20 Sept 2024
Equine clinicians were called in by a Merseyside safari park to help with a fracture the kind of which had not been recorded anywhere else before.
Allister Webb
Job Title
Amara with her full limb cast.
A university veterinary team has operated on a white rhino’s broken leg is what is thought to have been the first procedure of its kind globally.
Clinicians from the University of Liverpool’s Leahurst Equine Hospital are now working on sharing their experiences of Amara’s case in the hope they can help colleagues facing similar scenarios.
The unit was called in by Knowsley Safari staff after Amara, whose birth featured in the Channel 4 series Secret Life of the Safari Park, began limping on her right front leg.
Subsequent radiographs confirmed Amara had a fractured ulna and, with no cases of that kind recorded, vets applied their knowledge of treating horses to the injury.
David Stack, Liverpool senior lecturer in equine surgery, said: “Amara’s operation is unlike anything we’ve experienced previously.
“We knew we could position the camera inside her joint, but due to the unprecedented nature of the procedure, we didn’t know how much room we would have to operate, or how much of the affected area we would be able to see.”
At least 10 vets, as well as nurses and support staff, were involved in the operation – which lasted for five hours – in Amara’s enclosure.
The procedure included keyhole surgery on the wrist, while a full limb cast was applied to support the leg-post surgery.
Platelet-rich plasma derived from Amara’s own blood was also injected to aid recovery.
Although Dr Stack admitted they didn’t know whether the cast would be strong enough, its removal in May came little more than six months after the injury first occurred.
He added: “Treating Amara has been a truly ground-breaking veterinary journey incorporating many firsts, which we will now document should another animal team encounter similar scenarios in the future, though we very much hope the notes are never needed.”
