The British Bulldog panted continuously and loudly inside his cage as I drove this six-month old to the surgery as fast as I could on the straight stretch of road of the Pan Island Expressway from Pasir Ris.  It would take at least fifteen minutes at the speed limit of 90 km/hour.  By that time, the Bulldog would have increased his body temperature to above the normal 39 degrees Celsius. He would die from heat stress if his rectal temperate peaked past 41 degrees. 

Round the road bend, a hand waved with palm downwards a few times from the right window of a white Alfa Romeo police patrol car parked at the road shoulder. A black Mercedes car in front of me in the middle of the 3-lane express way slowed down and the driver put out his right hand upright then decided to continue driving.

I slowed down and the police patrol car paced me and the young policeman waved me to stop at the road shoulder. This was a risky habit of policeman as there had been the occasional  people killed by other vehicles in such situations.

"You exceeded the speed limit by 28 km/hour," the young policeman said above the roar of the passing trucks. He showed me "118" in his speed trap reader above his car's dash board.  He whipped out his personal digital assistant, keyed in a few strokes and produced a thin piece of thermal paper saying: "The fine would be $150 and 6 demerit penalty points or you will be summoned to attend court."

Was it the black Mercedes who was speeding or was it me?  There was no means of verification and no point arguing. It was the word of the law enforcer against the ordinary man in court.  I accepted his slip of paper and drove away. 

At the surgery, the Bulldog opened his mouth wide and rolled out his bright pink tongue as he panted non-stop even though he was breathing the air conditioned air inside the surgery. Was he suffering from heat stress as May was one of the hottest month in Singapore? 

Canine breeders in Pasir Ris, so used to heat complained to me about the discomfort of the searing temperatures.  Uncontrolled panting would lead to a high body temperature and this brachycephalic breed, the type with short noses, would die if not treated promptly. 

Or was the Bulldog frightened as he was separated from the pet shop owner who loved him very much?  Some dogs do suffer from separation anxiety.

I increased the room temperature to 17 degrees Celsius.  His respiratory rate slowed by half.  It was better to operate on him now.  His cherry eye had grown bigger over the past months.

British bulldogs are seldom seen in almost all of Singapore's 140 pet shops and this puppy might be the only one in Singapore where over 80% of the population live in apartments. A British bulldog with a cherry eye was rarely seen in Singapore and I had asked the pet shop owner's permission to take a picture of the veterinary medical condition for pet education talks. 

The puppy would shift about as I kneeled to snap pictures of his cherry eye. The cherry eye (gland of the nictitans membrane)  is a tear gland that is found attached by a ligament at the base of the third eyelid.  When the ligament is lax, the cherry eye which produces 30-60% of the tears in the dog and cat prolapses and can be seen.  Excessive tearing (epiphora) and corneal ulcerations and eye infections from rubbing of the eyes do occur.

The third eyelid (nictitans membrane) protects the eye and cornea when there is injury or trauma by covering the whole eye immediately. It is found within the folds of the lower eyelid and is present in most domestic animals but not in people.

The pet shop owner  saw my difficulty in taking pictures obstructed by the bar of the stainless steel cage and said: "Why don't you take the dog out of the cage and go outside to get a better picture?" I had not thought of that.

He knew that breeds like cherry eyes are said to be hereditary in the British or English: "Why don't you take him back to the Surgery to remove his cherry eye?"

I said: "The recommended and more costly surgical procedure called Conjunctival Mucous Pocket  is to incise the conjunctiva,  place the gland inside and close the pocket with sutures. The other method is to tack down the glands with sutures. "

The pet owner found this too technical.  He could see that it was not easy to reposition such a large cherry eye and envisioned more veterinary costs. He said: "Remove it."

Now this gigantic puppy was ready for general anaesthesia and surgery. Bulldogs mature when they are over one year old. In any case, all puppies are anaesthetic risks as they may die during anaesthesia. That could be why the pet shop owner did not want an earlier operation.

This puppy with championship bloodlines and imported from Australia was selling for $4,000 and if he died on the operating table, it would be a great loss. 

No veterinary surgeon can guarantee that the puppy or any dog will not pass away due to heart or respiratory failure during general anaesthesia.  Some veterinary reports do not recommend general anaesthesia in puppies less than 12 weeks old.

I had not asked him nor suggested surgery as it sounded to me like touting to drum up business at pet shops and breeding establishments in a worsening economic climate caused by SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), the Iraqi war and stock market weakness.

Just yesterday, the newspaper reported that the minibus drivers "tout" actively by seeking tourists directly at the airport arrival halls while the approved limousine drivers who had to pay $7.00 per trip to the airport authorities and wait in a remote area were competitively disadvantaged.

In Singapore, touting carries a punishment of a $5,000 fine or a jail term of up to 6 months or both. Repeat offenders can be fined up to $10,000 and jailed for a year or both. 

What is touting in Singapore law? It is defined as soliciting another person persistently or in any manner so as to cause or be likely to cause annoyance to that person in any public place. 

The bulldog snored loudly under the general anaesthesia given in a face mask.  I wonder if he snores when he sleeps. I used a mask as the surgery would take less than  a minute. The preparation took twenty times longer.

There was no guarantee that this puppy would not have breathing problems or pant heavily in separation anxiety inside the Surgery.  While he was still drowsy, I sent him back to the pet shop, keeping an eye out for the traffic police.

P.S The British  or English Bulldog puppy  is available for sale as at June 2003,at a modern, new and bright air conditioned pet shop at Pasir Ris Farmway Two.

Copyright:   asiahomes.com
17 Jun 2003