Just like in our human world, broken bones are a fairly common occurrence for cats, dogs and other pets. Factors such as animal fights, accidents, being struck by a car, and even age can all lead to pet fractures.

If you’ve seen a cat or dog with a cast on its leg, you’ll know that vets have used traditional plaster casts to fix their broken bones and fractured limbs.

In recent years, however, veterinary medicine and technology has seen advancements which have changed the way that vets remedy pet fractures.

As new technologies and techniques emerge, we are seeing less use of plaster casts to set and treat bones.

Read on to find out more about these new veterinarian techniques to see how your local vet can treat your pet’s broken bones.

Bridge Plating for Bone Fractures

The most significant shift in treating bone fractures has been the emphasis on bridge plating.

Bridge plating uses a spanning or bridging technique and it is considered more of a ‘biological fixation’, as opposed to a ‘mechanical fixation’. Said simply, this means that fractures are repaired anatomically with this approach.

Bridge plating is performed using locked plating systems that have screws which fix to a plate. This creates a fixed angle construct, identical to an external skeletal fixator, albeit as an internal device.

The Advantage of Bridge Plating for Broken Bones

Some fractures result in either a large gap due to missing bone. They could also result in a similarly large gap spanned by significant comminution. In either of these cases, the fracture gap cannot (or should not) be reconstructed.

Bridge plating encourages a more biologic reconstruction – this is the biological fixation that we mentioned before. This allows the veterinary surgeon to more effectively treat fractures with large gaps.

Advanced 24-Hour Vet Care in Perth

Has your dog or can been involved in an accident? Talk to your vet about the best bone fracture technique for your pet. Every situation will be different and a professional will be able to determine the best course of action for you and your pet.

At Vet24, we’ve been caring for animals since 1973. Trust us to provide you with the best advice for all aspects of pet care.

In the event of a pet emergency, we have the largest and best equipped veterinary hospital in Western Australia. Including 24-hour specialist surgeons on board to take care of pet bone fractures.