Ariel came to the SMART Clinic through Greenacres Rescue as a puppy, as she had a supernumerary (extra) hind leg on her left-hand side. This non-functional limb sat roughly where her normal hindlimb should have been on the pelvis, but her functional leg was cranially located (closer to her head than it should have been), positioned in the wing of the Ileum. This meant that her two functional back legs were having to take different lengths of steps to each other, which along with her growing puppy body, meant Ariel had to learn how to walk functionally.

Before surgery the SMART team spent a lot of time teaching her body awareness (proprioception), improving her co-ordination and gait patterning. We also worked to strengthen the functional left hind ready for surgery with a combination of targeted exercises and neuromotor gait training in our underwater treadmill. Ariel also had nutritional and behavioural support to make sure she was happy and healthy at home with her foster mum and in Clinic with us due to the amount of handling she was receiving. Unfortunately, her supernumerary leg continued to grow with her and soon started to impede her mobility.

Immediately after the surgery, our focus was on reducing the oedema (swelling) that formed in the space and through the muscles where the supernumerary limb was removed, as well as keeping adhesions from forming through the scar tissue to the underlying musculature.

Following on from the acute stage Ariel started an age and ability suitable exercise and conditioning plan to ensure continued muscle development and to reduce and then remove her reliance on compensatory movement patterns. Throughout her treatment Ariel benefited massively from gait training in our underwater treadmill. This allowed us to support her in practising how to engage her legs properly and develop a functional gait pattern.

Ariel is now doing fantastically well in her new home and loving life running on the beach.