Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Please post questions about pets who are expected to undergo amputation or who have already undergone amputation here, as well as pets born with missing or incomplete limbs.
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gmmace80
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Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2020 3:07 pm

Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Post by gmmace80 »

(posting on behalf of my friend, Debbie, who is having trouble attaching photos)

I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions for this kitten? He is 7 weeks old and has no leg from the thigh down. I have tried to wrap his stump where there is a scab forming, but the kitten retracts his leg back inside and fights me to do it. He has had the end scab over, only to run around and break it open again, because it's basically just a thin layer of skin over the end of the bone. The shelter vet said the leg is cut off at a spot that makes it difficult to wrap or cover. He may need to have have the leg amputated higher up at some point, but he's too young right now. Any suggestions?
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BendyMom
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Re: Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Post by BendyMom »

Hello!
I took in two kittens last year with lil stumps like that. Their stumps wre from a traumatic birth defect and never quite healed.
What I did was set up a lil kitty playland in a giant rabbit cage that had padded surfaces, so they could play but there was padding for their stumps. If it is to the point where it is open and bleeding, my vet woudl prescribe gabapentin to give them, which would calm then down and make them sleep for a bit. A few days of keeping them calm helped them heal.
Some very useful information to have would be an xray of the stumps. If that is pricey, talk to your vet and see if they can do just one view instead of a whole series, my vet has done that for me sometimes. It isn't as much information but they take the view they think will be most helpful. If you can afford a whole series, which is usually three views, then do that. You want to see how the end of the stump is put together.
For example my boy Shrimpie was born without hind feet but had sores and pain on one stump. Xrays showed u s that the painful stump had the bone ending in a point and there was no padding, just skin over it. We did an amputation to take off that leg and he is much happier. X-rays of the nonpainful stump showed that he actually had the first few foot bones and a little padding which make a platform for him to put weight on. That one was not painful.
The two kittens did eventually need amputations of their stumps as they got older. The end of the bone was sharp and in one case actually came through the end of his stump one day! That was awful. We hadn't seen any signs of trouble until then. I would discuss with the vet a long term and a short term plan. Long term might include stump revision (amputation), you coudl discuss costs and recovery (my guys recovered quickly after an initial rest period of about a week where I kept them stoned out of their minds while the incision healed). Short term planning could be how to set them up a space at home until they are big enough for surgery. Places like Walmart and Amazon sell play flooring for toddlers, it is a kind of stiff foam. I have found that useful, it does clean easily but their lil claws will tear it up.
Definitely also discuss costs with them because it seems these days amputations have gotten pricey. Please don't be shy about doing a gofundme or similar fundraiser if you need to. Many people are willing to help out pets in a bad situation.

hope this is helpful!
http://www.alittletlc.com

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Bendy Kitty
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critters
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Re: Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Post by critters »

:whale: Yeah, clawhands are VERY fond of scratching on those "puzzle tiles," but they hold up a fair while. :lol:

I wonder about using those self-sticking wraps on it, even if you have to wrap the baby's stump up to his body for a little while? You have to be super careful about not pulling it tight enough to make a tourniquet.
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BendyMom
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Re: Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Post by BendyMom »

I was thinking of using the soft flooring and not wrapping the stump, actually. keeping him confined to a smaller area with soft flooring without wrapping would hopefully work ok. My amputees with similar stumps didn't have wraps because it seemed near impossible.
http://www.alittletlc.com

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Bendy Kitty
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i am not the same without you.
Williamson
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Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2020 3:13 pm

Re: Wrapping leg stump on kitten?

Post by Williamson »

I am the foster for this kitten. Thank you for the responses thus far. I have tried using vet wrap with a non stick gauze pad over the flesh, it just doesnt stay on based on where the leg is missing. He also retract that part of his leg back inside, making it hard to get that part of his leg out to wrap it. The issue (the rescue mentioned it) is the area that needs to be wrapped is near impossible to stay on. Using vet wrap, it just slides right off. Which is why that tourniquet is a possibility but too hard for me to attempt and the rescue has already said they cant wrap it based on the location. They felt if he can build a callous where the fleshy part is, that would be the best case scenario. He is in a small space (a bathroom) but runs off his energy and breaks open the scab. He has 2 layers of towels and 1 layer of soft blankets. He is on gabapentin but I cant say it makes him tired in the least. Until he is bigger and of weight for possible amputation, the rescue is saying there isnt much that I can do to keep the scab from breaking open. So that is really where I am at.
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