Broken hock in kitten 😟

[Ernmas]

Hi all, poor little ginger boy launched himself over a high gate to escape a chasing dog on Friday morning. He was crying hissing etc and dragging his leg so brought him to vet. Turns out he has a badly broken leg which needs surgery and an external fixator (?) and will have to be kept in for 6 weeks.

He is a 11 month old active little guy who hates being kept indoors so it's going to be very hard going for him.

Stupidly I have no insurance so this is going to cost €€€€. Should I ask the dog owner to contribute as the dog should not have been off the lead in a housing estate surely? Or is that ridiculously unreasonable? I can't opt for amputation or euthanasia as the kids would be heart broken (so would I) but that's pretty much our holiday out the window. Moral of the story; get pet insurance.

Yes, that is indeed the moral of the story. So sorry about your boy. I hope he recovers quickly.

Well you can ask the dog owner, and it isn't unreasonable, but if they say no (which is very, very likely) then there's not much you can do.

If it was my cat I'd go for amputation as I look after children with external fixators and wouldn't want to put my girls through that. The risk of infection In humans is big. In cat's it must be even worse. Cat's manage well on three legs.

Amputation is not a poor option. I had clients who were insured to the hilt, but their lovely Bengal would have never tolerated 6 weeks in a cage. They choose amputation and with two weeks he was back patrolling the neighbourhood. I have always said even though I am a vet with certain of my own cats amputation would be the best option due the cats nature not due to finances.

Broken limbs in cats and dogs can fix pretty quickly; especially the young. Sorry you learned the hard way about insurance

I also think that amputation for a cat is a better option. The end outcome might not be as good as with the more expensive fixator treatment but his recovery will be quicker and you won't be prolonging his discomfort. He'll be back to normal and active much faster. I nearly adopted a three legged cat, I dithered for a day and someone else snapped him up. He was perfectly mobile, climbed and lived a normal cat life. He was 10 months when they had to amputate his leg.

Oh I'm dithering now. This is my first cat so I'm learning in the job so to speak. I never heard that amputation might be the better option for a cat. I thought going down the surgery route was more 'humane'. Argh what do I do ??

And I agree that they cope brilliantly in 3 legs. Rather that than protracted pain if a quick heal wasn't possible.

the rescue i volunteer at has had its fair share of cats that have needed amputation of a limb, the recovery from this is a lot quicker than fixator, and cats are amazing they compensate by shifting thier centre of balance to make up for the loss of limb, the only thing you have to do is make sure they dont put on too much wheight as theres one leg doing the work of two, and when they get older as in tens /elevens they can be prone to arthritus

Op if it was one of my girls. I absolutely would amputate it would be better for all of us. No vet will think you care any less for choosing the easier option, and you do have to consider finances. They could start to spiral out of control if she developed an infection or other problems. (Bent/ damaged pins)

My cat was in plaster approx 6 weeks, if I remember rightly, and he was also restricted by being in a cage. It wasn't the easiest time and there were no complications with his recovery, but I wouldn't even have considered amputation. I'm not authority on such things, but it does seem extreme to remove the leg. Are there any vets here who can comment?

If he was in plaster I presume the the break was a simple one. External fixators are for complex breaks.

Not sure if this will help but my own experience of a pet having an amputation

Years ago I homed a dog that had smashed his hock in a RTA he had it pinned etc and I carefully looked after him , he was a young very active dog , and his hind leg remained very stiff through the joints and when he ran fast he dragged the leg , on slower gates he semi twisted his spine / back to balance , and he was on metacam daily ( oral painkiller ) about 2 years later I noticed it weeping near the old wound and took him back to my vet who said the pins had come loose and the best remedy was to amputate whilst the lad was still young and well, I was devastated that this was the vets preferred option but after much thought took his advise ... I am glad I listened as my dog was so much more mobile after the op , he no longer needed metacam daily and he no longer twisted his spine to balance and didn't drag the bad leg as it was no longer there , eventually through old age and over use his other leg fused at the joints too but he still led an active life right up until I lost him through old age

I hope this helps , I didn't have insurance either but it was worth every penny ,
Hope your boy is back on his feet again very soon x

Thanks everyone for your feedback and experiences. I just dropped my ginger fur baby to the vet. We talked through the options around in circles. I asked the vet what would he do if it was his cat and he said he would not opt for amputation. In my heart I think the surgery, whilst in the short term will be a pain for the poor cat, is the best option for him. I just hope I've made the right decision for the cat. Will keep you all posted.

Ginger boy looks gorgeous. Trust your vet. Hope he's on the mend soon.

Hoping for a good recovery, what a nasty thing to happen to poor ginger boy x

Ginger boy is gorgeous !

I think you are right to ask vet what they would do if he were their own pet and to go with their advice as they can judge first hand both injury and kitten temperament , he will soon be spoilt to bits with all the attention you will lavish on him and back right as rain in no time at all x

How's the gorgeous one today?

So sorry to hear about this. Hope your lad is ok.
Doubt the dog owner will cough up but I would definitely be having some sharp words about the consequences of not keeping it on a lead. And actually, if the dog is insured, could the vets bill be paid through that? Not sure how these things work...
Could you also consider reporting him for having a dog out of control or taking him to the small claims court? If you had a witness or some cctv so it's not one word against another...

Hope kitty is ok now, I'd have words with the dog owner too, but seriously doubt they would contribute :/