Three times a baby

This article was originally featured in our Spring/Summer edition of Pet Tales! Read the latest here.

To celebrate National Veterinary Technician Appreciation Week, we’re sharing Panela’s story to highlight how veterinary technicians go above and beyond for shelter animals, including opening their homes to foster our most in-need pets through their recovery. Celebrate with us and thank your pet’s veterinary technician during your next visit!

If you follow us on social media (and, really, why wouldn’t you?), then you know that many animals arrive at our shelters in need of significant medical care. While some have congenital conditions or develop illnesses on their own, others have been with people who, because of systemic barriers or other circumstances, are no longer able to provide the care they need. And then, there are animals like Panela, who are suffering from serious and sudden injuries that require urgent intervention.

Last fall, one of our Alamosa neighbors brought Panela (then known as Benaiah) to our San Luis Valley Animal Center after discovering the tiny, wounded kitten on his way home from work. Given the trauma to his left side, we suspected that Panela had been hit by a car. The dried blood and abrasion on his nose, plus his inability to stand without assistance, were other clear signs. After being stabilized and treated for pain, Panela was soon transferred up to our Leslie A. Malone Center, where radiographs revealed fractures in his left humerus bone in the front, and left tibia and fibula in the back.

These findings left our veterinarians with a bit of a quandary – what solution would relieve Panela’s immediate suffering; allow us to preserve resources and balance his complex recovery with the care needs of other animals; and give him the best chance at a long, happy, and independent life? Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it), these are the types of decisions that our shelter veterinary team faces every day.

When homeless animals come to us with broken limbs, our veterinarians often deem amputation to be the most humane yet efficient treatment option. But, in Panela’s case, at least one of his broken left legs would need to remain. Otherwise, he would never be able to walk again. Once the period had passed for someone to reclaim him, our team surgically removed Panela’s hind leg and carefully repaired the fragile bone in his front. At the time, he weighed just under 2 pounds.

Amazingly, Panela was able to wobble – in a cone, no less – to his bowl and litter box just days after his procedure! But he would need to heal in the home of an experienced foster parent who could keep an eye on his mobility and ensure he was eating, drinking, and eliminating normally. Kaylee, one of our amazing relief technicians, was more than happy to volunteer for the job.

Over the next month, the two became closely bonded. Kaylee provided Panela with comfort and encouragement, helped nurse a ruptured abscess that formed on his hip, and even introduced him to the beautiful, chilly mountains of Colorado! In turn, his resilience filled her with hope.

This level of dedication and care, including the thoughtful efforts of all our teams, led to Panela’s full recovery and a happy new beginning.

Today, he is living his best life on three strong legs, enjoying the love he has found with his adoptive family.