UPDATE: Little Jimmy the crippled baby

[mishellyshel]

He is so sweet looking. I really hope he makes it. Good luck at the vet.

 

[starleomach]

Is there any way to let him in with mom to nurse while you are watching...like supervised visitation?

 

[InkedupTara]

Fingers and paws crossed!

 

[inzeos]

Tabitha,

I wonder if it would be possible to try making some sort of fleece draw string "potato" sack for him, which would prevent him from having easy access to his agitated wounds?

 

[proudmom25]

Poor little guy. I really hope he makes it through all this.

Keep strong Jimmy.

 

[RDZCRanch]

Kristy, everytime he is in with her she ONLY goes after his legs when he is flipped on his back nursing. The only way he nurses is by flipping onto his back. I can let him nurse on her but she is just eating the flesh away from his bone now (sorry for the description people!).

Inzeos, I have bandaged his legs and he either drags the bandage off or chews it causing even more damage to his legs. A potato sack would just introduce foreign materials and feces and urine to his already aggravated wounds.

 

[proudmom25]

Too bad the wounds are raw. I ended up making Jade some little fleece booties. She tries to chew at them but can't get through them. Her outer wounds are starting to heal nicely.

 

[lauralynne]

Aw, that stinks, Tab. If any baby chinnie can survive, it'd be Jimmy! Hoping and praying for a a "best case scenario" for him!

 

[Spooky]

I've just read all of Jimmy's story, and I'm wishing for the best for this little guy - he sure is a trooper.
Here's hoping all turns out well!

 

[inzeos]

Kristy, everytime he is in with her she ONLY goes after his legs when he is flipped on his back nursing. The only way he nurses is by flipping onto his back. I can let him nurse on her but she is just eating the flesh away from his bone now (sorry for the description people!).

Inzeos, I have bandaged his legs and he either drags the bandage off or chews it causing even more damage to his legs. A potato sack would just introduce foreign materials and feces and urine to his already aggravated wounds.

Cat collar style "skirt" facing towards his tail?

 

[RDZCRanch]

While he can drag race pretty well, I don't want to add MORE weight to what Jimmy is already pulling around. He'll end up just not moving at all. The carrier I have him in doesn't have corners that are easy to get into so he hasn't been able to chew his legs since I pulled him from his mom.

 

[saphire]

Oh sweet little guy, I hope he pulls thru.

 

[Lynn & The Chins]

Oh, Tabitha, I'm just now seeing this update. I hope that Little Jimmy makes it -- he is SOO tiny and adorable!!! I can really see him snuggling with Little Two Paws, so I'm really hoping that he makes it. :hearts:

If the vet can amputate, I think that will be better than just the constant chewing by him and his mom.

I'll be keeping the both of you in my thoughts and prayers...

 

[Laurie]

Tab I will do more than cross my fingers, I will say lots of prayers for Jimmy and you too. I know this has been hard on you. I think you are doing a wonderful job with him.

 

[RDZCRanch]

Thanks Laurie and Lynn. I'm just waiting for the vet office to open now. He's loving the side of the cage with the heating pad but didn't feel warm enough to me so I turned it up. He took 2cc's for his first feeding and has taken anywhere from 4cc's to 6cc's after that. He's a little piggy boy and he talks to me while he's eating or while I'm holding him. I'm hoping to get him in tomorrow...but we will see how busy the vet is.

 

[mercynursie]

Definitely praying for ya'll. Just wondering, as far as dressing his little stumps go, have you tried the vetwrap/cohesive stuff that they use on horses legs and hard to dress wounds? I helped the vet techs rig a dressing for a cat's back feet(stupid owner and a different stupid vet agreed to declaw all four at the same time) who absolutely got out of everything they tried and ripped his feet open. I just happened to be in picking up meds for my dogs when the owner came in bawling like a baby and "at her wits end....Wish I never had it done..." Someone recommended our country fried vet and she brought him in. They listened to what ways had already failed even with collar on ,finally I stuck my nose in and asked if I could try. I'm a nurse, but I'll rig up anything to try to get something to work. We cleaned,dressed paws and wrapped with the vetwrap and my thought was to then go back over the back leg wrappings with another color vetwrap started at bottom of foot and spiral wrapped all the way up leg and thigh, two time around base of tail then spiral wrap all the way down other leg over foot and then back up the leg and loop around tail once more. Sounds like alot of wraps but its really not, you just have to make sure the wraps aren't too tight.With chins you could use the vetwrap to dress the wounds but then use fleece as the outer spiral cover just tie it off at the end.Don't know if it would work for Little Jimmy, but I got a thank you/bless you call from the vet techs/owner a week later when he came back in and was finally starting to healup. Owner said "he could even pee and poop without getting them dirty!" that's why the loop around the tail and it keeps em from pulling the dressing off when they can get to it. Just an idea:hmm:

 

[Jill of Beans]

Hugs to you and prayers for little Jimmy!

 

[RDZCRanch]

Mercy, that would be a great idea, except that he has wounds on the base of his tail and on his butt next to his tail. I'm assuming they are from him or his mom missing the feet and biting the tail/butt instead. It's also not a good idea to use vet wrap on chins. For some reason it always gets too tight and restricts blood flow (according to my chin vet who is ridiculously amazing with tiny/small animals). I use paper tape to hold bandages on instead because 1. it's strong 2. it doesn't stick ridiculously to fur and 3. it doesn't restrict blood flow. I had a kit with a broken leg last year and I had to splint and bandage his leg quite a few times so squirmy baby chin legs are nothing new for me to clean and dress. Because of the way he moves and how his legs contort when he moves, the bandages just come off very easily. Instead his wounds get cleaned twice a day and antibiotic is applied to keep infection from setting in. So far it's working, but it won't last forever which is why I want to get him to the vet for a surgery ASAP.

Thank you guys for the suggestions though. Sometimes when you're sitting here looking at a situation you don't see all the possibilities and it's good to put them out there just in case they might work.

So far in his carrier he is just sitting in there, munching on hay. I'm making him a mix of pellets, powdered milk and lifeline that he can munch on between feedings...he likes his hay.

 

[RDZCRanch]

I spoke to the vet this morning and we are scheduled for amputation to the knees on Monday. I suggested amputating all the way to the hips and he's really rather not go that route. I wanted to get in earlier but he is swamped with surgeries at the moment and even though I'll get Jimmy there on Monday, he is not sure exactly when they can do the surgery but he said they'll do it as soon as possible. I guess waiting until Monday means I can feed him like crazy to boost his strength before then.

Jimmy's separated from his mom and on fleece liners. He is doing really well with the wounds staying clean and I put in an extra piece of fleece that he has been cuddling under and beside. There is a video of him after one of his feedings this morning. He was being a sweet little cuddle baby after and peeping at me everytime I moved my arms. :hearts: Right now I'm mixing up powdered goat's milk for him and he's taking it really well. We're slowly increasing how much he's taking each time but I really want his strength up so I'm going to grab the regular goat's milk at the store today and see if he likes that more.

Here's a video of his peeping at me.
http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a377/fuzzychinchy/Kits/?action=view&current=MVI_1445.mp4


"I'm trying to sleep! Stop doing that flashy thing!!"

 

[cindyv3737]

I hope the surgery works! He sure had a lot to say to you after his feeding.