For everyone who has had to put an animal through essential surgery, life seems to revolve around this personal drama, whether it's a highly prized horse or a budgy with a broken leg. Humans need to rationalize everything that happens in their lives and compare what is happening now against the potential results in the future. Animals appear to take every moment as it arrives. When the need arises to make an important decision for the animal, there is no easy path and no way to explain it to the animal.
......and thus it seems that Bella hates me for what has happened to her - but she'll get over it:)) Will I?
Five and a half hours of surgery yesterday means that her knee cap is now securely back in place with a carefully sutured ligament and a steel wire to take some of the strain. She has a full cast on the leg and spinal catheter administering painkiller.
This morning she was hoisted to her feet and took a few tentative steps - the first in almost a week. It took a minute or two to learn how to cush with one stiff leg, but she got there.
She was NOT pleased to see me, despite the offering of spruce twigs!... but then would she be any different if I approached her in the paddock? The guilt is all our own creation. Then again, our llamas don't usually display pleasure at our arrival in their field ....intent only on the food we bring.
The Next Stage?
Bella is being kept on a painkiller for a few days from which she will be weaned next week. A steel brace is being made to provide a semi-flexible support system to enable mobility whilst the knee ligament recovers. Without the brace, she will try to cush in the normal fashion, over-stretching the ligament and risk undoing all the surgery. Apparently the brace is commonly used for dogs, but the llama leg brace is somewhat of a novelty. Visions of Forrest Gump spring to mind, shedding his poorly contrived leg-irons as he runs down the road.
Hopefully, we will be able to make the journey back home next week - I am missing out on the garden harvest!
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Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Bella
At seven or so years old, Bella has reached full size ....and just as well, because she weighs in at a fraction under 400lbs - apparently the largest Llama to grace the halls of the University of Saskatchewan Large Animal Clinic and heavy enough to pin my arms to the ground should I dare to reach underneath her!
Why is she here?
Ruptured ligaments in her stifle knee joint has lead to a luxated patella...which basically means she has a dislocated knee cap, which currently resides high up on her femur. Without the ligaments to secure the patella in the correct position, she cannot extend (straighten) the leg and neither can she bear weight upon it, leaving her right hind leg to do all the work. She basically bunny-hops around the paddock.
How did it happen?
We had noticed several times after she had mated that she shook her left hind leg immediately after rising. We supposed, in our ignorance, that she was trapping a nerve, her leg had gone to sleep or perhaps she had a touch of arthritis. We now know that this is a sign of a luxating patella being pulled back into position automatically by the animal. However, this must have happened one time too many for her and her ligament finally ruptured.
Why did this happen?
We have seen a single black wolf prowling around the llama herd on a few occasions. We live on a fairly steep hillside and it is possible that she slipped on ice whilst running. She also suffered a miscarriage in April, which might also have been the result of a bad fall. Perhaps the surgery will reveal more information.
Initially we believed it to be a slight sprain as we could find no swelling, heat or other signs of broken bones or dislocation. We do not have access to a vet in this region, but we made several enquiries, yielding different ideas and solutions. hmmmm!
We gave Bella a selenium/Vitamin E injection as we live in a selenium deficient area.
We sought advice about parasites, but the symptoms did not match.
We managed to have a Horse Shiatsu/massage practitioner visit and spent two hours examining and manipulating her looking for a possible neurological problem. This is really good way of stretching the patience of a Llama, but Bella still bore our pulling and pushing with her usual placidity. On a subsequent session we finally tried her patience too far and I received my first ever direct-hit, llama spit. I won't tell you the message written in her eyes, but it was plain she had had enough for one day!
The nearest vet referred us to another veterinary about 4 hours distant, that possessed a mobile x-ray machine. A long day out and several radiographs later - we learned the true nature of the problem. Luxated patella or dislocated knee.
.......and then comes the problem of locating a surgeon who is sufficiently knowledgeable and confident to try ligament reconstruction on a Llama.
Prognosis?
At worst she will have to have the leg amputated mid-femur. We received various conflicting ideas about how well a camelid can survive on three legs. Actually 3-legged Llamas are not unheard of and we already have a sire with one completely useless leg!
At best, after a lengthy period of recuperation and much physiotherapy, she should be perfectly normal.
Luckily for us Bella is the sweetest llama imaginable and her suffering and man-handling, travels and manipulations, needles and nurses have all been taken in her usual good humour......well almost!:)
Why is she here?
Ruptured ligaments in her stifle knee joint has lead to a luxated patella...which basically means she has a dislocated knee cap, which currently resides high up on her femur. Without the ligaments to secure the patella in the correct position, she cannot extend (straighten) the leg and neither can she bear weight upon it, leaving her right hind leg to do all the work. She basically bunny-hops around the paddock.
How did it happen?
We had noticed several times after she had mated that she shook her left hind leg immediately after rising. We supposed, in our ignorance, that she was trapping a nerve, her leg had gone to sleep or perhaps she had a touch of arthritis. We now know that this is a sign of a luxating patella being pulled back into position automatically by the animal. However, this must have happened one time too many for her and her ligament finally ruptured.
Why did this happen?
We have seen a single black wolf prowling around the llama herd on a few occasions. We live on a fairly steep hillside and it is possible that she slipped on ice whilst running. She also suffered a miscarriage in April, which might also have been the result of a bad fall. Perhaps the surgery will reveal more information.
Initially we believed it to be a slight sprain as we could find no swelling, heat or other signs of broken bones or dislocation. We do not have access to a vet in this region, but we made several enquiries, yielding different ideas and solutions. hmmmm!
We gave Bella a selenium/Vitamin E injection as we live in a selenium deficient area.
We sought advice about parasites, but the symptoms did not match.
We managed to have a Horse Shiatsu/massage practitioner visit and spent two hours examining and manipulating her looking for a possible neurological problem. This is really good way of stretching the patience of a Llama, but Bella still bore our pulling and pushing with her usual placidity. On a subsequent session we finally tried her patience too far and I received my first ever direct-hit, llama spit. I won't tell you the message written in her eyes, but it was plain she had had enough for one day!
The nearest vet referred us to another veterinary about 4 hours distant, that possessed a mobile x-ray machine. A long day out and several radiographs later - we learned the true nature of the problem. Luxated patella or dislocated knee.
.......and then comes the problem of locating a surgeon who is sufficiently knowledgeable and confident to try ligament reconstruction on a Llama.
Prognosis?
At worst she will have to have the leg amputated mid-femur. We received various conflicting ideas about how well a camelid can survive on three legs. Actually 3-legged Llamas are not unheard of and we already have a sire with one completely useless leg!
At best, after a lengthy period of recuperation and much physiotherapy, she should be perfectly normal.
Luckily for us Bella is the sweetest llama imaginable and her suffering and man-handling, travels and manipulations, needles and nurses have all been taken in her usual good humour......well almost!:)
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Introduction
At last! Time is forced upon me to begin this long anticipated blog. It's not often that time is doled out in sufficient lumps that enable one to catch up on writing, but I am stranded here at the University of Saskatchewan, whilst one of our Llamas undergoes some difficult surgery to repair a knee joint.
Having driven the long-suffering 'Bella' nearly 1800kms across Canada to one of the few places that felt sufficiently confident to treat her, Bella's experience, ours and certainly that of the Saskatchewan University veterinary clinic, will hopefully go some way to filling the knowledge-void of llama medical know-how.
Our experience with Llamas is far from considerable and we entered this mysterious camelid domain completely 'green'. Through careful observation though we have developed a canny knack of interpreting the body-language, llama sounds and needs of our herd or perhaps I should say that the Llamas have spent many hours teaching US how to behave in their presence! It is hoped that we can share some of this knowledge and learn from the experience of others.
The journey, thus far, has been demanding, entertaining and extremely rewarding. At this particular moment in time though, I don't think Bella sees life quite that way. Her story will unfold here as it happens!
Having driven the long-suffering 'Bella' nearly 1800kms across Canada to one of the few places that felt sufficiently confident to treat her, Bella's experience, ours and certainly that of the Saskatchewan University veterinary clinic, will hopefully go some way to filling the knowledge-void of llama medical know-how.
Our experience with Llamas is far from considerable and we entered this mysterious camelid domain completely 'green'. Through careful observation though we have developed a canny knack of interpreting the body-language, llama sounds and needs of our herd or perhaps I should say that the Llamas have spent many hours teaching US how to behave in their presence! It is hoped that we can share some of this knowledge and learn from the experience of others.
The journey, thus far, has been demanding, entertaining and extremely rewarding. At this particular moment in time though, I don't think Bella sees life quite that way. Her story will unfold here as it happens!
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