Sometimes my life is pretty spontaneous anyway, but with homesteading, you never know what you will encounter some days.
Our STEEM-powered piglets were off to a great start. They had made it through the night on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, but all was not exactly well on Monday morning.
Unfortunately, one got stepped on pretty bad sometime between Sunday night and Monday morning. Red-Pepper let me know when we were up early doing chores together on Monday. Suddenly, all of my morning plans flew out the window and I became an emergency veterinarian.
THE RANDOMNESS OF HOMESTEADING - EMERGENCY VETERINARIAN
The cut was bad, but no bones were broken and it did not penetrate the muscle. The thick skin of the little hog was tore open though, so we had to clean it and evaluate it. Dirt and feces is usually not good have inside an open wound.
Quickly Red-Pepper and I got to work. The cleaning went well, and the tiny piglet was surprisingly cooperative. Once we could see more accurately what we were dealing with, I chose to go with some stitches too.
Most likely this pig would have survived and healed, but it would take a lot longer and scar much worse. With just a few little stitches we could help the process, so I go to work. I used a needle and fishing line instead of some sort of fiber-based thread. With fibers, the healing wound would stick to it and could even make matters worse. Fishing line will not adhere to the scabs in the way that fiber-based thread would.
With Red-Pepper there to hold and comfort it, I got to work and got the job done. In hindsight, I should have put in one more stitch, but this will still be better than nothing. Since this piglet will be growing, I was mindful not to make the stitched too tight. We will keep an eye on it and see how it heals, but so far, so good.
Before too long "Bo-bo" was back with his siblings. Yes, this happened to be one of two piglets that we had actually named.
The ointment that we used after the stitches is vouched for by many local farmers, and also creates a barrier against dirt and other debris.
That was on Monday morning, and now we are already onto Thursday night. So far, everything is going well. There is a little more to the story, but I'll share that later. Hopefully the photos of the wound did not gross you out too much. Situations like this are just one more reason that I am glad my pigs are not in concrete pens. To be caught between a hoof and some concrete could have been a lot worse for this little one.
As always, I'm @papa-pepper and here's the proof:
proof-of-emergency-veterinarian
Until next time…
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That looks like a job well done... and with it a warning to us all to get hold of some fishing line to pop in the first aid box with a needle! Just one thing... you've actually said "but bones were broken", I think you meant to say "but NO bones were broken."
I am giving you a FULL POWER upvote for making a real (helpful) comment and actually reading my post.
THANKS @elaine54!
Thats very kind, thank you!
I will edit. Thank you!
Haha... what a difference two letters can make! But at least you know I read it properly!
@papa-pepper got a medical degree and all of a sudden he was: @doctor-pepper. Ba-dum-tshhh!
Ba-dum-tshhh!
LOL - Thanks!
We had exactly the same thing happen to one of our piglets a few years back...hubby and I took the poor little thing to the vet and she did exactly what you did...only she charged an arm and a leg for doing it.
You're lucky you could do it yourself and I'm kind of kicking myself that we didn't even think of doing it ourselves. Lesson learned for next time though...just need to get some fishing line. :D
Ouch! Hopefully she stitched them back on for you, or did you have to do it yourself?
I know right, so painful...I had to do it myself, lol...could you imagine, actually trying to sew your own arm or leg back on...that would be so hard, especially if it was your dominant arm that needed to be sewn back on. :D
You and Red-Pepper did an awesome job on the piglet . Good one indeed and another new thing learnt from you ie the use of Fishing line . Thanks for sharing.
I had to sew up my cat after she decided she wanted to eat a dog.....Bad decision on her part. I used fishing line as well. I also got some penicillin from the farm store and gave her a shot a week for 3 weeks. Then I took out the stitches. She lived about 8 more years.
8 more years! Nice work!
Thank you Red-pepper for being such a big help to your Dad. BoBo says Thanks too, Oink Oink.
That bacon was too raw! :)
Indeed. It is not done yet.
Your daugther looks so worried..you are certified veterinarian @papa-pepper great job on doing it!Get well soon baby piglet...
It is getting better every day. Thanks @bien!
Im glad to hear that @papa-pepper 😊😊
Well done Papa-Pepper! You are quite the vet...and just all around Jack-of-all-trades. I saw you wrangled a rattlesnake earlier today.
Yeah, it's always something and we need the skills to get it done. Now my little under knows a bit more about it too!
Poor baby!!!! You and your family are incredible - what a great helper you have - you are preparing her early in life - she is going to be ready to take on the world :) Love you Friends!!! SUNSHINE247
Take the world :)
Well maybe if she joins steemit, she will not only take the world but also shake the world
I agree - she should be on here already!! I am sure she has a lot to share :)
And i think she's already here because we are both discussing her and she will be reading this i believe :)
LOL - I'll have her take a look! Thanks @bania!
Thank you for the kind compliment.
Omg your handy to have around and how brave is Red Pepper, I would be useless in that sutuation.So glad BoBo is OK Well done both of you
She is very good in situations like this, but then again she had to live through this on vacation too!
She is sure learning!
Oh my goodness. You took time from bleeding to document it. I am glad you're fine, but... My goodness. Your health is more important than our ability to admire your serenity in the face of injury.
But glad you're okay. And that your family knows how to take care of you.
SEE MORE HERE - YOU'LL PROBABLY LOVE IT! = https://steemit.com/inspiration/@papa-pepper/the-adventures-of-the-24-7-steemhead-episode-5-content-creation-and-head-wounds
Wow they are amazing little angels, tough and beautiful they will go far :)
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Red Pepper was a soldier during all of this , it was really cute to see her holding it . Sad to see what happen to little piggy but Papa took care of it all :)
It was sad, but I think that we will all move forward and the piggy will heal well! Thank you!
Yes he or she will heal , it was kinda tough watching it like that :/ hoping for a speedy recovery .
Steem on !
What a trooper Bo-Bo is! Thank goodness you have the knowledge & fortitude to be able to do your own emergency vet care.
Yes, it did work out well, otherwise it could have been terrible!
Ohhh mi Dios pobre animalito, no me imaginó su dolor, por suerte tiene un buen amo que lo puso a salvo y curo su herida @papa-pepper
Looking good@papa-pepper! I think it'll heal just fine. @red-pepper has got a sharp eye! Good thing you caught it when you did.
That's right. I'm glad we got to it before the bugs did, or something else!
👌👍
Impressive bit of veterinary work let's hope it recovers well
Four days in now and still good!
I think if it's doing well after 4 days it's going to be fine and junior peppers will be happy
Poor little piggy, glad everything turned out ok
Us too. Just look at how sad and concerned she was!
Sweet girl, having compassion for animals is a sign you are doing a bunch right. Kudos on raising a good kiddo
I just can't stand blood, I'll have to get a vet for that. You did an awesome stitch though. You a real definition of a diy man :)
Red-Pepper and Bo-bo did most of the work, I just have to do the sewing!
Awesome.
I needed to sew up my feline after she chose she needed to eat a dog.....Bad choice on her part. I utilized angling line also. I additionally got some penicillin from the ranch store and gave her a shot seven days for 3 weeks. At that point I took out the lines. She lived around 8 more years.
Wow very impressive @papa-pepper , what you are teaching your kids will go a long ways. Always so impressed that you include them in almost everything. Very cool my friend. You just make sure you have a good break system in place, most grown ups couldnt handle all that work. Heres to you @papa-pepper for being a top notch pappa.
Thanks for the encouragement, and the concern. We are doing well and I have a plan for raising these little ones that includes being with them. Thanks!
Great job papa-pepper and red-pepper. Red-pepper I bet was a excellent assistant in fixing up Bo Bo. When you have animal you are responsible to do your very best to care for them. We had to stitch up animals from time to time on the farm we always use fishing line. A long with helping mother animals give birth to the baby animals. We also had to give our animals shots sometimes. We were just like you are now @papa-pepper doing everything we can to keep our animals safe and healthy.
Wow! So cool! Thanks for sharing!
Nice bit of field triage there, @papa-pepper. I guess that's just a natural part of homesteading... you just never know what might happen next.
Thank you sir. And you are right, you really never do!
as always interesting stuff. Hope this little piggy is fully on the mend.
We will keep you posted.
Life is hard for a piglet at the best of times. A lot do not survive very long.
But these little guys have the best chance ever with you and the @little-peppers looking out for them.
I'm not sure about your hogs, but the pigs i worked with would eat anything, including piglets, so you may want to look at separating them out and keeping them somewhere safe when you are not around to keep an eye on them.
I've learned a lot about these hogs lately, and I was impressed. I think that they will do well, but I sure do know what you mean. Thanks!
Little Bo-bo looks good as new. His name reminds me of that old move "Caveman" with Ringo Starr. 😄
Richard Starkey?
Bo bo meant friend in caveman language.
I never touching pig :)
I'm glad I haven't had to deal with that yet. Looks like you did a fine job. Good luck! We just had our piglets last friday. I haven't gotten those pics up yet. I just barely got around to posting about our hog butchering. https://steemit.com/food/@camb/butchering-a-hog
Nice documentation @papa-pepper!
Cool. I'll check the butchering out. Thanks for sharing your link in an appropriate way and actually engaging me first.
Well I had to do a shameless plug. ;) Our piglets are almost the same size. I like what you're doing. Keep steeming :)
nice........ @sultan-aceh
A good papa to pigs as well. Porkfect.
Papa peeper, love to see how you bring up daughter peeper, so close to nature.
Glad @Red Pepper was on the ball. Good work @papa-pepper, you make a great vet.
About a month ago I had to perform minor surgery on my cat Cosmo because somehow he ended up with two severely ingrown nails. Did you know that cat claws can curl back up into the toe pads, penetrating them and growing into a circle?
I've had cats my entire life, and I never knew that until it happened to Cosmo. It's only supposed to happen if their nails haven't been clipped in months and months, but I had clipped his about three and a half weeks before.
That's when I realized that a few of his claws have stopped shedding properly. And I looked into it and after hours of digging, found that it's just something that can happen to older ragdolls. Ugh.
Too bad he's not a ragdoll mix from after breeders bred out a lot of the defects. But his parents (okay, his mother and grandfather, his father was his older brother, poor little inbred soul) were originally strays.
Tuxie, before he passed, had scratched a hole through one of his ears, it just barely went all the way through, but the area that almost went through was the size of a silver-dollar. Had to tend to that and other wounds he gave himself (severe flea infestation we struggled to get under control) during the last few months of his life.
I've also had to perform the heimlich maneuver on cats and dogs. I've had to scrape dead tissue out of infected wounds, lance abscesses, give shots, pull baby teeth that just wouldn't come out and were very painful and getting infected, induced vomiting, nasally irrigate, flush and apply ointment to eyes, and all sorts of other things with my animals over the years (primarily my cats).
I've also had to do a lot of that stuff for myself, and some for my husband as well. But with humans making holistic remedies isn't quite as daunting because it's much easier to remember everything that's toxic to humans than cats.
I've yet to give stitches, and I hope I never have to. My husband is in the habit of supergluing his wounds that require stitches. And I don't go and get stitches when I need them, either.
I've actually seriously considered going to veterinarian school on many occasions, if only to be able to provide emergency care to my own animals and to the animals of others. (Sort of an emergency vet that makes house calls.)
Good job sewing the little piglet up!
Edit: Oh yeah, forgot to mention that I have fishing line embedded in my sternum. I'm quite the strange fellow.
Just when you think you've got your day planned and you're on a roll, something like this has to happen! Thanks for sharing and the tip about the fishing line. It's something we always have around, but I wouldn't have thought to use it. Will you do an update on how Bo-bo goes?
If you can find a ' curved' sewing needle it will make the stiching far easier, you will be able to become a seamgstress with a bit more practive.
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Sometimes life hands us lemons and Red Pepper did extremely well in handling the crisis. @papa-pepper too! We act as veterinarians for our animals too. The veterinarian is a long way away and the costs are phenomenal for homestead calls. We can handle most situations, except for major surgery. I bet you can too!