Surgical Services

Soft tissue surgery encompasses a broad spectrum of procedures involving the body's organs and structures beyond bone. Carolina brings specialist expertise across the following clinical areas:

Gastrointestinal

Intestinal resection and anastomosis, gastric dilation-volvulus (GDV) correction, enterotomy for foreign body removal, intestinal biopsies, and colonic surgery. Prophylactic and therapeutic gastropexy is also offered laparoscopically where appropriate.

Hepatic & Splenic

Hepatic lobectomy, liver biopsy (open and laparoscopic), porto-systemic shunt attenuation, splenectomy and splenic mass resection.

Urogenital

Cystotomy, urethrostomy, nephrectomy, ureter reimplantation, ovariohysterectomy and ovariectomy (open and laparoscopic), pyometra management and reproductive tract neoplasia.

Oncological

Resection of cutaneous and subcutaneous masses, body wall reconstruction, regional lymph node dissection, adrenalectomy and intestinal tumour resection with clear margin planning.

Thoracic surgery demands meticulous technique and careful perioperative management. Carolina has specific training in thoracic access and intrathoracic procedures and works closely with your anaesthesia team to ensure the safest possible environment for chest cases.

Pulmonary

Lung lobectomy for neoplasia, bullous emphysema, abscess and consolidation; partial lobectomy; pulmonary biopsy via thoracoscopy or lateral thoracotomy.

Cardiac & Pericardial

Pericardectomy (subtotal and pericardiectomy) for chronic pericardial effusion, right atrial mass resection, and pericardial biopsy. Performed via lateral thoracotomy or thoracoscopic approach.

Chest Wall & Pleural Disease

Rib resection and reconstruction for primary chest wall neoplasia, management of chylothorax (thoracic duct ligation with or without pericardectomy), pyothorax debridement and drainage, and diaphragmatic hernia repair.

Laparoscopy offers significant advantages over open surgery for many elective and semi-urgent abdominal procedures: smaller incisions, reduced post-operative pain, faster return to normal activity and lower infection risk. Carolina strongly advocates a laparoscopic-first approach where patient selection allows.

Reproductive & Urological

Laparoscopic ovariectomy and ovariohysterectomy using single or multi-port technique; cryptorchid castration for inguinal and abdominal retained testes in both dogs and cats.

Gastrointestinal & Hepatic

Prophylactic and therapeutic laparoscopic gastropexy; laparoscopic-assisted intestinal biopsy; liver biopsy (punch, cup and laparoscopic-assisted wedge); cholecystocentesis.

Diagnostic Laparoscopy

Staging laparoscopy for suspected intra-abdominal neoplasia; visualisation and biopsy of the adrenal glands, kidneys, mesenteric lymph nodes and peritoneal surfaces where CT-guided biopsy is not appropriate.

Endoscopy provides invaluable diagnostic information and enables interventional procedures with no surgical incision. Carolina performs a full suite of flexible and rigid endoscopic techniques in both dogs and cats.

Upper Gastrointestinal

Oesophagoscopy, gastroscopy and duodenoscopy for diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease, neoplasia, ulceration and stricture; gastric and intestinal biopsies; balloon dilation of oesophageal strictures.

Respiratory

Bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage for infectious, inflammatory and neoplastic respiratory disease; rhinoscopy for nasal discharge, epistaxis and nasal mass assessment; nasal biopsy.

Lower Urinary Tract

Cystoscopy in female dogs and cats for urolith assessment, polyp resection, ectopic ureter diagnosis and urethral lesion biopsy.

Foreign Body Retrieval

Endoscopic retrieval of oesophageal and gastric foreign bodies, avoiding the need for open surgery in suitable cases — including sharp items, bones, toys and linear foreign bodies when not yet obstructing the intestine.