Hampton Arkansas baby has finally made it!!

[DipityDane]

Today at noon my mentor and I picked up the injured baby from Hampton Arkansas. THANK YOU to Michael and his wife for making the drive to Hot Springs this morning and for making sure she stayed alive in the mean time.:thankyou

Now to the issues of the baby....Her left foreleg is broken, nearly as high as the shoulder. It is not healed at all and doesn't seem to be making any effort to do so. The large swelling over the area seems to just be a secondary response of the body to the friction and irritation of the two bone ends making contact. I feel like there aren't many options for this baby....splinting isn't going to be effective because of the location.....pinning MIGHT work depending...it almost feels as tho the bone is shattered rather than broken in two but well know for sure in a couple days when she's seen.....if pinning won't work the last effort would be amputation...is that practical and fair given that squirrels use their front limbs so much for eating? Does anyone here with NR's have any amputees?....BUT...there's more.....the baby seem's to have issue with her rear limbs....some neuro issues. The limbs are fuctioning but her little toes want to stay clinched...In looking I think with time and some more physical activity those problems will improve....but having an amputated front limb would be working against her in that aspect....:dono soooo, what to do, what to do....mostly I'm just thinking outloud...any advice is APPRECIATED as I want to do what's best for her....and OF COURSE....here is a pic of little "Earl" who is now "Earline" :)
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx107/DipityDane78/greybaby.jpg

[4skwerlz]

....a last effort would be amputation...is that practical and fair given that squirrels use their front limbs so much for eating? Does anyone here with NR's have any amputees?....BUT...there's more.....the baby seem's to have issue with her rear limbs....some neuro issues. The limbs are fuctioning but her little toes want to stay clinched...

Yes! We've seen many amputee squirrels here on TSB. I personally know of one front leg amputee who has no problems whatsoever eating, climbing, jumping, running, basically doing everything a normal squirrel would do. In fact, she could probably be released and kick all the other squirrel's butts if she wasn't so perfectly happy where she is in captivity.

Poor little tyke. My opinion is certainly give her a chance. If a vet is willing to try pinning, why not? Does she have feeling in the broken arm? You're right, the rear toe problem will quite likely improve. Squirrels heal so much better than people. Let's give her a chance!

[DipityDane]

Yes she most definitely has feeling and use....bless her wittle heart...I gave her metacam...hopefully it will help some....she eats great and is active tho...Poor sweet little baby.:Love_Icon

[4skwerlz]

Yes she most definitely has feeling and use....bless her wittle heart...I gave her metacam...hopefully it will help some....she eats great and is active tho...Poor sweet little baby.:Love_Icon

Thank you so much.:Love_Icon My heart has been hurting for this lil' one. Been having trouble sleeping. I feel so much better now knowing she's in your care. I'd be the last person to want a squirrel to live unhappy or in pain. But too many people are quick to say euthanize. There are some wonderful vets that can be trusted to make a good decision in these cases. I say, let's get her to one of them and go from there.

[astra]

Oh, of course, there are amputees leading a wonderful NR life.
Check out Jackie in Tampa's three-legged wonder - faster than most four-legged fuzzers.
So, definitely! She can live with one arm and be happy!

[Tickle's Mom]

A chance is better than no chance.:thumbsup


If you ask 100 people if they would want to live without their limbs etc., 99 out of 100 will say no.

But, if you ask one person who does live without their limbs, etc, they will tell you "heck yes".

We love you Earline - you're a fighter. Hang in there.:grouphug

Michael :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown :bowdown

[grinn75]

So glad this baby finally made it to you DipityDane! Please keep us posted on Earline's progress. I don't think amputation would be the end of the world for this little one if it comes down to it. We certainly could find a wonderful home for her on TSB if she ends up being NR.

[DipityDane]

Earline went to get her little self checked out today and we now know a little better what her options are. First off we did tap and drain the nodule on her arm and it just contained serum. As for the break itself...the bone is splintered and this makes her no longer a candidate for pinning as we hoped....however....after removing the pressure of the fluid build up the bone ends are able to align better. There is a slight chance that it may heal in an altho not totally normal fashion a still usable one. For a few days anyway we are going to see what her body does....if the fluid returns....if the bones just wont knit then her only option will be amputation but we are going to at least see how she might do before resorting to that. She has metacam on board and Baytril esp since she got poked around on today. She is eating great and doing very well under the circumstances. Below is her with her new foxer sister Lucille.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx107/DipityDane78/IMAG4369.jpg

[astra]

oh, what a hopeful update!
Praying that the fluid doesn't build up or whatever it can do, and that the bones align and grow as they should...
Most importantly, she seems to be active, eats well and has a buddy!:grouphug

[Nancy in New York]

Adorable....poor little baby.
Does she have a splint on or is the break too high up?
Thanks for the update.:Love_Icon :Love_Icon

[DipityDane]

Nancy....the break is high....nearly to the shoulder...we did actually brainstorm and try to come up with a way to immobilize but it seemed that anything we tried either wasnt effective....caused more problems or just stressed her out badly. I do wish there were a way we could splint but nothing seems to work :/

[Nancy in New York]

Nancy....the break is high....nearly to the shoulder...we did actually brainstorm and try to come up with a way to immobilize but it seemed that anything we tried either wasnt effective....caused more problems or just stressed her out badly. I do wish there were a way we could splint but nothing seems to work :/

Yeah, that's what I thought I had read, that the break was high. Do you have the x rays? Just wondering if Dr. Pilny in New York would do a consult with the vet that looked at Earline? I know that he is on vacation this week, but he may help out with this case too. I know he just helped a girl in another state with her little bald red...:) through emails and phone consult. Hmmmmmm:dono
:Love_Icon

[grinn75]

What a wonderful update! Sending good vibes and positive thoughts to little Earline hoping she heals up well enough to be the wild wonderful squirrel she was meant to be. Keep fighting Earline, we are all behind you! :grouphug

[Nita Lynn]

I'm so happy that sweet little baby is doing good!! I sure hope she makes it, I think about her every day and miss feeding her in the mornings before work!! I'm glad she has a friend too. Thanks so much for sharing the pictures and updates!! :multi

[4skwerlz]

Any updates?

Poor little pookie.:Love_Icon :grouphug

[DipityDane]

Little Earline is doing great..... so far the lump has stayed drained and is actually shrinking...allowing still for the bones to be more normally aligned.....Her arm is FAR from healed....but it does seem stable and she is able to use it more each day to hold the syringe during feedings. She still get's her Metacam so for now we're going with it. Earlier this afternoon I noticed her and her "sister" both chewing on lab blocks a little :wahoo and little Earline is active and happy. I HOPE that she will heal and get to keep her little arm...I didn't have a lot of hope before but I really think there is a good chance now! :jump

[zack62001]

Thank you for the updates . I am so glad shes doing better and getting great medical care . :squirrel1 Thanks TSB for the great work you do !!

[Adventurista]

I'm a massage therapist, and I worked in a physical therapy clinic for a while before going into private practice (my education was right alongside the PT department at the university). I don't know this for a fact, but my guess is that if the front leg were to be amputated, it might actually help the hindleg toe issues---force her to use them as hands.

That said, I would also recommend you do manual, but light range-of-motion on her toes every day. Flexibility is important for muscle development in the feet. Also, massage a little around the thigh area plus stretching---the instrinsic muscles of the feet and toes are actually attached further up the leg. My dog had his achilles tendon severed and after his three surgeries on it...ugh...and eight weeks in casts, he wouldn't use that leg. I did massage on his hip flexors every night and it released really quickly. The vet was so impressed that she wanted me to work on other animals. He still sometimes "asks" for massage, and when our new rescue last year saw it, she came and "asked" for massage on her legs, too.

And yes....I do massage my squirrel. :D

[Adventurista]

It won't let me edit, but I meant to say "extrinsic" muscles of the feet. Just in case any anatomists are here! :thumbsup

[ALittleNutty]

Sending some healing thoughts and :Love_Icon for Earline! Get well soon little one. Glad you were able to get her and start treatment for all her ailments.

[zack62001]

Got a great update today from DipityDane she said Earline is making some progress so keep your fingers crossed . :thankyou TSB :wott