In 2005, Saba underwent 3 surgeries on her right eye. Here are photos of the state of the art procedure performed by Doctors Cindy Mar and Doug Esson of Eye Care for Animals and Doctors Scott Weldy and Kristie Fisher of Serrano Animal & Bird Hospital. Saba received a corneal transplant and we are happy to report great success.
The after surgery care for Saba was intense. Every hour from dawn to dusk for 1 month, volunteers applied eye drops to Saba's eye. It was truly an amazing demonstration of Saba's trust in her caregivers that she willingly approached the edge of her enclosure, and allowed us to squirt the drops into her eye. When she roared in protest, we shot a turkey baster of warm chicken broth into her mouth as a reward and a thank you for her cooperation.
Very often, after her eye drops, Saba would retreat to her house and be reluctant to eat. She needed to eat in order to get her pain medication and yet she didn't like to eat because she was in pain. It was a difficult cycle that we had to manage. To entice her to eat, we rigged a spoon on the end of a long metal pole. Stretching the pole into her house and using beef and chicken baby food, we enticed her to eat to get her meds. Gradually she began to eat meatballs from the spoon and eventually she regained her appetite.
Thanks to all who assisted from both hospitals, along with Animazonia volunteers who assisted with the surgeries and the volunteers who persevered with the large task of her after-care. It was truly a heartwarming experience for all who participated in the miracle of saving Saba's sight.
