Paralyzed degu chewing off foot

[sweetpea0818]

Hey everyone,
So about two months ago, my degu Kreacher had an accident that left him paralyzed in his hind legs. He cannot move either leg too much, but only lost feeling in one leg. Since then, he has been trying to chew off his foot. With some success, might I add. We have resorted to wrapping it and cleaning it every day. I asked my vet about this and she said amputation or putting him down were my two options. Okay so some backstory:
We have been wrapping it diligently every day. When we first started wrapping his foot, we would just cover the actual foot. One day, he managed to get off his cast and he ate off all of the skin on his foot. Down to the muscle. It was really disturbing...so we started wrapping up his leg to make it harder for him to take off. We've been doing this for about three weeks, and we come home the other day, check his cast, everything's fine. A few minutes after we get home, he managed to take it off and he ATE OFF HIS TOE. It's completely gone. His foot had finally started to fully heal, he had fur growing back and everything. I don't think this will ever stop...I'm not even sure the amputation will help because he chews his tail until he bleeds too. I'm starting to think he may need to be put down. I have read that rodents chew off limbs they can't feel, but does anyone else have any experience with anything like this? Please help!!!

[moletteuk]

I'm sorry to hear of your difficulty.

Is he able to move around? Is he able to sit comfortably? Eat & poo OK? I'm really concerned about his quality of life and his mental well being and the level of pain he might be in. Is the problem in his spine if both legs are affected? Have you had him xrayed?

My first thought if you wish to give him time to see what improvement he might make is to put him on very strong painkillers. Metacam is the most common but you would need a dose of at least 0.1ml of dog strength once a day, possibly more. Other painkillers are available like tramadol and vetergesic and might be worth exploring.

[bouncy]

Hi Sweetpea, 

I can only echo moletteuk, in that he needs to have either strong pain relief, or a review of his quality of life with a vet ASAP.

Unfortunately, it's not just dead limbs that prey animals will try to rid themselves of, but also damaged. They believe that the injury will prevent their survival, and needs to be rid of. On that basis, if he eats off his first, he may well start on the second. You'd be surprised to see how much of a difference decent pain management can make, but it won't necessarily be enough.

[deguconvert]

I'm so sorry about the injury and the resulting behaviors. It would be terribly distressing to see and to try and prevent. I agree with what has been said above. Degus hide their pain, so he may be experiencing a great deal, while not displaying it. Managing and reducing his pain could do much to help his body heal and prolong his life, but until you try it, with your vets guidance and help, you will no know what the benefits will be. It sounds like he is still determined to live, and I think you want to give him that chance. Both ladies that have responded above are well versed in pain control, and they have given you good advice. Do take this information to your vet and discuss it.