Felicity, a beautiful 4-month-old ewe, arrived into care after suffering a fracture to her leg that had remained untreated resulting in the damage to the joint and bone being irreparable. Felicity was not only suffering from the unimaginable pain of a broken leg but also from an abscess, on the same leg, larger than we had ever seen. She was immediately taken to our wonderful vets at Seville Veterinary Clinic who saw her without delay. The abscess was drained and strong pain relief was administered, providing perhaps the first relief in 8 weeks from what must surely have been incredible pain.
Unfortunately, there was no way Felicity could keep the leg because to do so would leave her in constant pain for the remainder of her life. Due to the infection she was also suffering from, surgery had to wait a week while the infection cleared. Felicity spent the next week at the veterinary surgery where she was monitored closely and strong pain relief administered as needed.
Following her surgery, Felicity had to adapt to balancing on 3 legs so to help her with this, she spent time each day in a sling. The sling supported her weight and helped her to adjust her balance and strengthen her other back leg.
Although an amputation is a major surgery, just as with cats and dogs, lambs usually do very well on 3 legs. Felicity will join our growing list of lambs whose lives have been saved by having a leg amputation. This list includes our last amputee Stewie who came through the procedure with flying colours.
In February, Felicity was adopted by Victorian Lamb Rescue where she now lives in their special needs flock.
Photos: Nerissa McDonald
