Removal of 1.5 kg tumour from street dog in two-hour surgery

A street dog in Kalyan, Thane underwent a successful two-hour surgery to remove a 1.5 kg tumour from its back. The operation was conducted by volunteers from PAWs.

Thane: A seven-year-old street dog in Kalyan underwent a successful and risky two-hour surgery to remove a one-and-a-half kg tumour from its back. The operation was conducted by volunteers from PAWs, a local animal welfare organisation. The dog, stable post-surgery, was rescued after a distress call, and the tumour’s weight shocked the volunteers.

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PAWs, dedicated to animal welfare and wildlife rehabilitation in the Kalyan-Dombivli to Badlapur area of ​​Thane district, responded to a distress call about the dog. Volunteers Devendra Nilakhe and Jayashree rescued the canine from Rambaug in Kalyan. The 8-year-old dog was immediately admitted to the Animal Hospital in Murbad, the only hospital in Thane district treating strays.

One of the PAW members, who has also assisted with the surgery, Nilesh, said, “ We all were shocked after seeing the weight of the tumour on the dog’s back. Everyday we conduct surgeries on different animals but this was the tough one. The dog was immediately admitted to the Animal Hospital at Murbad. Murbad’s Animal Hospital is the only hospital in the entire Thane district that treats strays and native dogs.”

The dog received gas anaesthesia from Pune, and doctors, initially concerned about potential attachments to internal organs, successfully removed the tumour. Trustee Anuradha Ramaswamy said, “Although no organisation has the immediate availability to perform such a large and serious surgery, the organisation took the initiative and successfully performed this surgery. For this surgery, Dr Vinay Bhagat specially came and met Dr Poz. With the help of Prajwal Bharti, Dr Pradeep Shangare, and Righa Parameswaran, they saved the dog by doing surgery for about two hours.”