WARNING: GRAPHIC My little paraplegic chewed his lower right leg to the bone!!!

[Scooterzmom]

We had all hell break loose here over the last 3 days - real commotion in the house (water damage, electrical fire) and I think it stressed my boy so badly that he chewed on his own leg. I had not seen it cuz yesterday he was all sleepy, and with all these people around in the house, coming and going, he didn't want to come out of his cube.Today, when he did come out to eat, I was horrified to find that he has chewed his right leg down to the bone!!! Completely! You can see the bone, bare, and there's only some flesh left at the back of the leg.

Now I've cleaned him up and cleansed the wound with saline, have applied some sulfadiazine cream and wrapped it in gauze. He is in pain obviously - I am too, just looking at him this way - and I wonder what would be the best meds I could give him. I have ABs here - different kinds - as well as Prednisone, Metacam and Gabapentin. I will not have access to a vet until Monday at least - if at all

Please I need advice on what to do and give him until then.

[stepnstone]

Now I've cleaned him up and cleansed the wound with saline, have applied some sulfadiazine cream and wrapped it in gauze. He is in pain obviously - I am too, just looking at him this way - and I wonder what would be the best meds I could give him. I have ABs here - different kinds - as well as Prednisone, Metacam and Gabapentin. I will not have access to a vet until Monday at least - if at all
Please I need advice on what to do and give him until then.

Definitely Prednisone and Gabapentin.
What ab's do you have?

[Scooterzmom]

I also have Trazodone, Tramadol 10 mg, Meloxicam, Doxycyclin, Amoxicillin, and Clindamycin, Metrodinazole 250 mg... that's about it.
Whatever you suggest I'll tell you the strength I have.

Prednisone I have is 5 mg - I would need the instructions for dilution and the dosage for my boy (he's 450 g)
Gabapentin I have in liquid form 100mg/ml (exp. sept. 2020) and in pills 50 mg. I also need the instructions for the dilution if using the pills.

[stepnstone]

I also have Trazodone, Tramadol 10 mg, Meloxicam, Doxycyclin, Amoxicillin, and Clindamycin, Metrodinazole 250 mg... that's about it.
Whatever you suggest I'll tell you the strength I have.

Prednisone I have is 5 mg - I would need the instructions for dilution and the dosage for my boy (he's 450 g)
Gabapentin I have in liquid form 100mg/ml (exp. sept. 2020) and in pills 50 mg. I also need the instructions for the dilution if using the pills.

I would go with the Clindamycin, its a good ab for skin and bone. What is it's mg?

I'll work up the dosing(s) for you...

[Scooterzmom]

it is 25mg/ml.

not sure the Pred would help in this case... can u explain what it could do - I mean more precisely what it would be for? But i was wondering if maybe i should give him both Gabapentin and Metacam; that and his AB - the Clindamycin

[stepnstone]

it is 25mg/ml.
not sure the Pred would help in this case... can u explain what it could do - I mean more precisely what it would be for? But i was wondering if maybe i should give him both Gabapentin and Metacam; that and his AB - the Clindamycin

Pred is a corticosteroid, it's an inflammatory that can help reduce pain and vasculitis. (inflammation of the blood vessels)
Metacam thins the blood, excessive blood thinning can lead to bleeding. Not a good choice for this type injury.
Gabapentin will block pain at the nerve endings.

Dosings sent pm.

[Scooterzmom]

Pred is a corticosteroid, it's an inflammatory that can help reduce pain and vasculitis. (inflammation of the blood vessels)
Metacam thins the blood, excessive blood thinning can lead to bleeding. Not a good choice for this type injury.
Gabapentin will block pain at the nerve endings.

Dosings sent pm.

AHHH... Now I understand. Thank you step. He's now on Prednisone, Gabapentin and Clindamycin.
Thing is, while he does drink water my boy refuses to eat though Any suggestions as to what I could feed him by syring at least?

I feel so horrible that this could have happened right in front us and neither my husband nor myself saw it. I just can't forgive myself. My poor boy.

[Scooterzmom]

Decided to feed him some baby food, purees etc and maybe a bit of yogurt - which he usually loves - but will make sure to give him the latter 2 hours after he had his ABs.

[Scooterzmom]

NEWS OF VICTOR:

His wound looks slightly better today. Not as angry you might say. And yes, I did wrap it... first I cleansed by spraying it with saline, then chlorexadine, then I applied some polysporin (just eough to prevent sticking) and a generous quantity of silvadene; wrapped a non-stick gauze around, some vetwrap tape and a fishnet sock to hold it all in place. He's on clindamycin, prednisone, and gabapentin... and he had a pecan and walnut for putting up with all this. He has eaten a bit today, on his own, and he drinks well.

I cannot believe how brave my little Victor is; I guess he is so used to being handled, and bathed etc he never even tried to bite furing the whole process.

At least we didn't have any type of cleaning crew or firemen or insurance people coming and going, running through the house today. He's had a chance to rest, and for the first time all week so did we. I'll contact a vet asap in the morning - and an dentist for me... (broke a tooth! I needed that like a hole in the head - pardon the pun).

[island rehabber]

Miche, you've got the best hands helping you and I have never dealt with this, so all I'm gonna do is send prayers and healing energies to you and Victor!

[Scooterzmom]

Here is a pic of my little boy's leg tonite when I removed the bandage. Any opinions.... compared to the first day? The earliest appointment I could score with a vet is Wednesday morning



He is still on his meds, although as it was suggested to me, we have switched from Prednisone to Tramadol

[Mel1959]

It looks less raw, but it is such a large wound that I worry how it will fill in. I know para’s take longer to heal which is what causes me concern, too.

I know you’re treating it with ointments and wrapping it. Does anyone think derma gel would be a good choice here? I remember NINY speaking it’s praises, though I have never personally used it.

Keeping you and Victor in my thoughts.

[Buddy]

Sending lots of healing vibes and prayers... Poor little thing... I hope it fills and heals very quickly!

[TubeDriver]

I had good experiences with using Dermagel. But that is a terrible injury which will take months to heal. I worry about the exposure to the bone. I think the main thing is going to be preventing infection and/or detecting it early. I think meeting with your vet will help to decide how to move forward.

[Chirps]

Poor boy! Prayers for you all!

[Scooterzmom]

Vet called me early this morn and managed to squeeze us in

So, the good news first; no need to amputate at this point. She said to keep up the cleansing and bandaging, but twice a day and suggested stimulating the blood circulation by using the water spraying from the tap for a good 5 minutes each time, and then cleansing with saline and chlorexidine.

Re. meds: She switched him to Meloxicam and Gabapentin for pain, and Enrofloxacin as an AB, hoping the taste would be more tolerable than the Clindamycin and would push him to eat more - whitch he does need. Poor thing is thin as a rail right now.

But the... Everyone fell in love with him, of course. Some of the staff had not met him yet ... A squirrel! Yet he's the best little patient you could ever find, they said. Vet will see him again in a week

The not so great news... Yes, we are looking at months of recovery from such a wound. But, whatever it takes, we're going to do it. If anyone deserves the care, Victor sure does.

[Chickenlegs]

I have a little girl who has chewed her feet. She got an awful infection requiring baths, expression of pus, abs and a LOT of time. She’s healing—a happy sweet girl. Still gets the occasional pus pocket. Still has one spot that gets gnawed on occasionally. You are staying the course and Victor will emerge victorious!—like my Gracie!

[Scooterzmom]

Thank you CL Gracie is a moving Miracle, yes! Victor is making some progress I believe. He is without any doubt the best patient there ever was. In spite of the fact that he has some level of feeling in that leg, he lets us take care of him without so much as a squeak or even an attempt to bite. The vet and all the staff there thought he is one amazing little guy, and everyone is in love with him.

Don't have time now but later today I'll post a pic of the wound as we found it this morning once we took the bandage off. It is beginning to granulate and is looking good, I think. With a bunch of angels here on TSB helping us, and a caring vet and many friends, Victor will come out of this victorious. We had named him Victor when he was given to us as a baby... cuz even back then we wondered how he could have survived the injuries he'd suffered to his back.

[Scooterzmom]

So, here is a pic of my boy's leg as of this morning.



And here he is just before we go wash that leg. Bless his heart, he is still patient as ever.

[Chickenlegs]

Lookin GOOD victor! It’ll be awhile, but he’s gonna have a leg—kinda wonky maybe— but a wonky leg is EXCELLENT!