# Ouch!! This had too hurt!! PLEASE READ



## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

I feel so sad for my little froggy. And so stupid at the same time.
You know when you order an orchid attached to a piece of cork bark? Well they are usually attached to the bark with a fine wire or nylon line. If you have any of these with wire on them in your tank, PLEASE REMOVE THE WIRE!!!
Mine is about 4" x 6" and siliconed to the side of the tank. There was no way a frog could get behind it. Well this morning before I left for work I noticed one of my Patricias WAS behind the cork bark. Part of the bark had come unglued from the glass. I did not think much of it (FORGOT ABOUT THE WIRE) and figured he would come out when he was ready and that when he did, I would stuff some moss behind it to stop him from doing it again.
When I got home for lunch, the frog was still there so I knew something was wrong. I pulled the bark completely off the tank and the poor frogs leg was entangled in the wire. Needles to say, he will never have use of this hind leg again. 
I am sure this must have hurt like hell. Wild animals that get caught in traps will usually trash around until they get loose or tear their limb off.
What should I do? I know they put horses down when they break a leg, but should I do the same for this poor guy?


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## defaced (May 23, 2005)

This is a call no one can make for you. I've seen pics of dendros who have recovered find from broken limbs. Some have commented that they do better with these kinds of injuries than leasions. Luckly I don't have any first hand experience. 

My opnion, is I would try reasonable measures to treat the frog if possible. If they don't work, then putting the frog down would be my resort. 

Man, that totally sucks. I really hope you can save your frog and give him a quality life after this. 

Was this wire thin like fishing line? (just making sure I've got the facts right)


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## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

Yes, it was very thin line. You could hardly see it.
Medical wise, what could I do for the little guy? I can't set his leg. I just wonder if it could necropsi (sp) and fall off, causing infection?


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## Guest (Sep 6, 2006)

Poor little guy.

I can't believe they get caught in that stuff. Those wires are usally pretty stiff and widely spaced. What went wrong? I still don't get it .

Sorry about that, it sucks.


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## defaced (May 23, 2005)

> Medical wise, what could I do for the little guy? I can't set his leg. I just wonder if it could necropsi (sp) and fall off, causing infection?


Take this with the smallest grain of salt you have because I build tanks, not fix frogs. It is my understanding the circulation has to be lost for a body part to die like you're describing. I don't think it's likely that's a possibility with the injury here unless the bone is pinching off circulation. 

From what I've seen of broken frog bones (3-5 pics on here), they heal in whatever fashing they can and the frog goes on. I've not read of many people intervening with process.


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## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

> I can't believe they get caught in that stuff. Those wires are usally pretty stiff and widely spaced. What went wrong? I still don't get it .


The wire wraps around the cork bark and ties in the back. The bark is not flat so there is a small gap in the back where the wire does not touch the back of the bark. This gap was about 1/4" and the frog got his leg in that gap and could not get it out. A freak accident, but very avoidable by never putting this wire in your viv.

The frog is doing well. I have not seen him eat lately. Even with a broken leg, he is very fast. When I approach the viv he shoots across to the pond on the other side just as fast as he did when he had two good legs. As long as he continues to eat, I guess I will not worry to much.


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## vet_boy77 (Feb 10, 2005)

It's all about blood supply at this point. If it is disrupted, that the leg will die and most likely the frog too. If only a small part dies, there might be hope, but an infection is also possible.
What to do... consider getting it to a vet who might be able to at least anesthetize the frog and reset it in a more natural position. The frog might be lame for a while, or permanetly, but survival is possible. Even without any anesthesia, correcting the problem may be what's best. 
Best of luck.
John


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## Greenstar (Feb 28, 2004)

I would say dry ice him. It's cruel but I believe it is more cruel to let him live, hopping around and trying to manveur on an obviously demolished back leg. However if he seems to be doing just fine, as far as mobility and feeding, I have seen frogs missing eyes, legs, or feet do just fine. It just depends.


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## kyle1745 (Feb 15, 2004)

I'd give it some time... while I doubt he will fully recover he may be fine. 

I have a frog with a broken leg and it has been find for a long time. Granted its a bit of a different injury. 

If it starts to go downhill then think about the options.


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## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

Thanks guys. I have the Ambisol (Benzocain) ready. I hope I don't need it.
The strange thing is that I have not seen the other frog in the tank since the accident. If the hurt frog made noises while it happened, it must have scared the other frog into hiding.


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## Steve (Apr 8, 2006)

Hi Steve, 

I'm no doctor, and certainly no expert with PDF's, i have however seen quite a few photo's of frogs with a missing limb, for whatever reason be it injury or birth defect.

If you have a good vet who deals with Amphibians of our nature he may be able to amputate and seal the injury then the frog would just learn to get by like any other amputee. (i know this is not comparable to humans and the shock and stress here would be a factor), but it's better than the big viv in the sky i think and definately worth looking into.

I hope it works out for you,

Steve


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

snip "If you have a good vet who deals with Amphibians of our nature he may be able to amputate and seal the injury then the frog would just learn to get by like any other amputee. (i know this is not comparable to humans and the shock and stress here would be a factor), but it's better than the big viv in the sky i think and definately worth looking into. "endsnip

If performed correctly, the couple of limb amputations performed by vets were pretty simple affairs that just needed some follow up to ensure that there wasn't any infection of the wound site. 

The frog is obviously coping well but you may need to evalulate whether amputation is necessary not based on how well the frog is getting around but the risk to the frog if it can get the abnormally oriented foot caught in something else in the enclosure. This may require you to keep the frog set up in a more open, less dense enclousure. 

When considering euthansia, you really need to evaluate the quality of the animal's life from a slightly different persepective based on how well the animal heals, whether it is feeding etc and not base the judgement on a mammalian perspective as herps in general can often not only survive but thrive with injuries that could kill a mammal. 
From what little I have seen, splinting is often not possible with injuries like this but I would suggest discussion with a vet as to the to amputate etc. 

Some thoughts, 

Ed


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## dragonfrog (Feb 16, 2006)

Amputation.... hmmm, I had not thought of that. I will have to call our local amphibian vet and see what he can do. I agree, it would be disastrous for it to get it's leg caught in something else in the tank. Thanks Ed.


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