We have become one of only a few practices in the UK to offer laparoscopy.

Practice owner, Steven Hancox, obtained a further qualification in surgery in 2002. During studies for this examination, he developed an interest in minimally invasive surgery (MIS). When applied to the abdomen, this is known as laparoscopy. It involves putting a fine camera and instruments and operating whilst viewing the procedure on a TV monitor.

This technique is now widely used in human surgery because patients feel less discomfort compared with traditional surgery ... if you were given a choice between a few very small wounds or one big one, which one would you choose?

It can be used for a whole range of procedures including:

• exploratory surgery
• biopsies
• securing the stomach to the body wall in breeds that are prone to GDV (gastric dilatation and volvulus), known as laparoscopic gastropexy
• removal of testicles that have not descended into the scrotum and are trapped within the abdomen - called cryptorchidism. When this condition is treated laparoscopically, the undescended testicle can be found much more easily.
• one of the most exciting aspects of this type of surgery is that it can also be used for spaying female dogs. We are now offering this service to clients at a small extra cost above our normal spay fee.

All these procedures can be carried out through 1-3 small incisions, reducing greatly the discomfort of the procedure and also the time taken to get back to a normal routine. As we can ourselves appreciate, small wounds hurt less than big ones!