A four-month-old Springer Spaniel called Alfie dropped himself deep into trouble when he fell from a ledge while running alongside the driveway at his home.
The young pup was clearly hurt with owners Tim and Lauren Bailey shocked to see him limping along on just three legs while keeping his front left leg raised.
Lauren, a veterinary nurse, also noticed that Alfie’s left shoulder seemed to be “sticking out” so the couple immediately took their beloved pet to an emergency vets.
After initial radiographs showed no fractures, Lauren took the images to the clinic where she works, where her colleagues identified a fractured humerus, the upper arm bone, which was fractured through and at the level of the elbow joint.
Alfie was immediately referred to Cave Veterinary Specialists near Wellington, Somerset, for surgery to repair the damage.
Jess Gower, a European and RCVS specialist in small animal surgery at Cave, said: “This was a lateral humeral condylar fracture. This is a serious, but quite common fracture in relatively young, skeletally immature puppies who fall from a height.
“The fracture is serious because it goes through the joint, so if it is not accurately repaired, the puppy will not regain good use of the limb.
“Some spaniels have an additional problem called humeral intracondylar fissure (HIF), an inherent weak line through the bone of the humeral condyle making it more prone to fracture, and that may have been the case for Alfie. “Pleasingly, assessment of the shoulder did not reveal any additional problem there.
“Alfie underwent surgery to reduce the fracture and stabilise it with a 32mm, 3.5 cortical screw and a second implant along the epicondylar ridge of the elbow. Alfie was able to go home the day after surgery, comfortable and already weight bearing.”
Alfie has since made a full recovery and Lauren and Tim are extremely happy with the treatment he received at Cave.
