Veterinary Teaching Hospital teams work together on dog's medical mystery

For veterinary student Paige Copenhaver, it was a moment she will never forget. On the operating table in front of her was an exposed beating heart, surrounded by dozens of medical professionals working to save one dog's life. 

This German shorthaired pointer's case would prove to be more than just a dramatic surgery — it would demonstrate why the teaching hospital model works.

The dog was Zia, an active hunting dog known for covering 30 miles a day alongside her owner, John Mixter, in pursuit of game birds across the country. From North Dakota to New Mexico, Zia worked alongside Mixter hunting birds. But now, she was still on the operating table at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, her future uncertain.

"You wouldn't have guessed she was about to undergo open chest surgery," said Copenhaver, of the veterinary college’s Class of 2025. "She ran through the halls, excited to see everybody. That's just who she is."

The medical detectives

"We're sort of a catch-all service," said Audrey Keebaugh, clinical assistant professor in small animal internal medicine. "A lot of the mysterious presentations end up with us." And Zia's case was mysterious.

The journey to this moment began months earlier when Mixter noticed subtle changes in his usually tireless companion. 

"She seemed off," Mixter said. "When my other dog came back, this one still wasn't herself. For a dog who usually runs for miles, just lying around in the yard wasn't normal."

Zia’s local veterinarian's X-rays showed concerning shadows around her heart, but the whole picture remained unclear.

Copenhaver joined the internal medicine team as its members began their investigation. 

"When I was on internal medicine, the people assigning cases knew that I was interested in really complicated things," she said. "And her case was definitely that." 

The team turned to advanced imaging. CT scans revealed two cavitated masses — one near the heart and another in the left lung. Sierrah Travis, a third-year internal medicine resident, used ultrasound-guided tissue sampling, but the results were inconclusive. 

"We tried to do the least invasive route possible to get a diagnosis," Keebaugh said. "But ultimately, we had to go to more invasive options."

When expertise meets innovation

The decision to operate wasn't taken lightly. Thoracic surgery carries significant risks, but the team needed answers. 

Otto Lanz, professor and an orthopedic surgeon who frequently works with complex cases, agreed to perform the surgery. Micha Simons, an associate professor who focuses on soft tissue surgeries, was also available to assist him — a collaboration that would prove crucial.

"There are a lot of important structures that you need to be careful working around," said Simons. “The mass had adhered to the pericardium [the protective sac around the heart], the diaphragm, and the right caudal lung lobe."

Copenhaver, who scrubbed in on the surgery to observe as a student, said it was an unforgettable experience. "In anatomy, you get to see the structures, but this dog was alive. ... Seeing the beating heart, seeing her lungs inflate, all of it was very cool." 

The surgery revealed a mass approximately 10-by-5 centimeters — remarkably large for a dog of Zia's size. The surgical team carefully separated the mass from the nearby vital organs, but the operation was just the beginning of Zia's recovery journey.

Post-surgery, Zia needed a blood transfusion to help her recover, highlighting another crucial capability of the teaching hospital — its in-house blood bank. 

"Having the ability to do blood transfusions is a very nice thing to have at our hospital," Travis said. "A lot of hospitals don't have it."

The final puzzle

The surgery was successful, but a crucial question remained: What exactly had the team removed? 

This is where pathology took center stage, shifting the challenge from surgical precision to diagnostic persistence. 

Tanya LeRoith, director of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital and a clinical professor in anatomic pathology, explained the complexity: "There are a lot of changes in the organs that can happen just as a result of a disease or health issues that do not resolve quickly or easily. A lot of times, that can mask what we're looking for. The body only has limited ways to respond to injury and a lot of things can create the same response."

The case proved so complex that the team took an unusual step: Sharing digital slides with pathologists across the country. Each expert brought a different perspective, and gradually a consensus emerged. 

The mass likely resulted from a migrating plant foreign body — a tiny seed or grass awn that had worked its way through tissue, creating an outsized response. It was a known hazard for hunting dogs working in tall grass.

A teaching hospital's advantage  

Throughout Zia's case, one factor proved crucial: the presence of all these specialties under one roof. 

"It's amazing," Keebaugh said. "Having radiology down the hall, having surgery down the hall. ... I get to have perspectives from people who are experts in their field, right there that I can talk with."

This collaboration directly benefited Zia's care. When Zia required a blood transfusion post-surgery, the hospital's in-house blood bank was immediately available. When the pathologists needed clinical context, they could walk down the hall to consult with internal medicine and the surgeons.

For students like Copenhaver, the case revealed how complex cases demand teamwork. "Watching internal medicine and surgery work together showed me how collaboration leads to success," she said. "These complicated procedures aren't as scary when you see how everyone works together to solve them."

Today, Zia is back to her energetic self, though the team maintains cautious optimism. 

"The future will tell the final story," Lanz said.