Another injured chin

Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum

Help Support Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
kiltbunny

kiltbunny

Active member
Joined
Aug 27, 2010
Messages
39
Location
Atlanta, GA
My 2 yr old chin Izzy was nabbed by the cat Sunday night. I have a block for the space under the door and the cat manage to move this (a 2x4 block the length of the door) and got her paw under the door... Izzy was curious. Ugh, so terrible.

Izzy has a wound that ripped all the skin/fur from her right front leg. The skin is almost bunched like a sleeve at her wrist/ankle. You can see muscle, tendons, bone in her entire leg. It's as horrible as you could ever imagine. She has seen the vet and antibiotics were prescribed along with some topical treatments. Surgery was suggested, but the vet noted it would probably be a futile attempt as there wasn't much left to work with and it may just cause more stress? The thought is we would see how she responded over the next few days and then checkup again Saturday morning.

Honestly... This doesn't look like something that will heal. It looks so painful and I'm sure it is. So far she will take treats and eat a little hay, but she isn't wanting pellets that much. I don't have any CC on hand (used on my other chin recently) so I need to get some asap. What else can I do to make sure she keeps eating?

Has anyone ever dealt with an injury like this - what was the outcome? Should we go ahead and opt for amputation? How is the quality of life for a chin with a missing front leg? What does the healing time look like? Is it possible to bandage her?

I want my girl to get better, but I don't want her to suffer endlessly if she doesn't need to.
 
I don't have any experience with an amputation so I will leave that to others. As far as not having CC I would get some asap but in the meantime you can grind up her pellets and add water and force feed her.

Did the vet give her any pain killers such as Metacam as the pain can lead to shock which will kill her just as quickly if not more so than an infection.

Good luck!
 
I have had one chinchilla who went through a successful surgery of getting her leg amputated, but it was not amputated due to an injury like yours. My little Jada had gotten her leg caught in the wire, and so broke her leg, so that's why she needed it amputated. It cost about $415 for that and including all the meds.......Hope she gets better!
 
We had a rear leg amputation done on a 3-4 week old kit, he did absolutely fine. As long as you and the surgeon are confident their ability, amputation isn't too huge of a deal. Front leg amputation would probably be a little more difficult to do (so small), but the animal would have an even better quality of life than a rear leg amputee.
 
I have had amputations done here. I worried about it more than the chins. I had a rescue that had to have it done and one weanling, who I have absolutely no idea how she did it, but she got her heel caught in 1/2 x 1 inch wire. They were hind legs, and I had them remove it near the hip so I wouldn't have to worry about them having stump issues. They all did absolutely fine.

I agree with Alicyn. I would think a front leg amputation would be even less stressful. Honestly, I'm surprised your vet would have you wait on this. I would be so worried about the risk of infection from a wound caused by a cat. If it was me, I would get it done ASAP.
 
I was not given any painkiller for her. Just antibiotic, betadine and some sort of topical cream (collagen?). I have a call in to the vet to discuss getting her a painkiller plus the option of amputation.

I thought of the word used to describe the wound - degloved. Her entire leg from elbow to paw is degloved and all tissues underneath are exposed.

How do the chins handle the shock of surgery? I've never had to have one under anesthesia.
 
Mine handle it fine. I have had C-sections, spays, abscesses treated, leg amputations. Almost all vets use Isoflurane anesthetic now, which is the one that is safe for chins, so there isn't usually a problem. After care is what's important. Keep her on paper towels piled up so you can watch for seepage or bleeding. It also makes it easier for you to know that she's peeing and pooping normally. Just change them out as needed.

Make sure you get some Metacam for the pain (and wow on not giving her anything for a degloving injury) for the first couple days, have some Critical Care or Essentials for Life on hand in case it's needed for hand feeding (Menagerie can overnight it and Tanya can overnight ESL as well), and you should be good to go.
 
It's the same as with any animal - there are risks involved with surgery and anesthesia but things usually go smoothly. If it's an amputation, they aren't invading any body cavities so that's a plus. They could potentially either amputate it at the elbow or the shoulder. Some surgeons leave the scapula in to keep some shape to the animals upper body (my cat still has his scapula), some remove that as well. It's personal (doctor) preference.
 
Wow - no pain med for this type of injury??? I would look into a new vet as well. Is this one experienced with chins or just winging it?
 
My Little Two Paws was born with only 2 legs, both on the right, and he handles it just fine!!!

Laurie's Herman has only stumps for front paws and he does just fine, too.

I always say that animals are so much more accepting of their situations than we humans are. They don't know they should have 2 front paws with fingers and 2 back legs for jumping, but they use what they have and enjoy their lives, especially if they are owned by people like us on this forum!!!

I hope your baby heals well, but if she has to have an amputation, she will be just fine...just keep loving and spoiling her!!!
 
Oh no! I was reading this thread and going to respond as my chin got swiped by a cat's paw a few months ago, but her wounds were a lot less severe, it sounds. I was surprised to hear of this outcome for your sweet Izzy.

I'm so sorry this happened, it's awful. Do you know what happened? You tried to help her; it's all you could have done.
 
I am so incredibly sorry! I am rather disappointed in your vet's decision to hold off on more aggressive treatment. I am so sorry for your loss :(
 
i'm sorry to hear she didn't make it :(

when i read that the vet had prescribed a cream to be put on exposed flesh/tendon/bone, and did not do any bandaging or anything, plus no pain killers, i wondered about all that!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top