Dr. Mark Rochat, clinical professor of small animal orthopedic surgery, with the female wallaby whose dislocated hip he repaired.

Zoo officials called on vets to help with dislocated hip
 
Small animal vets at Purdue University's College of Veterinary Medicine in Indiana were recently visited by an unusual patient, after a nearby zoo called for their help treating a wallaby with a dislocated hip.

Columbian Park Zoo asked the college's small animal surgery team to treat the female wallaby - a mid-sized marsupial that belongs to the kangaroo family.

Dr Mark Rochat, clinical professor of small animal orthopaedic surgery and chief of small animal surgery, said: "We basically treated it like a dog with a hip dislocation. The hip is a ball-and-socket joint and the round ligament is one of the major anatomic structures that holds the ball in the socket."

Noting the distinctions between wallabies and the hospital's more common patients, Dr Rochat added: "The anatomy of the wallaby hip is different from the dog, which makes sense given their very different way of locomotion. It was a very interesting surgery."

The wallaby is said to be doing well and a radiograph taken around a month after the surgery showed the Tightrope device used was still in place.

Zoo officials praised the college's efforts. Dana Rhodes, zoo director, said: "The Columbian Park Zoo's continued partnership with Purdue's veterinary college not only provides the zoo with the benefit of access to a variety of animal specialists close by, but also gives real-world experience to students."

Image © Purdue University/Rebecca Wilcox