Precise operation on a bat wing
01.06.2015This is one of the difficult surgical interventions we have implemented to support a wild animal in distress... A real osteosynthesis of one of the finest bones – those of a bat wing....
Our patient is a Common Noctule – one of the bat species inhabiting towns and cities. It arrived with serious injuries of the phalanges of the second and the third digits (with bats these are the prolonged bones between which the finger membrane of the wing is stretched).
The patient was entrusted to the care of Dr. Tzekov from Pet Hospital “Dr. Tzekov”, who has been providing significant support for the activity of the Rescue Center for years. Dr. Tzekov has previous experience performing operations on bat wings, as in 2010 he implemented the first osteosyntheses in the country of the so called “forearm” of a bat, and in August 2014 he sewed up a torn wing membrane with stitches normally used for eye retina. In that latter case he helped the juvenile female bat Shaya recover from the tear in its wing, and Shaya learnt to fly at our facility!
In this particular case, Dr. Tzekov performed an even more difficult surgical intervention, applying osteosynthesis and implanting “nails” (metal elements) in one of the finest ossicles of the bat’s wing... This had to be done since it was impossible to steadily fix the bones in order to guarantee proper healing. For nearly a month, our patient has been in recovery. It was extremely exhausted, but has already recovered its weight, actively feeding and stretching its wing! This gives us hope that the fine motor skills of the wing will recover to a degree enabling active flights and survival in the wild!
We hereby express our gratitude to Dr. Tzekov and the entire team of his clinic for their caring attitude! We do hope our mutual friend and patient will recover and return to the wild pretty soon!
For further information, please contact:
Elena Stoeva - Bat and Cave Conservation Group at Green Balkans NGO
Mobile: +359 887 574 699.
Our patient feels much better now and enjoys the food provided....
Munching heartily and putting on weight...
The wound healing process is over and the bat has already started stretching its wing
X-ray on patient’s admittance
Post-operative X-ray
Our patient is a Common Noctule – one of the bat species inhabiting towns and cities. It arrived with serious injuries of the phalanges of the second and the third digits (with bats these are the prolonged bones between which the finger membrane of the wing is stretched).
The patient was entrusted to the care of Dr. Tzekov from Pet Hospital “Dr. Tzekov”, who has been providing significant support for the activity of the Rescue Center for years. Dr. Tzekov has previous experience performing operations on bat wings, as in 2010 he implemented the first osteosyntheses in the country of the so called “forearm” of a bat, and in August 2014 he sewed up a torn wing membrane with stitches normally used for eye retina. In that latter case he helped the juvenile female bat Shaya recover from the tear in its wing, and Shaya learnt to fly at our facility!
In this particular case, Dr. Tzekov performed an even more difficult surgical intervention, applying osteosynthesis and implanting “nails” (metal elements) in one of the finest ossicles of the bat’s wing... This had to be done since it was impossible to steadily fix the bones in order to guarantee proper healing. For nearly a month, our patient has been in recovery. It was extremely exhausted, but has already recovered its weight, actively feeding and stretching its wing! This gives us hope that the fine motor skills of the wing will recover to a degree enabling active flights and survival in the wild!
We hereby express our gratitude to Dr. Tzekov and the entire team of his clinic for their caring attitude! We do hope our mutual friend and patient will recover and return to the wild pretty soon!
For further information, please contact:
Elena Stoeva - Bat and Cave Conservation Group at Green Balkans NGO
Mobile: +359 887 574 699.
Our patient feels much better now and enjoys the food provided....
Munching heartily and putting on weight...
The wound healing process is over and the bat has already started stretching its wing
X-ray on patient’s admittance
Post-operative X-ray
