One morning, when our caregivers went to give one of our newest residents, Mrs. Wilkin, her breakfast, they were concerned to find her looking somewhat disoriented. It appeared that, from one day to the next, she had suffered a significant reduction in her vision and was struggling to move around her enclosure without bumping into things.
This sudden change in her sight could have been down to a number of things. The worst-case scenario was that it could be either a neurological issue, which signaled something serious happening within her brain or a manifestation of an undiagnosed condition, such as diabetes, which could trigger vision impairment. The best-case scenario was that she had scratched or otherwise injured her eye and the reduced vision was simply temporary. What we could not explain was, if it were an injury, why she appeared to have lost sight in both eyes. Whichever of the outcomes, we had to try to find the underlying cause of it so we could work out the best way to help her.
Sedating a monkey to bring them into the clinic is not something that we do lightly, and particularly with monkeys like Mrs. Wilkin who is of advanced age and has a number of different health problems. However, given the potential for this to indicate a serious health issue, we took the decision to bring her into our clinic and check her over. This was also going to give our staff veterinarian, Dr. Johnson, the chance to check out some growths on her chest that we were concerned may be malignant.
Mrs. Wilkin was sedated and brought into the clinic, where Dr. Johnson was able to get a good look at her eyes. Our questions were answered as soon Dr. Johnson got to work. Mrs. Wilkin had, indeed, suffered minor scratches to the cornea of one eye and the reason that she appeared so disoriented was that she had a large cataract in the other eye so the one she had injured was her only properly functioning eye. We were relieved that the damage was neither serious, nor anything permanent and, indeed, Mrs. Wilkin’s vision returned to normal within just a day or so of having some healing antibiotic ointment applied while she was in the clinic.
While on the table, Dr. Johnson took the chance to take a sample of the growth on Mrs. Wilkin’s chest and examined the cells under the microscope. Without further testing, no diagnosis could be carried out there and then but Dr. Johnson saw some cells that looked abnormal and took the decision to excise the growth to be on the safe side. Unfortunately, due to Mrs. Wilkins’ various deformed bones and curved spine, when she was turned on her back to begin the excision, her breathing became labored and it was decided it was in her best interests to bring her round rather than continue with the excision. As she had already been under sedation for some time at that point, this was deemed the safest option for her and Dr. Johnson elected to send off the cells for formal diagnostic testing and, if it was confirmed that they were malignant, bring Mrs. Wilkin back in to carry out a swift removal at a later date.
After a swift recovery from sedation and overnight monitoring, Mrs. Wilkin was let back out into her enclosure with her best friend, Ana, who was delighted to see her home safe and sound. We now await the results of Mrs. Wilkin’s cytology tests to see if we need to bring her in again to carry out further procedures. In the meantime, the sweet elderly monkey is certainly no worse for wear for her experience and is back to her feisty, determined self.
We look forward to updating you further as her story progresses.
You can help provide ongoing medical care for Mrs. Wilkin by adopting her! Click here to learn more.
For the Monkeys,
Liz
