Our Alpaca Update

Our alpaca update or “how I became a Veterinarian assistant”.

Over the weekend, we were able to get some aspirin into Benny. Sunday evening was the first time we saw him moving around a bit more like his old self since he broke his leg 5 days earlier.

Monday afternoon a farm call is scheduled with our Vet to replace Benny’s cast. I scoot home from work early, in order to ‘upgrade’ to Vet Assistant, because of I have those special body parts (bendable knees).

We get the old cast off with great relief. There is no abrasion and no compound to the fracture. I hold the leg out steadily as our Vet wraps a new cast up Benny’s leg. This time the cast goes over his ‘elbow’ and at an angle, to help keep it in place and make sure gravity does not help it slide off.

Our Vet is much more hopeful of Benny doing well from this point. He leaves the patient in the ever capable hands of his new Assistant.

Benny takes a long time to wake up from going ‘under’. We wait with him in the cold barn, which gives us time to sign his cast.

We’re feeling grateful and relieved that Benny’s broken leg is not worse. Had the fracture become compound, we’d have had to put him down. Benny is a sweet comical animal, that relies on us to keep him safe.

When he finally wakes up, it gets ‘even better’. Benny is quickly more stable and instead of dragging his bad leg as he had over the weekend, he now ‘limps’ on it as he moves through the barn. Way to go Benny Boy, way to go.

…and we are blessed, Benny too.