Orthopedic nightmare chick (of course owned by veterinary orthopedic surgeon)

[txhall3]

I am following this thread to see how everything turns out!

 

[SciFiDVM]

I will update as she grows. Waiting is the hardest part!
I am also dying to see what she ends up looking like. No one has posted any pictures of a Silver Laced Wyandotte x Salmon Favorelle cross. Both parents were/are magnificent show quality birds from D&D hatchery.
She has also developed quite a personality. I keep her in my bathroom so the temp stays high and she stays away from my dogs. Any time anyone walks into the bathroom for non-chicken reasons she will stare and then start squaking to yell at you for not bringing her any of her favorite boiled egg and spinach treat. I have already created a spoiled monster.

 

[SciFiDVM]

It has been a week since the Xrays, so I rechecked some tonight. The left femur fracture is like 80% healed, the left tibial fracture is fully healed but quite crooked, and the bowing in the right femur is improving slightly.
She still stands on the outside of that right foot and it looks like there is some sciatic nerve damage from the left femur fracture causing poor movement/control of the left foot. But she is getting stronger and a little more coordinated. I'm just going to keep giving her time to grow. Might start bandaging that right foot to get it slightly better aligned. As long as she ends up with one good foot I think she will be able to get along.

 

[txhall3]

Great news! She is lucky to have your expertise at her disposal and it is a good practical learning experience for you it sounds like. Maybe it's a sign you are meant to branch out into poultry.

Keep us posted!

 

[casportpony]

@SciFiDVM, how's your chick doing?

-Kathy

 

[SciFiDVM]

Thanks for checking in! She (or I am starting to have concerns that Nugget may be a he) is doing really well except that her tibial fracture healed in a really bad angle. The left femur fracture completely healed and the bowing in her femurs is decreasing as she grows. She has been using the unbroken right leg well, but because the left tibia healed at a 48 degree angle and impinges on the extensor tendons that run along the front of the tibia, she can't flex the hock and it drags behind her so awkwardly she still can't get around. I am going to surgically correct the tibial deformity on Thursday. Hopefully I can free up the extensor tendons from the scar tissue at the old fracture site too and give her (after a couple weeks of healing) a functional (but never likely to be "normal") left leg. I have also spent the past 3 days at the country's biggest veterinarian convention and talked with a bunch of vendors there that make prostheses and carts, etc. So if the left leg can't be salvaged there are still some options.
The little bugger goes everywhere with me, so I have gotten pretty attatched at this point. All of this is only possible because she has the best personality and tolerates the chair and 3 time daily physical therapy like a champ. If she had ever seemed to be suffering I would have put her to sleep humanely. Her dad was the coolest sweetest rooster on the planet and obviously passed some of that on. So even if she is a he, I am ok with ending up a thousand dollar pet chicken with a limp or cruising around in a wheelchair.

I'll give another update after surgery on Thursday!

 

[txhall3]

Thanks for checking in! She (or I am starting to have concerns that Nugget may be a he) is doing really well except that her tibial fracture healed in a really bad angle. The left femur fracture completely healed and the bowing in her femurs is decreasing as she grows. She has been using the unbroken right leg well, but because the left tibia healed at a 48 degree angle and impinges on the extensor tendons that run along the front of the tibia, she can't flex the hock and it drags behind her so awkwardly she still can't get around. I am going to surgically correct the tibial deformity on Thursday. Hopefully I can free up the extensor tendons from the scar tissue at the old fracture site too and give her (after a couple weeks of healing) a functional (but never likely to be "normal") left leg. I have also spent the past 3 days at the country's biggest veterinarian convention and talked with a bunch of vendors there that make prostheses and carts, etc. So if the left leg can't be salvaged there are still some options.
The little bugger goes everywhere with me, so I have gotten pretty attatched at this point. All of this is only possible because she has the best personality and tolerates the chair and 3 time daily physical therapy like a champ. If she had ever seemed to be suffering I would have put her to sleep humanely. Her dad was the coolest sweetest rooster on the planet and obviously passed some of that on. So even if she is a he, I am ok with ending up a thousand dollar pet chicken with a limp or cruising around in a wheelchair.

I'll give another update after surgery on Thursday!

Good luck with her/him! Fingers and feathers crossed for a successful surgery!

 

[SciFiDVM]

Life got really busy and I forgot to update. Nugget's tibial surgery went great. The bone healed perfectly in 2.5 weeks with no complications.
But... While she was under anesthesia I was able to get some better positioned X rays of her left femur, and while it fully healed from the fracture, it healed at a nearly 90 degree angle backward (like a capital L), and the bottom part was angled outward about 50 degrees, AND rotated about 45 degrees. In other words - the majority of the leg sticks outward and back with the knee pointing the wrong direction. And the Achilles tendon is contracted, forcing the ankle to stay hyperextended. This sounds bad, but really it will be another fairly straight-forward surgery to rebreak and straighten out the femur (using an IM pin and an external fixator). Then I will cut the Achilles and attempt to place a prosthetic segment of suture material to lengthen it enough to allow bending the hock. The hock will stay in a flexion splint while the femur heals. Then, hopefully, in about 3 weeks she will be walking.
I know it sounds like a lot to put her through, but through it all, she is the happiest, most spoiled chicken ever. And because of my job, she has always had the highest quality pain meds available whenever needed, so she has never suffered. Her personality is also ridiculous. I have been teaching her tricks to keep her from getting bored in her chick chair. She gives kisses and will "speak" on command. She also really enjoys sitting on the couch with me to watch tv and she will steal food off my plate when I eat around her.

Surgery on the femur is going to be in the next 1-2 weeks. I will try to update again then.

 

[txhall3]

So the adventure continues! So glad to hear that it is mostly forward progress. Sounds like she's handling it superbly and think of all the knowledge you are gaining that you can share with others. Thanks for updating, keep them coming!

 

[Jensownzoo]

Cool case, SciFiDVM! And Nugget sounds like a fabulous chickie as well...glad that if she/he had to have such complications with hatching, at least she did so under the watchful eye of a dedicated orthopedic surgeon. While I certainly hope that her second surgery goes well, I can't help wanting to see her perched on a tiny skateboard, pushing off with her good leg...