Splenectomy for Treatment of Suppurative Splenitis caused by a Reticular Foreign Body in a Heifer

To report the clinical findings and treatment of a heifer with suppurative splenitis. Clinical report. A 30-month-old heifer. Splenectomy in the standing calf after local anesthesia and 13th rib resection. The heifer had an uneventful recovery but was culled because of septic tarsitis 3 months later. Splenectomy is a useful treatment for cattle with traumatic splenitis if diagnosed early. Partial splenectomy may have prevented the late complication of septic tarsitis. Suppurative splenitis is usually a complication of hardware disease and has a grave prognosis unless splenectomy is carried out.