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Broken femur, overwhelmed with how to help.

They just rang. Was Debbie, I think that was her name. She said he won't do it, he doesn't do bones?! If anything he'd recommend leaving her be and see if it heals itself and keep on painkillers?! I don't think that's kind at all and I don't want her in constant pain with a dead leg 💔
 
My girl Mischief (my profile pic) did something to her back leg about a year ago. My other half had to take her to a different vet than her normal vet. After they were finished jerking it around (no x-ray's). She was given painkiller (Metacam) for a fortnight. At the end of the fortnight, she still was limping and so I took her to her usual vet. X-ray/ultrasound later and the break she had in the bone hadn't healed right and also she was starting with a bit of arthritis around said area. Today still running around/popcorning on occasion and being the boss, just not as fast as she would like but don't tell her that.

As long as she is taking the Metacam (my girls would take the whole bottle off me if they could when they have to have it) she shouldn't be in constant pain. I know it seems the worse but these little creatures are quite good at keeping their human's on our toes.
 
Crystella said:
My girl Mischief (my profile pic) did something to her back leg about a year ago. My other half had to take her to a different vet than her normal vet. After they were finished jerking it around (no x-ray's). She was given painkiller (Metacam) for a fortnight. At the end of the fortnight, she still was limping and so I took her to her usual vet. X-ray/ultrasound later and the break she had in the bone hadn't healed right and also she was starting with a bit of arthritis around said area. Today still running around/popcorning on occasion and being the boss, just not as fast as she would like but don't tell her that.

As long as she is taking the Metacam (my girls would take the whole bottle off me if they could when they have to have it) she shouldn't be in constant pain. I know it seems the worse but these little creatures are quite good at keeping their human's on our toes.
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What a great name 🤣 chutney is a cheeky girl, she runs when she sees us incase a snack is arriving 🤣

How is she now? She takes the metacam pretty well for sure, I just don't want her suffering 💗
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
If she’s still getting around and still eating and seems happy I’d see how she goes. She will let you know if she’s had enough. I think it’s worth a go xx
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Yeah we absolutely don't have another option really at the moment, so we have to give it a try, you're right.

The vet said they put up with a lot of pain without us seeing though which has of course firmly cemented itself in my literal thinking autistic brain 💔
 
twolittlegirlypigs said:
What a great name 🤣 chutney is a cheeky girl, she runs when she sees us incase a snack is arriving 🤣

How is she now? She takes the metacam pretty well for sure, I just don't want her suffering 💗
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Mischief is fine and the only way I can tell is that her right back leg sticks out more than her left leg.

Your girl will probably not use it/put weight on it for a couple of days but with the Metacam and time she will be back to begging for yummy meds and treats long after you finish the course of treatment.
 
Crystella said:
Mischief is fine and the only way I can tell is that her right back leg sticks out more than her left leg.

Your girl will probably not use it/put weight on it for a couple of days but with the Metacam and time she will be back to begging for yummy meds and treats long after you finish the course of treatment.
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Yeah I noticed her put a little weight on it today. If I'd not seen the xray I'd never think it was broken! She's still herself just less running about. I'll speak to our vets and see what she says about keeping her comfortable.
 
Not the same thing I know but my late Elizabeth developed a lump on her back hind leg that my vet said would be tricky to remove due to its location and worse case scenario would be amputation of the leg when he started to remove the lump which he said would be very risky and dangerous and even if the amputation was successful, he wasn’t sure hope she’d cope with a missing hind leg. We had the lump tested and it was a fatty lipoma and taking my fantastic vets advise, we decided not to operate even though he said if the lump grew, we would have to think of having her pts if it impended her mobility.

The lump did slowly grow over several months until it grew to be about the size of a tennis ball and she was unable to use the leg but she kind of hopped and found a way to cope. She had a small dose of metacam daily to keep her comfortable although we didn’t feel she was particularly in pain

She lived until she was nearly 6 until the lump started growing internally pushing on her organs and she developed a blood clot which my vet said may or may not have been related and we had to help her cross the rainbow bridge

My point is, I think they can cope with a gammy leg more than we think they can and amputation isn’t always necessary x
 
I am very sorry. You are doing your best for her. With a clean break it will hopefully heal fairly straight forward.
 
Claire W said:
Not the same thing I know but my late Elizabeth developed a lump on her back hind leg that my vet said would be tricky to remove due to its location and worse case scenario would be amputation of the leg when he started to remove the lump which he said would be very risky and dangerous and even if the amputation was successful, he wasn’t sure hope she’d cope with a missing hind leg. We had the lump tested and it was a fatty lipoma and taking my fantastic vets advise, we decided not to operate even though he said if the lump grew, we would have to think of having her pts if it impended her mobility.

The lump did slowly grow over several months until it grew to be about the size of a tennis ball and she was unable to use the leg but she kind of hopped and found a way to cope. She had a small dose of metacam daily to keep her comfortable although we didn’t feel she was particularly in pain

She lived until she was nearly 6 until the lump started growing internally pushing on her organs and she developed a blood clot which my vet said may or may not have been related and we had to help her cross the rainbow bridge

My point is, I think they can cope with a gammy leg more than we think they can and amputation isn’t always necessary x
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That's so great to hear, thank you for sharing. What a trooper.
CTWC said:
Any news? 💕
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Yes yet another vet saying they can't help. I've one more I'm waiting to hear from in Leicester.
Wheekallweek said:
Poor you, you're trying your best for her, don't give up! ❤️
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Thank you x
Wiebke said:
I am very sorry. You are doing your best for her. With a clean break it will hopefully heal fairly straight forward.
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Thank you, she rang up to my daughter this morning for her morning snack 🤣

She's been eating a lot of hay today in-between naps 🥰
 

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twolittlegirlypigs said:
Today she's been running around and scratching herself with her bad leg?!?! Drinking and eating lots just to update 💗
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Hi

I agree. It sounds that the break is healing well on its own because it is a simple straight break. It sounds like your precious little girl has had a lucky escape. :love:
 
furryfriends (TEAS) said:
This is amazing news! It sounds like it’s resolving itself. I would hold fire on getting any treatment, as it’s looking really positive!
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I'm so thankful she seems just like herself and I really hope she isn't in pain.

So the vet from Leicester just rang me, he was literally so lovely and helpful he recommended leaving her be! Said by the look of her break leaving her be would be his first choice. As long as she's eating/drinking well. Handle her as little as possible and keep her cage fuller so she cant run too much. Metacam for around 4 weeks (although I'll check this as I may have heard that wrong).
 
twolittlegirlypigs said:
I'm so thankful she seems just like herself and I really hope she isn't in pain.

So the vet from Leicester just rang me, he was literally so lovely and helpful he recommended leaving her be! Said by the look of her break leaving her be would be his first choice. As long as she's eating/drinking well. Handle her as little as possible and keep her cage fuller so she cant run too much. Metacam for around 4 weeks (although I'll check this as I may have heard that wrong).
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The four weeks of metacam are realistic.

My hub broke a rib last autumn in a fall. It is a bone that cannot be splinted or bandaged (because of the need to breathe) and that needs healing on its own, as long as it is not poking into the lungs. He wouldn't even be seen by a doctor. Hub was in pain for about 5-6 weeks while it was healing on its own - it was a thicker bone but the leg is weight bearing so there is a bit of a trade off.

It does however sound like the bone knitting process is well underway with your little one. If your girl is able to walk and run without any major limp or wobble, it also means that the leg is healing straight and that there won't be any permanent pain. She is also young so the healing process will be a lot faster. ;)

I hope that helps you? My elderly mum - who also has osteoporosis - is currently in hospital with two broken leg bones (in different places) after a bad fall, one of them a more complicated break, so she needed a couple of full ops last week just a few days apart. She is looking at a much longer recovery. :(
 
Wiebke said:
The four weeks of metacam are realistic.

My hub broke a rib last autumn in a fall. It is a bone that cannot be splinted or bandaged (because of the need to breathe) and that needs healing on its own, as long as it is not poking into the lungs. He wouldn't even be seen by a doctor. Hub was in pain for about 5-6 weeks while it was healing on its own - it was a thicker bone but the leg is weight bearing so there is a bit of a trade off.

It does however sound like the bone knitting process is well underway with your little one. If your girl is able to walk and run without any major limp or wobble, it also means that the leg is healing straight and that there won't be any permanent pain. She is also young so the healing process will be a lot faster. ;)

I hope that helps you? My elderly mum - who also has osteoporosis - is currently in hospital with two broken leg bones (in different places) after a bad fall, one of them a more complicated break, so she needed a couple of full ops last week just a few days apart. She is looking at a much longer recovery. :(
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Yes that makes sense. She is limping though although it's not really bothering her she'll still run over the minute she's sees us to see if we're bringing snacks 🤣

I hope your mum heals well and isn't suffering, I hate seeing anyone in pain 💓
 
twolittlegirlypigs said:
Yes that makes sense. She is limping though although it's not really bothering her she'll still run over the minute she's sees us to see if we're bringing snacks 🤣

I hope your mum heals well and isn't suffering, I hate seeing anyone in pain 💓
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Thank you. She is not happy at the moment. :(
 
Hay everyone, thought I'd update.

Chutney is still doing well. Much her cheeky self and munching hay non stop 🤣

Trying to get some sort of plan of action with the vets. Our vets isn't particularly keen with letting her be and thinks we should amputate or pts, but then she says herself she doesn't really know an awful lot about small animals and will speak to the specialist vets again ASAP.

She's still on metacam and happy to have lots of head rubs (we don't handle her much, just the minimum, as per vets advice to let her be) and has been spotted popcorning despite me telling her she's shouldn't be 🤣

I worry all the time I'm not making the right decisions but then we don't have any other choice at the moment.

Xx
 

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For what it's worth and I'm not a health expert. I think you are doing the right thing, if she's popcorning and doing all things piggy then leave her be. Once it's healed (must be well on the way) she should be able to come off the Metacam. She may get arthritis in it later in life and need further treatment but deal with that when/if it happens, for now she's happy.
 
:agr: If she's happy and popcorning, pts doesn't seem necessary at all to me. Being young the injury will heal quicker than with an adult, maybe not as perfectly as if the break had been splinted or something ( as it is in humans), but she'll adapt. @PigglePuggle rescued a sow with a leg that had been broken and had healed awry, she lived a happy long life though she did get arthritis much later.
 
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