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In this Episode:
Series 1 Episode Guide:
Super Vets
Bruno, a 17-foot high adult male giraffe residing at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park, one of the two living collections owned by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), offered vets and specialists a real challenge in the form of a pedicure hoof trim.
The majority of giraffes in captivity do not need hoof trims however occasionally their hooves grow excessively (on their two toes) and start to cross over. This can make it painful to walk and if the over-grown and overlapping hooves are not clipped, arthritis caused by pressure on the joints can result. In Bruno’s case, the hooves start growing forwards instead of just downwards which is when a pedicure is needed.
Any procedure, human or animal, can be complicated but when the patient is 17 foot tall with a heavy head atop a long neck and long legs, it creates all sorts of unusual challenges. Anaesthetic makes patients weak and uncoordinated both at the start as the patient goes to sleep, and again as it wakes up. Large or wild animals don’t understand that the weakness will pass, and sometimes try to get up when they are still too weak and wobbly to do so safely. Or, they might panic and struggle in unfamiliar situations. They really only get one attempt at standing without injury as if they struggle, they can rapidly become exhausted, physically and mentally stressed and easily damage themselves.
The risks are significant - between 1 in 10 and 1 in 50 anaesthetised giraffes do not recover safely from the anaesthesia.
A skilled team and good preparation can reduce the risks but a significant risk will always remain. To reduce the risks of physical damage Bruno’s keepers lined the walls of the giraffe house with bales of hay to protect him from knocking himself as he went to sleep and woke up again. While he was anaesthetised his neck was propped up on a hay bale cushion and his legs were continually massaged to maintain good circulation while he was under anaesthesia.
It is important that the anaesthetist has direct access to Bruno’s trachea (windpipe) so that she can help Bruno breathe if his breathing becomes too shallow under the anaesthesia. 
Even after a period of starvation a giraffe’s stomach contains a lot of food material and liquid. Under anaesthesia this often refluxes up out of the stomach into the mouth. Having a tube in Bruno’s trachea prevents this food material from entering his windpipe and lungs. The tube used was approximately 1.2m long and 25mm in diameter (that’s 8 times the length and 3.5 times the diameter of the average tube used in adult human anaesthesia!)
The procedure involved an army of ZSL and RVC staff and students including an equine (horse) surgeon and Polly Taylor, a consultant and specialist in veterinary anaesthesia, two veterinary nurses and six keepers. They all did an excellent job and the process went very smoothly.
The whole operation took about and hour and a half and Bruno was happy and up and about an hour after the procedure. Keepers and veterinary staff kept an extra close watch on him for a few days after his trim but he is now back out in the paddock with the other giraffes gracefully wandering around on his newly trimmed hooves.
Edmund Flach, resident veterinary officer at Whipsnade Wild Animal Park said, “The procedure was a great success. We needed to anaesthetise Bruno so we could get access to his feet which can be risky as he is such a large animal. It was a relief for all of us when he came round and took his first few steps.”
