Veterinarians team up to treat pets with serious injuries

A gentle tone sounds as the front door swings opens.

As if on cue, Buddy rises and lumbers across the lobby to greet the visitor at a Rustburg veterinarian’s office. He thrusts his wet nose up onto the man’s hip and waits to be greeted in kind before returning to his post near frisky kittens attempting to escape a cage.

“What happened to his leg?” the man asks as Buddy ambles away.

Ah yes, the leg.

Jon Bobbey, Buddy’s foster dad, has become accustomed to the question.

After months of telling Buddy’s story he’s still amazed it’s happening — or, for that matter, that he gets to be part of the team bringing the dog back to full function.

Back in September the yellow lab mix, somewhere between 2 and 4 years old, was set for euthanasia.

Because his body was so badly damaged — veterinarians think he may have been hit and dragged by a car, which sheared off whole portions of leg bone, obliterated foot bones and removed skin and muscle — putting him down was the most-likely option.

At best, some said, he might survive as a three-legged dog.

Yet, there was something about him, something in his big gold eyes that stopped everyone cold.

“He just has a great temperament,” said Rustburg-based veterinarian Dr. Robin Hubbard, one of the first to become involved in Buddy’s care.

The day he was found in September calls went out, dog lovers stepped in and within days Buddy was claimed by Harmony Rescue, a Rustburg-based nonprofit. A Charlottesville-based veterinary surgeon, Dr. Jason Wheeler, agreed to join the effort to save Buddy. As soon as Harmony Rescue’s Facebook page posted his tale, donations for his care started trickling in.

Although there are almost 40 veterinary practices in the Lynchburg area, few have both the expertise and equipment required to fix broken bones, said Dr. Jay Harper, who operates an emergency veterinary clinic in Lynchburg. Owners with badly injured pets were faced with a decision: Put their pet to sleep or find the resources required to pay for costly, out-of-the-area, surgeries.

A new collaboration between some Lynchburg-area veterinarians and Wheeler is providing another alternative for pets like Buddy.

Wheeler drives from his practice in Charlottesville to Lynchburg every other Tuesday to provide specialized care.

“People in general really demand more and expect more,” for their pets, said Wheeler.

Just as in human care, there are oncologists, ophthalmologists, dentists and more for animals, he said. Owners are realizing this and in turn are expecting higher levels of care for their pets, he said. While most physicians’ offices have to send out for blood tests for example, pet owners expect to get the results from blood tests on site. Veterinarians know this and are providing it.

At his Charlottesville practice, Wheeler does everything from repairing collapsed tracheas and removing parathyroid glands to fixing herniated disks and setting fractures.

Several months ago, Harper sought Wheeler out for his expertise regarding an animal. While Harper’s clinic is stocked with state-of-the-art equipment, it is only in use at night and on weekends.

His partnership with Wheeler has spread to clinics throughout the Lynchburg area.

“Our goal is to provide a specialty for those who seek it out and want it,” said Wheeler, who provides the same kinds of surgeries owners in Charlottesville receive, but out of Lynchburg’s emergency clinic, with Harper’s help.

Over the last eight to 10 months, referrals from Lynchburg have been on a steep rise, as owners and vets come to realize they have the option, said Wheeler, who plans to provide an intern in Lynchburg soon.

“It’s just trying to add something that might benefit people,” said Harper, who stabilizes the injured animals but then calls on Wheeler for more intensive interventions.

Buddy is alive because of “a lot of people coming together and putting in their expertise,” said Jon Bobbey, as Buddy walks freely around Hubbard’s veterinary clinic, where he has regular checkups now.

“It was pretty bad to us and we’ve seen a lot of bad things,” said Hubbard
“His injuries were pretty substantial,” she said, adding even she didn’t know if anyone would be able to preserve Buddy’s leg.

But there it is, two months later, with Wheeler’s external fixture attached.

The mechanical leg, not too unlike an erector set, is attached to the outside of Buddy’s own, allowing the bones to heal and wounds to close.

“We’re all trying to do what’s best for the animal,” said Hubbard.

Once the bones have set, another local vet has signed on to become Buddy’s physical therapist. She will slip him into the pool and teach him how to walk on all four legs again.

“I just happen to be fortunate to be here that day,” Bobbey said. Buddy fits into Bobbey’s home as if he was always there.

“He had some scrapes and bruises and stuff, and a broken leg and that doesn’t need to be a fatal injury for a dog,” he said.

To follow Buddy’s progress or donate visit: https://www.facebook.com/harmonyrescue. Harmony Rescue can be contacted at (434) 821-3544

Contact Dr. Robin Hubbard at Rustburg Veterinary Clinic, (434) 821-2421.

Contact Dr. Jay Harper at Animal Emergency and Critical Care of Lynchburg, (434) 846-1504.

Contact Dr. Jason Wheeler at Virginia Veterinary Specialists, (434) 202-2987.