i had to hsve my older bitch emergency spayed july 2007 due to her having servere pyometra.
she is a large breed dog, with lots of fur!!!
she had a very long cut where they did the op, that went right up to the bottom of her rib cage. she recovered well.
anyhow, she went to the groomers over the weekend and they phoned me to tell me that they had found a stitch closed to her chest, which they asked if they could remove, and had she had any ops recently, the answer was no she has had no ops since her spaying, and yes to remove the stitch!
my groomer feels that i should complain to my vets about the stitch that has been left for over a year, as this could have caused infection?
my groomer has kept the stitch that she took out for me to take to the vets tomorrow when i go with my other btich.

has this happened to anyone else?

The abdomen is closed in layers.  This may have been a suture from the lower layer that had worked its way to the surface.  Even if it was a surface suture I think the missing of it in a hairy animal that don't always lie perfectly still is rather forgivable after all it has caused no harm in over a year and could have been easily removed at any point if it had irritated the skin.

A vet should know how many stitches go in and how many come out. I'd be narked off if this were my dog.

No, vets don't count stitches in and out. Many surface stitches have already fallen out by the time the rest are removed, so there's no point. And if it's an internal stitch that's worked its way out, he wouldn't have been going to remove it anyway. In a hairy dog it's easy to overlook stitches, and they're highly unlikely to do any harm.

No it hasn't happened to me but I'd never complain to my vet if it had. It must have been hard to find if both you and your groomer haven't noticed it for over a year.

I check wounds as they heal before and after stitches come out and I'd have noticed and took it out myself. I suspect I might be unusual  :-)  I do check more than everyone else I know and I'm lucky to have reasonably short coated dogs.

I wouldnt worry too much about it.. it happens with humans too ;-)   after an op I had, a few years ago.. many internal stitches, plus external... after a few months I saw a blackish mark just below the surface of skin... it was one of the deeper internal stitches working its way to freedom ...

With the majority here, no harm done or likely to have been so I would forget it. Vets or nurses would not count the stitches applied and it was probably a different Vet or Nurse that removed them so they would not know the number, probably the were keen to remove them as quick as possible so as not to distress the bitch unduly.

My vet obviously works differently to yours then

What does your vet do about lost sutures?

> My vet obviously works differently to yours then

Could you be more explicit Fred's Mum, what you say means nothing unless we know who your talking to and how your vet works.

I don't think it's a big deal, but I would keep an eye on the area for a few months to check or infections. Not a doggy experience, but a human one - a few months after a hernia op I found a stray stitch that had escaped attention. Didn't cause any major problems, but I did have minor surface infections and irritation.

You may want to mention it to your vet, just to see what they have to say, but I wouldn't go in with guns blazing.

Don't think it is that unusual at all to find a stich or part of one left after you think they have been removed, have found them both in my animals and in myself. Would not expect an infection after a year as the skin would have healed but never hurts to keep a close eye on your dogs anyway.

I had an operation and an internal stitch worked it's way to the surface. Local nurse snipped it out - no harm done. I'm sure doctors and vets take out all they possibly can.

I dont think the stitch would cause any problems after a year, if its been there all that time, and has'nt caused any irritation, I would just leave, unfortunately, nobody's perfect!!
Alongs your bitch is fit, healthly and beinh spayed, thats the main thing.

Thanks for all your replies.
Like you say it has not caused any harm for over a year, and at the moment I think I have enough on my plate (ref my other thread) to be complaining about this at this time, my girl is a happy healthy girl and is enjoying life so thats a blessing. :) xx