Post-Biopsy (Punch/Tru-Cut) Care Instructions for Pets
What to Expect
After coming home from the clinic, your pet should be kept in a warm, dry, quiet and ideally indoor location in the 24 hours following discharge. They may still be a little bit drowsy after they go home with you. There may also be some irritability or incoordination during this initial 24-hour period immediately after the procedure.
The shaved area on your pet's front or back legs is the IV injection and/or IV catheter site. Some bruising to this area may be seen when they go home with you; however, if this persists beyond 72 hours, please give us a call at the clinic. You may also find that the underside of their paw may have been shaved - this allowed the placement of blood pressure monitoring equipment, so that we could monitor their progress under anaesthesia closely.
Biopsy Site Care
Your veterinarian or veterinary nurse will show you where your pet's biopsy site is. Some pets may have a light bandage applied over their biopsy wound after the procedure, and this is usually removed at home about 24-48 hours after the procedure. Your veterinarian or veterinary nurse will advise you when is an appropriate time to remove the bandage at home.
Some pets may also have sutures presenting on the biopsy site. It is helpful to count the number of stitches present when your pet first goes home with you, so that you will know if any goes missing before the wound is fully healed.
The biopsy site should be checked daily for swelling, discharge or loss of sutures. It is important that you keep your pet in a clean and dry environment so that the biopsy wound remains clean. Pets should not get bathed or allowed to get their wound wet in any way, until the biopsy site has fully healed and all the stitches have been removed. For cats - please only use shredded paper or non clumping litter in the litter tray to prevent the litter material from sticking to the wound.
It is also imperative that your pet is not allowed to lick at the biopsy site because this may lead to the wound splitting open before it is fully healed and/or wound infections and/or other more serious complications. If you notice your pet licking or chewing at the biopsy site, he/she will need to wear an Elizabethan collar to prevent this. E-collars may be purchased from our clinic reception. Ensure that pets are not allowed to roam outdoors without close supervision when they are wearing an E-collar, as this poses a choking hazard if it gets caught in a fence or branch.
Biopsy Results
The biopsy has been sent away to an external lab for histopathology. A veterinarian will contact you with the results as soon as they are back from the lab – this typically takes up to 10 working days. Please ensure that your contact details are up to date so that we have a number to reach you at. Based on the biopsy results, we will discuss whether further investigations and treatment are required.
Exercise Restriction
Unless otherwise directed by your veterinarian or veterinary nurse at the time of discharge, no change to your pet's exercise regime is required. However, we do recommend that dogs are toileted on a lead and only receive light lead exercise in the 24 hours following general anaesthesia or sedation. Cats should ideally remain indoors for 24 hours following anaesthesia or sedation.
If your pet has a bandage or sutures placed across their biopsy site, then they should avoid excessive physical activity until all bandages and sutures have been removed.
Diet
Unless otherwise directed by your veterinarian or veterinary nurse at the time of discharge, no significant change is usually required to your pet's diet following the procedure. A small portion of your pet's diet should be fed in the evening that they come home with you, and then resume feeding normal portions in the morning. It is not unusual for some loss of appetite to occur in the first 24 hours following discharge from our clinic; however, if this persists, please give us a call at the clinic on (06) 3588675.
Suture Removal
If your pet has sutures placed across their biopsy site, these are typically removed in 10-12 days' following the biopsy. Please phone for an appointment to book your pet in for suture removal.
Medications
Your pet would have received additional pain relief medications after the biopsy, and some pets may also have oral medications to go home with. Please administer all medications as directed on the label; ensure that pain relief medications and antibiotics are given with a meal.
Should you have any enquiries or further concerns about your pet's post-biopsy care, please do not hestitate to phone us at (06) 3588675 to discuss.