10/12/2024
๐ฐ ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ ๐ถ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ฝ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ด ๐ฅ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ ๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ ๐ซถ
๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐ - ๐๐ง๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ช๐ง๐ฎ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐จ ๐
Meet Gilbert, a sweet 8-year-old rabbit who recently visited Dr Michelle at our Peninsula clinic for an emergency consultation after getting his leg caught on a fence while playing outside.
Dr Michelle promptly administered pain relief to keep Gilbert comfortable while assessing his injuries. Thankfully, apart from his leg injury, Gilbert's clinical examination was normal, which was an excellent sign for this older bun. However, it was soon apparent that poor Gilbert had suffered a degloving injury to his right hind leg. This is a traumatic injury when the top layers of skin and tissue are torn away from the underlying structures, exposing muscle, connective tissue, or bone.
Since Gilbert's injury was caught early and the tissue flap remained intact and clean, Dr Michelle was optimistic that the skin's blood supply hadn't been too compromised, making surgical repair a viable option. Gilbert's leg was initially bandaged to protect his skin and keep the tissues moist and as healthy as possible prior to surgery later the same day.
The wound was carefully cleaned during surgery, and Gilbert's skin was painstakingly realigned and sutured back together. A protective bandage was applied post-surgery to aid the healing process.
Unfortunately, at a follow-up visit a few days later, it became evident that the wound wasn't healing as expected due to damage to the skin's delicate blood vessels. Gilbert required a second surgery to remove the compromised tissue. From there, his injury was managed as an open wound, allowing it to heal by second intention, a process where the wound heals from the inside out.
๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ'๐ ๐ฎ ๐พ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฑ๐ผ๐๐ป:๐
โช ๐๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด occurs when wound edges are brought together (e.g., with sutures or staples) for quick recovery.
โช ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด happens when the wound is left open to heal naturally, a slower process that can take weeks to months.
Gilbert's devoted owners were determined to give him every chance to recover. Over five weeks, they brought him to the clinic twice weekly for bandage changes and wound care. Gilbert was a fantastic patient throughout, supported by his bonded friend Eugene, our dedicated veterinary team, and his incredible owners.
We're thrilled to report that Gilbert fully recovered and is back to his cheeky, happy self. He recently returned for his vaccination, where we gave him a clean bill of health. What a brave and gorgeous boy!
Clinic: Peninsula
www.unusualpetvets.com.au