A retired police dog who served in both Suffolk and Norfolk police forces is back to living the good life after successful treatment for a tumour of the large intestine.
Pablo, an 11-year-old cocker spaniel, was a highly-trained sniffer dog used to recover drugs, cash and weapons for the two police forces.
Sadly, a short time after leaving the line of duty, his new owners were given the news that Pablo had cancer of the colon and needed urgent veterinary care.
Pablo was referred to Linnaeus-owned Dick White Referrals in Cambridgeshire for specialist care with small animal surgeon Rachel Hattersley taking charge of the case.
Ms Hattersley said: "Pablo had blood tests and an ultrasound scan which revealed an abnormal growth of cells in the outer wall of his colon.
“An exploratory abdominal surgery confirmed the mass to be well encapsulated and we were able to peel it away from the surrounding tissues without the need to remove a full-thickness section of the intestine.
“Often cancers of the colon are more aggressive and usually we would have had to perform a much more invasive surgery to remove them so it was very fortunate that this was the outcome for Pablo.”
The former police dog's operation was paid for by The Thin Blue Paw, a national charity supporting serving and retired police dogs from across the United Kingdom.
Pablo's owner George Laflin said he was "devastated" when his beloved dog initially got his diagnosis.
He added: "We were really concerned due to Pablo's age and the associated risks that come with any type of surgery but we felt that we needed to give him a chance.
“The vets at Dick White Referrals were brilliant, though, and explained everything to us in great detail and answered the numerous questions we had both pre-and post-operation.
“We’d thoroughly recommend them.
"We only have good things to say and, having spoken to a number of people regarding Pablo’s operation, they all spoke highly of Dick Whites too, including our local vets.
“We’re also very grateful to Keiran Stanbridge from the Thin Blue Paw Foundation, the charity that funded Pablo’s operation.
"It’s a fantastic charity that helps care for both serving and retired police dogs all over the UK.”
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