Sausage dog suffering painful tumours has 'entire skin removed from chest' in radical Wakefield surgery

Lily, a 12-year-old dachshund, suffered with wart-like legions on her chest, abdomen and forelimbs which had been caused by viruses and were giving her great pain as they became more and more serious.

But thanks to a series of operations at Wakefield's Paragon Veterinary Referrals, she is now on the road to recovery. The practice decided that the best course of treatment for the poorly dog was to remove all of the chest papillomas en-masse, which transformed Lily into "a different dog altogether" according to grateful owner Avril Boyle, who lives near York.

She said: “Lily had the most excellent care possible and she is back to barking and bouncing around and eating us out of house and home given half the chance. Her surgeon, David, even phoned me twice a day, morning and evening, to give me updates.

"The team at Paragon has been excellent. The round trip is 60 miles but I would do a 200-mile trip to them if I needed to.”

David Barker, the practice's soft tissue surgeon, said: “In the largest operation, the entire skin from Lily’s chest and inner forelimb was removed, requiring multiple skin flaps to close the incisions. The surgery was complex to achieve a clear margin and she has returned to Paragon for two further surgeries for removal of new and growing masses.

“It’s fantastic to see she is now making a good recovery and that her owners are so delighted with the outcome.”