Manual of Small Animal Soft Tissue Surgery, 3rd Edition

Karen Tobias, Cassie Lux 

ISBN: 9781394242795

Wiley-Blackwell

March 2026

656 pages

Description

Fully revised new edition of a highly practical guide for successful soft tissue surgery in dogs and cats

Manual of Small Animal Soft Tissue Surgery, Third Edition, provides tips and tricks that experienced veterinary surgeons use to make procedures easier, faster, and more successful, with clear, concise, step-by-step instructions on how to complete procedures commonly performed in a small animal practice. The book is meticulously illustrated with hundreds of high-quality color photographs and detailed line drawings.

Fully updated and revised, the Third Edition of this popular guide features expanded coverage of the latest ideas on, and approaches to, surgical techniques. Organized by procedure type, the book covers surgery of the skin, abdomen, digestive system, urogenital tract, thoracic cavity, and head and neck, as well as miscellaneous procedures. Each chapter includes an introduction and tips for preoperative management, surgery, and postoperative considerations.

The new edition of Manual of Small Animal Soft Tissue Surgery:

• Updates all literature reviews to provide the most recent data on complication rates and prognosis and the latest references

• Adds new procedures or new variations of procedures such as the Aberdeen knot, Mila E-Tube, and modified Seldinger technique for chest tube placement

• Discusses tension-relieving techniques, full-thickness mesh grafts, and caudal superficial epigastric axial pattern flaps

• Includes information on subcutaneous drain placement, traumatic body wall hernias, total ear canal ablation, bulla osteotomy, nasopharyngeal polyps, and auricular hematoma

The Third Edition of Manual of Small Animal Soft Tissue Surgery is an indispensable learning tool for veterinary students and new graduates and a refresher course for experienced practitioners. It belongs on the reference shelves of every general practitioner, especially those with an interest in surgery.

Table of Contents

Contributors x

Preface xi

SECTION 1 Surgery of the Skin

1 Open Wound Management 3

2 Subcutaneous Drains 12

3 Incisional Closure 25

4 Lumpectomy and Primary Closure 39

5 Tension-Relieving Techniques 50

6 Basic Flaps 58

7 Caudal Superficial Epigastric Axial Pattern Flap 67

8 Full-Thickness Mesh Grafts 72

9 Mastectomy 80

SECTION 2 Abdominal Procedures

10 Abdominal Incisions 93

11 Umbilical Hernia 105

12 Inguinal Hernia 109

13 Diaphragmatic Hernia 115

14 Traumatic Body Wall Hernia 123

15 Splenectomy 132

16 Abdominal Lymph Node Biopsy 138

17 Peritonitis 142

SECTION 3 Surgery of the Digestive System

18 Esophagostomy Tube Placement 151

19 Liver Biopsy 161

20 Partial Pancreatectomy 169

21 Gastrotomy 174

22 Gastrostomy Tube Placement 180

23 Incisional Gastropexy 187

24 Intestinal Biopsy 194

25 Enterotomy for Intestinal Foreign Body 201

26 Intestinal Resection and Anastomosis 208

27 Colopexy 216

28 Rectal Polyp Resection 220

SECTION 4 Surgery of the Reproductive Tract

29 Prepubertal Gonadectomy 227

30 Feline Castration 233

31 Canine Castration 239

32 Cryptorchid Castration 248

33 Prostatic Biopsy 254

34 Prostatic Omentalization 258

35 Ovariohysterectomy, Ovariectomy, and Hysterectomy 263

36 Cesarean Section 280

37 Pyometra 285

38 Episiotomy 290

39 Episioplasty 294

SECTION 5 Surgery of the Urinary Tract

40 Nephrectomy 303

41 Cystotomy and Cystectomy 307

42 Cystostomy Tube Placement 314

43 Urethrotomy in Dogs 320

44 Scrotal Urethrostomy in Dogs 326

45 Perineal Urethrostomy in Cats 331

46 Urethral Prolapse 341

47 Penile Amputation 347

SECTION 6 Perineal Procedures

48 Anal Sacculectomy 357

49 Perineal Hernia 366

50 Rectal Prolapse 378

51 Perianal Adenoma Resection 384

52 Tail Amputation 389

SECTION 7 Ear Surgery

53 Lateral Ear Canal Resection 399

54 Vertical Ear Canal Resection 406

55 Total Ear Canal Ablation and Lateral Bulla Osteotomy 413

56 Ventral Bulla Osteotomy 425

57 Auricular Hematoma 435

58 Pinnectomy 443

SECTION 8 Head and Neck Procedures

59 Stenotic Nares 453

60 Elongated Soft Palate 464

61 Nasopharyngeal Polyps in Cats 477

62 Oronasal Fistulas 482

63 Sialoceles 493

64 Partial Tongue Amputation 503

65 Mandibular and Medial Retropharyngeal Lymph Node Excision 508

66 Tracheostomy Tube Placement 514

67 Thyroidectomy 521

SECTION 9 Thoracic Procedures

68 Thoracostomy Tube Placement 533

69 Lateral Intercostal Thoracotomy 544

70 Lung Lobectomy 556

71 Pericardiectomy 564

SECTION 10 Limb and Digit Procedures

72 Forelimb Amputation 577

73 Rear Limb Amputation 584

74 Dewclaw Removal 593

75 Toe Amputation 598

SECTION 11 Ophthalmic Procedures

76 Enucleation 607

77 Prolapsed Gland of the Third Eyelid 614

78 Entropion Correction 621

79 Temporary Tarsorrhaphy 627

80 Eyelid Wedge Resection 630

Appendix A: Absorbable Suture Materials 635

Index 636

About the Author

Karen Tobias, DVM, MS, DACVS, is a Professor of Small Animal Surgery at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.

Cassie Lux, DVM, DACVS (SA), is an Associate Professor of Small Animal Surgery at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA.