The difficult surgery involved an exotic consultant surgeon, a vet keeping the goldfish under anaesthetic and a nurse monitoring their heart rates. The two operations cost the owner nearly $750, but she believes they were absolutely worth it. Star came into the Gordon family after a being won at the local fair for pocket change.
Star, was won at a fairground stall 12 years ago, had to get a blind, cancerous eye removed.
The operation was carried out on the six-inch fish at Inglis’ 24-hour hospital by exotic animals expert Brigitte Lord.
She said: “This is a highly specialist field, using anaesthetic on a goldfish carries a very high risk, and I'm delighted for the owner that everything went well and the owners are happy.”
“The financial value of a goldfish may be quite small but I think the fact that someone should have paid that much for an operation reflects the true value of the bond between pets and humans.”
During the operations, the vets used Doppler ultrasound equipment to listen through earphones to pulse sounds in order to evaluate Star's blood flow. To keep the fish asleep throughout the procedure it was syringed with oxygenated water with anaesthetic in it.
After the operation, Star was delicately held in a bucket of oxygenated water and, with its mouth kept open, was gently moved (mimicking the swimming action and allowing water to flow over the gills) for around eight minutes before it effectively came back to life. Nemo had more straightforward surgery to remove a lump on him too.
Star and Nemo are kept in Janie Gordon's home in Dollar, but are owned by her 21-year-old daughter Abby, a student in Glasgow.
“I know it seems like a lot of money to spend on an operation for a goldfish but what was the alternative? I think we've a social responsibility to look after our pets and I know my daughter would have been distraught if anything had happened to the goldfish.” said Janie.
Janie didn’t want Star to be lonely so had bought another fish in a pet shop after her daughter won him by throwing a ping-pong ball into a goldfish bowl. Both Star and his lifelong companion, Nemo, are now over their buddy surgery and happily reunited - holding pride of place in a tank in Janie's kitchen.
“Star is fine,” said Janie. “He’s swimming about happily and the vets have shown me how to give antibiotics too”.
“I probably couldn't have chosen a better vets. I'm not sure anyone else would have attempted it.” said Janie.
