This golden hamster, called "Siu Kwai" (小葵), developed a large abdominal abscess and a cyst on her liver. The recommended treatment was the surgical removal of the abscess and the drainage of the cyst. 

The surgery was rather challenging because of the multiple adhesions between the abscess, the body wall, and the abdominal organs. We had to be extremely careful not to rupture the abscess because Siu Kwai would easily develop fatal peritonitis if the pus leaked into her abdomen. Therefore, we only used micro-forceps and cotton-tipped applicators to break down the adhesions and avoided using scissors or other sharp instruments. The cotton-tipped applicators are extremely useful when gently manipulating delicate tissue during microsurgery. Depending on how moist the tip of the applicator is, they provide a different level of traction. 

It took 40 minutes, but we managed to remove the abscess intact, and then we drained 3ml of clear fluid from the liver cyst. Siu Kwai recovered from the surgery very well, and she is being discharged from the hospital today.