Goldendoodle makes remarkable recovery after devastating road accident in Hampshire

A young Goldendoodle has made an extraordinary recovery after suffering a broken spine, shattered leg and multiple internal injuries in a road traffic accident.

Scout, aged one year and nine months, was rushed to Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists in Alton after being hit by a vehicle.

She arrived at the Hampshire referral hospital with a complex series of injuries which included an unstable fracture-dislocation of her lower spine, a severely shattered femur, broken ribs, bruising to her lungs and other chest trauma.

Specialists from the hospital’s Emergency, Neurology, Orthopaedic, Imaging, Anaesthesia and Nursing teams worked together to develop an urgent treatment plan.

The following morning Scout underwent several hours of surgery.

Her spinal injury was stabilised first using titanium implants before surgeons repaired her shattered leg using specialist locking plates during the same anaesthetic procedure.

Following the operation, Scout received round-the-clock care from the hospital’s nursing team.

Over the following weeks she gradually regained movement and neurological function, with the return of movement in her tail described as an important milestone.

Three months later, follow-up X-rays showed both fractures had successfully healed.

Scout was then able to return to normal exercise, with only a very slight change to her gait.

Colin Driver, European Specialist in Veterinary Neurology at Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists, said: “When Scout arrived, she had sustained an incredibly severe and complex combination of injuries. There was a real risk that her spinal trauma could leave her with long-term neurological problems, but thanks to the rapid collaboration between our Emergency, Imaging, Anaesthesia, Neurology, Orthopaedic and Nursing teams, we were able to stabilise both her spine and her leg in a single operation.

“Seeing her walk again and return to enjoying life as a normal young dog has been hugely rewarding for everyone involved. Scout's recovery demonstrates what can be achieved when specialist expertise is available immediately, day or night.”

Scout’s owner Rebecca Andrews said the family initially feared they would have to say goodbye to her because of the seriousness of her injuries.

She said: “We were convinced that it was going to be time to say goodbye to her. She was only two years old. It was just devastating.

“We were uncertain about how to proceed due to the severity of Scout’s injury. But Colin called us the morning after the accident and said he believed he could do it. His voice was filled with such confidence, so we decided to take the risk - and I am so glad we did.”

She added: “Scout now enjoys running in the woods again playing with her brother and being a general menace which honestly is a joy to see, considering we really thought that this would have a different outcome at the beginning.”

Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists operates 24 hours a day throughout the year and provides specialist referral care across a range of veterinary disciplines.

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