By Randy Tucker
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Steven Lynch, president of Advanced Veterinary Imaging in Blue Ash, (left) and Dr. Jack Walkenhorst prepare Leon for his canine CT (computerized tomography) scan Thursday in their new clinic, the only one in the Tristate. (Gary Landers photo) | ZOOM |

Donna Zeek rushed her 10-year-old dog, Leon, to a veterinary hospital last week when she discovered her poodle-terrier mix couldn't hold down his food.

X-rays showed what appeared to be a large tumor in the dog's abdomen but couldn't determine where the growth was attached.

That's when Zeek turned to Steven Lynch and Jack Walkenhorst, the owners of Advanced Veterinary Imaging in Blue Ash, which opened this month. It provides CT scans for animals.

CT scans, or computerized tomography images and also known as CAT scans, are clearer and more detailed than X-rays and can eliminate the need for painful exploratory surgery. The animals are anesthetized for the scans.

"The bottom line is that I just want to know what I'm facing," Zeek said. "But I don't want him to have to suffer any unnecessary pain."

The images from Leon's scan were e-mailed the same day to a consultant radiologist in Colorado.

Zeek spent about $500 not to feel Leon's pain. But it was a price that she was more than willing to pay.

According to Lynch, the next closest facility providing CT scans for animals is at Ohio State University in Columbus.

That's one of the reasons he and Walkenhorst - a contract veterinarian and high-school buddy from Indian Hill - decided to open such a facility in Blue Ash.

"We sent out letters to about 450 vets in the area before we opened, and the response was immediate," Lynch said. "We got calls from as far north as Dayton and as far south as Northern Kentucky from vets who wanted to refer their clients to us."