Anaesthetising a common buzzard for distal humeral fracture repair: a patient care report

The patient was found by a member of public and taken to Lower Moss Wood Wildlife Hospital before presenting to the veterinary practice several days later. The patient was anorexic, in poor body condition and unable to fly.

Radiographs revealed an open transverse fracture of the distal humerus. The humerus is a pneumatic bone; the clavicular air sac extends into the medulla. Coles (2007) asserts this to be clinically insignificant as the air sac quickly seals with a blood clot following injury preventing emphysema of the surrounding tissues. It is vital to achieve accurate alignment of the fragments as most of the mechanical forces imposed on the wing during flight are transmitted to the humerus; however, in some cases birds can fly despite adequate alignment (Coles, 2007).

The Animal Welfare Act 2006 states that any wild animal brought into a veterinary practice should receive appropriate treatment to relieve pain and suffering, this includes surgery but also euthanasia. Under the Abandonment of Animals Act 1960 it is an offence to release into the wild an animal that is not fit to survive or that is suffering (Fraser and Girling, 2016). The veterinary surgeon (VS) involved considered that the fracture was repairable and that following rehabilitation the patient would be able to fly and subsequently be released. If during surgery the VS had decided that this was not the case, the patient would have been euthanased on welfare grounds.