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BROKEN LEG

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disoriented five-month-old

raccoon scurries across a

busy road in Greenbrae,

California. Somehow the

animal and her mom have

become separated, and now

the frightened baby has no idea what to

do. Suddenly a car approaches. Unable to

see the animal, the driver accidentally

runs over her hind leg. The raccoon falls

to the ground where she lies helpless

and limp.

OPERATOR ASSISTANCE

Other motorists, who saw the accident,

pull over to check on the injured animal.

One concerned witness is Marco Berger,

who works for a nearby wildlife hospital

called WildCare. “The raccoon is not only

wounded—she’s in total shock,” Berger

says. “She needs immediate help.”

Berger calls a nearby branch of

the Marin Humane Society, an orga-

nization that, among other things,

transports injured wildlife to care

centers. About 10 minutes later,

rescue officers arrive on the scene.

They use a net to scoop up the lit-

tle raccoon, then load her into an

animal ambulance and rush her to

WildCare.

At the hospital, head veterinary

technician Nat Smith sedates the

raccoon and gives her a checkup.

An x-ray of the kit’s leg reveals

that the femur, or thighbone, is

completely broken. If the bone

isn’t repaired, she’ll never be able

to run, climb, or forage for food in the

wild. “She needs each one of her legs to

work in order to survive,” Smith says.

The good news is that the leg can be

fixed with surgery.

Smith contacts veteri-

nary surgeon James Farese,

who instantly agrees to do

the procedure. Three days

later, Farese arrives at

WildCare. After giving the

raccoon sleeping medi-

cine, he makes an incision

in her leg. Then he care-

fully pushes the muscles

out of the way, realigns

the broken bone, and

drills a narrow steel

plate to both ends of

the femur with tiny screws

to keep the bone in place. Once that’s

done, Farese closes up the leg incision

with stitches. Now the staff must wait to

see how the raccoon recovers.

BY SCOTT ELDER

LEG WORK

Almost immediately after wa

from the surgery, the raccoon

signs of improvement. “Withi

she’s able to walk on her leg,”

says. A week and a half later, t

has become so active that Wil

staff decide to move the ani

12-foot-by-12-foot outdoor e

with trees for her to scale. “T

coon loves climbing,” Smith s

“And she doesn’t slip or

fall at any time.”

The raccoon’s leg

continues to heal.

Although her bone

will eventually grow

back together, staff at

WildCare plan on leav-

ing the plate in her thigh.

“It’s not at all uncomfortable,

says. “And keeping it there will

that her leg s

good shape.” T

coon builds st

scampering ar

enclosure. She’

diet of fruits, in

mice—the sam

that she’d eat in

Within two m

young raccoon i

be released. After

checkup, she’s loaded into a

pet carrier and driven to a

forested area near where she

was found. Once the carrier

door is opened, the raccoon

patters off on her four legs into the

woods. Says Smith, “She’s ready to take

on the wild.”

KATE LYNCH / WILDCARE PHOTO (SURGERY); WILDCARE PHOTO (X-RAY); JADIMAGES / SHUTTERSTOCK (MAIN IMAGE)

VETERINARY TECHNICIAN NAT

SMITH HELPS PREPARE THE

RACCOON FOR HER OPERATION.

AN X-RAY TAKEN AFTER THE

SURGERY SHOWS THE STEEL

PLATE IN THE RACCOON’S LEG.

METAL PLATE

20 MARCH 2017

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