventing unnecessary suffering.
The Clinic also operates 24hours a day, 365 days a year, ensuring that help will always be available for any animal that is in need of emergency medical care. We are very proud of the work we do at the Clinic and hope that you agree
As one of the many services provided by our own “Animal Hospital”, the Intensive Care Unit plays a vital role in the treatment and care of seriously ill and injured animals. It provides a warm, quiet and less stressful environment, with specialist equipment such as incubators, piped oxygen, two heated kennels and infusion pumps.
From stray animals involved in Road Traffic Collisions (RTC’s); those with urinary tract disease, respiratory disease or diabetes; nervous & stressed animals such as feral cats, birds of prey etc; nursing mothers recuperating from caesarian sections and of course animals recovering from serious operations; all rely on the therapy received in our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) to survive.
As the economic downturn takes its toll on the finances of pet owners, our client base is increasing and the ICU is being put to greater and greater use, placing a massive strain on the resources available. The specialist treatment received in an ICU is very costly. While other forms of veterinary care may be within their means, when an animal is in need of intensive care, this can be too much for owners who would struggle to afford this expensive treatment. We are therefore seeing a dramatic increase in the need for this type of care as more people are turning to us for help.
In addition to this there has been an increase in the number of stray animals in Bristol, leading to more ill and injured strays being brought to us for emergency treatment. One such stray cat was Penny. She was brought into the Clinic for critical care having been involved in a RTC. Her jaw had been fractured and she had a prolapsed eye (the eyeball had popped out). She required serious treatment to repair her jaw and was then transferred to ICU where we fit a feeding tube (she had to be fed several times a day) and administered frequent and strong pain relief. She required constant, close monitoring. Sadly we could not save the eye and it had to be removed which meant she underwent a second anesthetic. Following that operation she was back in ICU with intravenous fluids and further close monitoring. Her stay in ICU lasted for 6 days. As she was a stray cat, the branch bore the burden for the entire cost of her care. This intensive hospitalisation would have cost £1,600 in a private practice. Thankfully Penny has made a full recovery and is now at the Dogs Home, waiting to start a new life.
The need for our ICU is clear. The unit is very rarely empty with an average of 5 animals using the facilities at any one time. Due to the growing demand for our services, these facilities are being put under greater pressure every day and we are struggling to provide the care these animals desperately need. We are therefore launching our Intensive Care Appeal to help fund additional equipment that will enable us to give the best possible care to these highest risk and seriously ill patients, giving them the greatest chance for survival.
With your help we can provide…
• We currently have just 2 Infusion pumps. These are very important for administering Intravenous fluids and to ensure the patient receives the correct volume of fluid at the correct rate. The machine has a warning alarm to alert staff to blockages, air in the system and when the bag is low and needs replacing. It also ensures that blood does not clot at the entry site so that fluid is able to enter the animals system. With only 2 pumps and commonly more than 2 animals requiring one, we are forced to prioritise which animals are the most in need and vulnerable. We then have to monitor the others more closely which takes more staffing time which in turn removes staff from being available to help other animals in need. One infusion pump would cost us £800.
• Infusion warmers keep the intravenous fluid warm before entering the animal. We currently do not have any infusion warmers. While we do warm the bags initially, they loose their heat rapidly as they are being administered. This does not help to keep the animal warm. An infusion warmer would set us back £200
• Vet Bed is a specialist bedding material that draws body fluid away from the animal to keep it warm and comfortable, especially important for immobile animals. This thick and warm bedding would cost approximately £16 to cover the smallest kennel.
• We currently only have Intravenous stands that are floor standing. The ICU is small with little floor space. Staff have to keep moving the stands which is both noisy and distressing for the animals and hazardous to the staff (especially if carrying an animal). We would ideally like the type which actually attaches to the kennel but these cost £100.
• There are many other smaller, yet vital items used in ICU such as digital thermometers (which work more quickly which is preferable for distressed animals), heat pads, medical feeding tubes (£10), urinary catheters (£16) and chest drains which remove fluid or air in the chest cavity (£20).
Every penny really does count and by contributing to the Intensive Care Appeal you can help us to continue our important work, providing life saving care to the most vulnerable of animals, giving them the chance for a brighter future.
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So please dig deep and donate now - and you can help make the difference between life and death.
