Satchmo's broken leg

Hilary Holmes

Post   » Thu Aug 11, 2011 8:39 am


I'm so pleased to hear he's improving. It's great to hear a good news story. I hope he continues to improve.

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swirlysf
Supporting my GP Habit

Post   » Fri Aug 12, 2011 2:53 am


I'm happy to hear that he's improving. Hoping for a speedy recovery.

Windpixie47

Post   » Fri Aug 12, 2011 6:13 pm


After last night's dose of Metacam, Satchmo escaped his smaller cage (set inside his C&C cage). What a wonderful thing to see him popcorn repeatedly before I had to put him in the smaller enclosure. He was hollering "hooray for freedom" the whole time!

Today he got his cast changed. It's purple and larger than the last one so I was able to sign it. The extra padding is because he's trying to be more active and to keep him from chewing thru it. The swelling has gone down a lot, but the vet said no more popcorning allowed for the next 2-3 weeks. Metacam for the next five days, after which he probably won't need it. He's been sleeping a lot since the cast change, but then, he always naps most of the afternoon. The vet assistants said he blabbed the whole time they were working on him. I do believe he has added a few new groupies!

Windpixie47

Post   » Sat Aug 20, 2011 9:17 pm


Two weeks post injury:

Satchmo had his third splint changed today. He has been doing pretty well, tapering off metacam. He hasn't chewed off any of his splints (although he picks at them). Today the assistant was worried his leg was at a funny angle, so the vet on duty did another X-ray to see if the fracture was healing properly. She showed me where he is laying down new bone, and she said he's about half way there. This confirms the exotic vet who consulted them to expect 3-4 weeks. He is on track!

The funny angle of his leg is the temporary result of splinting and disuse. Family members who have had broken bones warned me that he will probably need some kind of therapy because his knee has been splinted straight for so long. I'm a little freaked out about this, so if anyone has any therapy hints, I'd love to hear them.

Meanwhile, he gets tired of laying on the unaffected side, so I hold him in ways that take the weight off that hip/foot. He hasn't gained any weight (still 590 grams), but he hasn't lost any either. He is bearing up pretty well, all things considered.

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Sun Aug 21, 2011 12:33 am


Overall this sounds positive. Three to four weeks sounds awfully long though. Looking forward to his complete recovery!

Windpixie47

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 5:24 pm


Bump in the road: chewing.

Satchmo has chewed himself at the top of the splint so that he has a bald spot and small scab which he has picked off. I am swabbing with colloidal silver, and I have secured a gauze strip to cover the wound. It does not appear infected--not inflamed at all. However, he has also developed a little crust around the eyes. These also do not appear infected, so my thought is that he is producing extra milky fluid in response the the itching (??) He is eating quite well, and while I hold him, he doesn't chew/scratch.

I was wondering about topical creams/ointments. I saw Sulfadene marketed for dogs/cats. It has benzocaine and aspirin in it along with a bunch of essential oils. I also have coconut oil, zinc oxide ointment, and hydrocortisone cream. What do you all recommend?

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Lynx
Celebrate!!!

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 5:56 pm


Is there any chance your vet would think it okay to air it out or remove the wrap early? It's tough to have things wrapped and not exposed to air.

Josephine
Little Jo Wheek

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 6:01 pm


One of the scariest/most serious risks of splints and bandages is that they can be too tight at times (for many reasons including improper application or shifting of bandage/splint), causing loss of sensation and/or tissue/limb death and necrosis. I would seriously consider having the vet recheck it early if there is self-mutilation.

Also, if the pet is able to lick the bandage/ointment, you have to be EXTREMELY careful as to what kind of ointment you are using. Silver sulfadiazine cream is usually the safest for exotics as it is very safe to injest and won't cause GI upset/imbalance.

Windpixie47

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 6:21 pm


The chewing is actually outside the splint area. He just had a splint change a couple of days ago--the rest of the leg looks great. I honestly think the last splint irritated him because they didn't put enough gauze on the top edge to keep it from chafing on the top edge. I also think they weren't so careful when they removed the paper tape, and I think they pulled out some of his hair. The scab didn't appear until after the last bandage change. They didn't use paper tape this time, thank goodness. His vet has been on vacation, so I'm hoping to see her again Friday. I may lobby for the rest of the healing without splinting. He's just such a baby and so darn frisky that I'm afraid he may re-injure himself. Any advice welcome!

Josephine
Little Jo Wheek

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 6:26 pm


Um, that is the exact MO of a bandage problem. SO, that doesn't change a thing.

Talishan
You can quote me

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 10:23 pm


Ditto Josephine.

Silver sulfadiazine cream without an Rx

I've bought from this merchant before and been completely satisfied. Nothing fishy; they are in the US and the products are well packaged, "normal", well within date etc.

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gvstate01

Post   » Mon Aug 22, 2011 10:25 pm


Love that stuff! It works wonders, I have the liquid kind.

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