Little juvenile w/ badly broken leg, advice please :(

Hello,

One of my little babies has a badly broken front leg. It looks like the bone between the hand and elbow is snapped in to and half the poor things arm is dangling and twisting around uselessly. Will it heal on it's own or should I snip it off? As horrible as it makes my stomach feel, I'm wondering if a quick snip while little and full of little axie stem cells and grow-power or whatever and letting it grow a new one would give it a better long term outlook than letting it heal in a malformed manner. Think Theismann's leg. I don't see the bones ever matching up well on there own.

Any advice? My little tweaker will appreciate any help :grin:

Thanks!

Marty

I recently had the same problem with a young one (5cm long) who had shattered his leg - advice here said to leave it be, but a good friend who is a vet suggested that 'snipping' it off above the break with VERY sharp scissors & a steady hand. She argued that if anyone had the option to regrow a perfect limb compared to trying to repair a severe break (especially when the broken limb is not resting in a position that will enable the healed bone to be positioned correctly - unlikely when the limb inverts & floats above the body like its waving ) so after much observing of my injured little one I decided to snip it off!

It was not easy at all & if you are not confident or you're scared then I don't recommend it. I guess it all depends on your axie too. I put my axie in a small container & left him to calm down for a while in the dark. Meanwhile I unwrapped a sterilized very sharp pair of surgical scissors (nurse friend brought me scissors & forceps - they were way too huge to use) I put on latex gloves & rinsed them thoroughly then rinsed again in aquarium water removed from large tank. While the axie was in the small tank I slid my hand under him & waited till he relaxed on my hand, once relaxed I gently pinned his toes with my thumb & had the scissors ready in my other hand - when he squirmed the leg straightened & I carefully but quickly snipped just above the break in the upper arm. It sounds easier than it was & I was lucky that the timing worked out. I have had a lot of experience with docking of Dobermanns over the years so can remain calm whilst handling an animal in this kind of situation. If you are not confident - call & find a vet who is able to do it for you.
If my axie had been any larger/older I would've definitely taken it to the vet - unfortunately my friend the vet was over in the states at the time.

After the procedure I put the axie straight back into his tank & he didn't seem bothered by it at all - if anything he was more active than he was with the badly broken limb dangling. The healing began within days & now 3 weeks later the limb has fully grown back & the toes are getting longer & stronger like I said it isn't easy & most people on the forums here did not recommend the removal - I opted to follow the vets advice - I'm guessing 'splat' the axie (named after leaping from tank to floor - the cause of the broken front leg ) is pretty happy with his new leg too

Here are some pics of the break & regrowing...




The broken limb


Week 1 regrowth


Week 2 regrowth


Week 3 regrowth (taken today)





<3 >o_o< <3

If it's broken in half, chances are the lower part of the leg will eventually rot and fall off anyway. In cases like that, I agree with Nikki; amputation may be best. It would lessen the chance of any systemic infection and give the leg a clean starting point for regeneration.

Another thing that may help is having another person to help you out- I've had a number of reallly nasty bites where amputation has been the answer, and a second pair of hands is a godsend. When you make the cut, above the site of the injury will bleed, but overall the end limb grows back far better- All mine were with bone showing, and there was a marked difference between at the point of skin and 1-2mm above.
Also consider if your vet can do the procedure and provide an axie-safe anesthetic. Whilst mine were okay without it, I'd have felt MUCH better had I had access to some sedation for them (Having had locals not work due to my crazy body during procedures... IT'S NOT FUN!!!!). Also, plenty of water changes and fridging initially, but normal temps once the healing process has started seem to lead to better long-term outcomes.
Keep your head up, you're doing the right thing long-term for you little baby, and I'm sure they will thank you greatly in the long term!

Thanks for all the advice and encouragement. Spitball's "procedure" was a success and the little tweaker is happily munching black worms and seems no worse for wear.

They're hardy little dudes.