Calf with broken leg

[gopher]

Currently we have a calf with a broken leg and our vet said to just leave it alone and it may heal on its own. It appears that the calf is not in pain and otherwise in good condition and gaining weight. The break is high up on a front leg and the animal is 2.5 months old. I wonder if others have had experienced this and what was the end result ?

[pandiana]

Calves with broken legs do not seem that uncommon. I have had both a lamb and a calf with a broken leg. Both were casted by our local vet and did well. Several of my neighbors also have had good results from casting. I have also heard of home-made casts that were also apparently successful. A tube packed around a well cushioned leg to immobilize it is the general idea. At the price of calves this year it would seem money well spent to have a proper cast put on. There are some outcomes, however, that are not good depending on where the break occurs. On the foot, or knee where more than one bone is involved and also if it is a compound fracture with open wounds the prognosis is not good.
Hope this info is of some use.

[mcauley]

We had a calf about one month old with was broken above the front foot, below the knee. We wrapped it with a diaper and taped it gently with duct tape. Then we got a 3 inch black rigid pipe which is normally used for sewers. Put that over it and taped that on. checked the leg frequently to see if it was still warm. We left it on for around one month to six weeks. Gave antibiotics to start with. After the first week, couldn't catch the calf. Calf showed no signs of the break once the hair grew back.

[crazeeakerz]

It has been many years since we dealt with such a problem. One gentleman suggested using 2 halves of rigid sewer pipe as a cast. This worked well for us in both sheep and calves. We also used this to correct a calf with knuckled-under hooves. If the break isn't too bad, this treatment works