Broken upper arm

[fraoch]

Hi all,

Yesterday I picked up some about 5 week old greys (eyes just opening today) that are pretty dehydrated and quite small (55-60 g). (I volunteer as a foster for a local wildlife center)

They're all improving but I have noticed that the humerus on one seems to be broken. I think maybe they missed this on the intake exam because they were so dehydrated there was no swelling noticeable. There is bruising evident.

I am looking for suggestions for bandaging. Or whether not to. Her eyes are not open yet, but will soon as the rest of the litter have just today. None of them are terribly active yet, but as they get fully rehydrated I expect that will come.

Should I keep her separate from the others to minimize her jostling? Or keep her with one other to have a buddy for comfort?

She does move the limb a little so I'm concerned that if I don't stabilize it a bit it won't set properly or at all. But I'm also not able to visualize a way to bandage a bone close to the body like this.

I am able to get some pain meds tomorrow from the center, but we don't really have anyone very skilled at broken bones, and they may prefer to default to euth. I'd like to give her a chance since she is still eating and doesn't seem ready to give up.

Again, she is about 5 weeks, broken humerus (R) eating OK, still slightly dehudrated (getting SQ) and a new foster. I am looking for advice on if and how to bandage the limb temporarily - until she wants to chew off bandages - to stabilize it.

Thanks for any advice!

Fraoch

[MsOakley]

How certain are you that's it's broken? My experience has been to keep them from being active for about 2 weeks and let it heal on it's own. I don't think 5 week olds are rowdy enough to jostle and probably wouldn't separate the family. If you think there's a chance the center would euthanize (geesh... over a broken arm?) then by all means don't tell them. Is there anyone else in the community that could help you confirm your diagnosis? I like arnica for bruising. I buy the homeopathic tablets, dissolve one in 1 cc water and suck into a syringe. I apply a few drops topically to the bruised area a few times a day. Works like a charm. Wishing baby a speedy recovery.

[Rhapsody]

My little guy Benny broke his knee (with swelling) when he was about the same age and the vet place him on Septra 2x a day to help keep any infection from setting in and of course we had to contain him to a smaller cage for a while to keep his activity level to a minimum while he recovered...... which he did fully. Benny and his brother were eventually released back into the wild when they turned 5 months old... with no problem what so ever to Benny.

Has your little guy seen a vet to verify the breakage?
Is there any swelling or pain?

..... 1 drop of Children's Motrin can be used for Inflammation & Pain

[CritterMom]

My little guy Benny broke his knee (with swelling) when he was about the same age and the vet place him on Septra 2x a day to help keep any infection from setting in and of course we had to contain him to a smaller cage for a while to keep his activity level to a minimum while he recovered...... which he did fully. Benny and his brother were eventually released back into the wild when they turned 5 months old... with no problem what so ever to Benny.

Has your little guy seen a vet to verify the breakage?
Is there any swelling or pain?

..... 1 drop of Children's Motrin can be used for Inflammation & Pain


Infant Motrin. There are actually 3 strengths, Infant, Childrens and Adult. The dosages we have are based on the Infant strength.:thumbsup

I spent a bunch of time with my reading glasses on in the pain reliever aisle, reading and comparing strengths!

[Wonkawillie]

My last released male came to me as a 13 gram pinkie with a broken leg. The break was bruised and just above his heal/ankle. You could see the slight change of direction of the bone. It should be straight and he had an angle change at the break. It was quite stable though. Like maybe the tibia was Broken and not the other one? i remember when my son broke his collar bone at 6 years old. It looked horrible on xray. I asked the dr about how disfiguring it was. A break that formed a 75 degree angle. Yuck. he explained how the rapid growth of children really helps heal these type of things. Growth will pull that bone straight over time. It did! A year later you could not tell he broke it at all.
So, I know how fast baby squirrels grow. I had no broken skin or bone exposure on my baby.
By the time this baby was about 4 weeks old with fur, the bone was solidly healed, with a big lump of bone tissue around the old break. It was still on a horrible angle though. But by release time, 16 weeks, you could not tell it was ever broken. This squirrel still returns home months later and I feel that leg in amazement. It is identicle to the other one
I would be very carefull about attempting to stabilize that arm. You can do a LOT of damage with wrapping something so small. There is just not much way to wrap it.
These babies grow so fast that it would have to be adjusted every other day, or it would cut the circulation off. The circulation can be cut just by the wrap moving around and balling up on such a tiny thing. This would mean gangrene and possible death of the baby.
Like someone else said, if the arm is somewhat stable, the baby will be quite healed by the time she is jumping around. As long as the arm is not flopping around, I think it is best the leave it alone. best of luck.

[fraoch]

I'm very sure it's broken. It flops around and I am able to feel the bones moving where they should not be.

I have picked up some metacam for her and am adding in some TMS in case of infection.

My concern is mostly in that she does use it a bit, so it's only still when she's sleeping, and sometimes she will roll on to that side, and the arm bends under her at a grotesque angle. My concern is that it just won't be still long enough to heal.

Thanks for the input!

[CritterMom]

It sounds as though you have some experience. Do you feel comfortable trying to stabilize this with vetwrap? You can cut it into tiny strips to apply. Can you take a photo and put it up so we have a better idea?

[Scooterzmom]

I would definitely try to immobilize that limb with vetwrap - wrapping the limb and securing the warap not only around the limb but also around the shoulder, a bit like a little one sleeve jacket, so to speak. I would keep that on for at least a week even if it means unwrapping it every day to check and make sure it's not too tight and the circulation is not cut off. Your idea of placing her with only one sibling also sounds like an excellent idea. Even if they're not very active, with that bad of a break it's important for her to rest and not have the others crawl on top of her or trample her.

Thanks for caring for this little one and her siblings and best of luck. :bowdown

[Wonkawillie]

Oh boy, I did not realize it was flopping around and broken clean through like that. It has to be set somehow or it will never heal right. I wonder if there is already nerve damage? It should be quite painful broken like this and she is trying to use the arm?
This bone, on a squirrel is quite short. A difficult one to wrap anything around. I wonder if you lay the arm in proper possition up against her side/chest? and then wrap around her body? Go right around the other side of her, leaving the other arm exposed. vet wrap would work best.
I think you may need someone to help you hold her, do get this right.
I am even wondering if a doll ( barbie ) sweater or shirt might be helpful to secure the arm? It will heal nicely if you can keep it in place, but it will have to be checked daily, to make sure it does not get to tight.