elongated soft palate

[quinnybear]

i dont really know much about this health issue. we were supposed to be getting our new pup this week. and today when she took pup in for physical, it was diagnosed with elongated soft palate. it is not one of the breeders pups as she didnt have any black masked fawns. she told me this is a genetic defect and the pup would require surgery. she has offered our deposit back or a pick of her litter. she has two females.both black faces. one heavy brindle and the other a fawn tiger brindle. they are two weeks old now so its hard to tell what they will look like. i am so heart broken and cried out. i had my heart set on a black masked fawn. i spent quite awhile talking to my vet today as i considered taking the pup and getting the surgery done, but she convinced me it could get quite expensive as they have to call in their specialist for that type of surgery. i have got the best advice and help from the people in this forum . i really dont know if i should just look elsewhere . :confused:

[franp]

Elongated soft pallate is a condition that is "common " to our breed.IMO it occurs more in males than females (this is MY observation).
There is too much tissue in the back of the throat, causing an obstruction; making breathing difficult and predisposing the dog to Aspirational Pneumonia.
Many times the Dr will also enlarge the Nares (nostrils) and remove the sacules(tonsils) when doing the surgery. There are several techniques; Laser, cautery. to same 2. Dr's have thier preference..

IN NO WAY DOES THIS REFLECT ON THE BREEDER.
that being said; this is a disqualifying event to show a dog. If this surgery is done a dog can not be shown and should not be bred.But as a dog matures, it does happen that this can come on later in life. Especially in the males with those BIG heads..I have heard of several males needing surgery at 3-5 years of age.

If the surgery is not done. the dog is at great risk for pneumonia and cardiac problems..

How do you tell if your dog has this?? If the dog throws up allot.. If the dog makes ALLOT of noise breathing. If the dog gets Aspirational pneumonia.

When you get your dog neutered/spayed ,have the dr check.The ONLY way to do a definitive diagnosis is under anesthetic.. And this is as good a time as any..

Quinnybear, the choice of Dr is vitally important. Again, a flat faced specialist is essential.. The surgery (from what I have seen) is not difficult)and recovery is a few days.

[franp]

Again, it is VITAL to go to a Vet who is very familiar with the breed.

There are Vets who feel that just because our dogs are bracephalic(sp) that they should be operated. NOT SO!There are many dogs that are great breathers..

This is not a routine surgery. Every surgery has risk.But what I really mean about not beeing "routine" is removal of dewclaws is "routine" Pallate trim/clip is NOT routine. If a vet says that a Frenchie should have it just because the dog is a Frenchie: RUN out of the office...

It scares the HELL out of me that I am hearing Vets do this..

[Martina]

Here's my two cents ...

As some of you may remember, Lola has recently begun exhibiting breathing problems on our walks as it has begun to warm up. Until this time, the vet has never considered her breathing to be problematic. We had our preliminary appt today and we are on the fence. Lola's palatte is indeed elongated, HOWEVER, her normal breathing is not bad and poses no problems for her. Unfortunately, during exercise and when it is warmer, she DOES exhibit breathing problems. My vet's advise was, IF we lived in Michigan (or someplace more northern) OR she was an inside pet then she should not have surgery. SINCE we live in an area that regularly gets above 100degrees in the summer, and she is very active - in play and on regular walks - she should have the surgery.

I have decided to have a palatte clip and he'll open up her nares for a quality of life issue. I want Lola to run and be as active as she wants to be (and she wants to be :D), without any fear or heart distress or other problems.

We LOVE our vet and feel very confident with him performing the operation ... BUT our vet does not feel confident performing the palatte clip. So, he has another surgeon he works with in these kinds of situations. The other surgeon will perform the palatte clip and our vet will be his attending - so he'll be in surgery with her. I am so grateful that we have such an honest, kind, and thoughful vet who is willing to say that he isn't comfortable doing the procedure, and knows someone who is, but that he'll still be there in surgery with her.

I do have to concur with everyone that ANY surgical procedure carries risk - no matter how 'common' or how many times a doctor has performed that procedure. You just don't know. All we can do is make informed decisions and get the best care we can afford.

QUINNYBEAR: I'd like to give some advise, but don't really know what to say. I can imagine how heartbreaking this is for you. First of all, I think that the fawn tiger brindles are gorgeous - drop dead gorgeous! Wildly wonderfully exotic and really uncommon.

HOWEVER, you do have your heart set on a BMF ...

Gigi had an anal prolapse at about 6mos that was awful. It was just about 6wks of minor prolapsing, in and out of emergency care, and two minor surgeries to try the least invasive procedures first. When it finally became apparent that this would be a long-standing problem and the only solution was major surgery, I was so frazzled that I asked the doctor if she would ever REALLY be cured or if, regardless of surgery, she would always suffer from this. The specialist was very surprised that I would be this pessimistic about the situation. While this is not a common problem, it is not an infrequent problem among animals (all cats & dogs). To her, this was an easily solved problem that, once Gigi had the surgery, she would be good to go and, if all went correctly, be "cured." This doctor had never had any complications from this procedure and didn't understand how traumatized I had become over the past several weeks and how I could think that I'd always have a sickly dog on my hands. Well, our regular vet sat down with me and very calmly explained the surgery, what it accomplished and why it would cure this problem - and that it would be cured forever.

I highly recommend taking a step back. Ask the breeder for a couple of days to think and calm down. Get an opinion for your regular vet and people you trust (like this board) - and do a bit of research. After a few days, you might decide that this is not the end of the world and that you still want the pup. I know that you've (obviously) been doing this, and I think the most important thing is to give your self time to let the shock wear off. It's a big decision.

Lola will have a palatte clip within the month, so I'm obviously one for surgery. Good luck!!

[cholbrook7]

I'm sorry to hear that ... :( but it might be the best decision if you look somewhere else ... b/c you could have problems down the road and that can get exspensive!

This message has been edited
Please refrain from promoting breeders here on this board

Roosje

[cholbrook7]

the site I posted above has some nice fawn blackmasked ;)

[franp]

Martina,

Just what you needed to hear; but Elongated soft pallate is a correctable problem!

Several people I know have had this surgery(thier dogs, not them :lol: ).
The first couple of days was tough, but not as bad as we thought. Soft boiled eggs and soft food. Before you know it, your girl will be fine.

The Nares surgery is NOTHING; well as nothing as a couple of stitches. The difference in the quality of life for the dogs is worth EVERY minute of the surgery and attendent worry..

Thankfully there is no heart or lung problem.And your Vet is honest and upfront.Soon it will be over and playtime will begin in earnest.
We will be worrying for and with you.

fran

[adora's mom]

Martina,

I'm sorry to hear about Lola! Poor girl. It's really great how your vet is treating you though. At least you have the peace of mind that he will be attending the surgery and is smart enough to know when to refer you to a specialist!

I'm sure Lola will be a very happy gal once it's all over and she can get plenty of oxygen to fuel her up for the Frenchie 500 she wants to run :)

You are both in my thoughts.

Take care!

[jboaa]

Hello, this is my first post. But this is something that I do know about. I have had 3 frenchies. My first 2 had to have both the nares, and the palate done. My vet told me (and I swear that he is nearly an authority on frenchies) that the only way that they can positively know if a dog needs a palate trim is under anesthetic. It has been my experience that yes, the palate trim is a near nothing to recover from. But with both of my dogs, the nares is what was harder for them to recover from. They both had to sleep with their head elevated for about 4 days, with lots of nasal drainage and difficulty breathing. DON'T BE ALARMED. My vet and I both feel it was a LOT harder for me to watch them recover than it was for them to do so. It was my vets opinion that it was a genetic thing. And it is common in frenchies. Both of these dogs were male. And my second one to have it done is absolutely healthy otherwise. Make sure your vet is familiar with the anesthetic they need, and how they need to be put under. My dogs had a laser to do all of the surgery with. It is a very nice tool indeed. Now my 3rd frenchie is a very healthy gal. And has a wonderful nose on her. Thank goodness! I hope that I gave you the good and the bad of this. I would 100% do it over again with both of my dogs. I could tell after the healing period that they were much more at ease with breathing and eating, etc..