Bruno came to us in the spring of 2023 as a 1 year old rescue dog. He was found injured as a stray in Manitoba and made his way to Ontario thanks to a volunteer organization we work with called “Mutt’s Dog Rescue”. Shortly after his arrival to Ontario, Bruno’s fosters noticed that he started to have blood passing in his urine. At first, it seemed like he had a urinary tract infection. However, suspicions were raised when his symptoms didn’t fully resolve with appropriate antibiotic therapy.
An ultrasound was performed on Bruno’s bladder to look for the next most common cause of bloody urine (hematuria) – bladder stones. The ultrasound revealed no abnormalities in Bruno’s bladder. Dr. Jankovics was determined to figure out what was wrong with poor Bruno. As she continued to ultrasound his abdomen, she recalled a strange and uncommon parasite that can cause this issue in dogs – a parasite that comes from eating encysted larvae in raw fish – and poor Bruno had been out scavenging in Manitoba as one means of survival.
Dr. Jankovics placed the ultrasound on Bruno’s right kidney, the most common home for this parasite. Sure enough, what we saw was unequivocal – Bruno’s right kidney had been taken over by the Giant Kidney Worm (Dioctophyme renale). What we saw were multiple loops of this very long worm inside the sack of what was once a healthy kidney – but now essentially destroyed by this worm. Because of this destruction, blood was passing from the inside of the kidney and into the bladder, making his urine pink when Bruno went to the bathroom.
Bruno was promptly booked in for a nephrectomy (kidney removal) by our Southdown Animal Clinic Surgical Team to save his life. Un-treated, Giant Kidney Worms cause pain and can eventually escape the kidney and cause major internal damage. Thankfully, we confirmed with bloodwork that Bruno’s other kidney was working well and Bruno would be able to lead a bright and healthy life with only one kidney.
After successful removal of the destroyed kidney, Bruno’s kidney was opened to expose the worm – which measured in at 70 cm long. They aren’t named Giant Kidney Worm for no reason! Bruno made an incredible recovery and was adopted by a loving family.
We at Southdown Animal Clinic are so grateful to work with such a dedicated, caring rescue group who always strives for the best outcome for all the dogs they rescue - and letting us be the medical team for pets in need like Bruno!
