Wildlife Veterinary Surgery

My youngest kid performed her first full surgery this week. She made it through and the patient didn't die, so she's really on her way. Dr. Romain Pizzi is a renowned wildlife veterinary surgeon. He's the expert they called to fly around the world to do brain surgery on a bear. That type of surgery had never been done on a bear before, and he'd be working in Laos, a country that doesn't even have an MRI. It takes infinite planning, confidence, and a skilled hand to even try such a thing. This video tells the story of the bear surgery, plus the time that Pizzi removed an eye from a seal and the time he did an appendectomy on an orangutan. Each surgery presents unique challenges that you wouldn't encounter with a human, but Pizzi works them out. (via Digg)