You should seek the advice of your veterinarian if your pet is ill as only he or she can correctly advise on the diagnosis and recommend the treatment that is most appropriate for your pet.

The Velpeau sling is a very useful bandage which is not used as frequently as it should be in small animal practice

The Velpeau sling is a very useful bandage which prevents weight-bearing on a foreleg and holds the joints of the limb in a flexed position. It is useful in a variety of situations including :

• Following reduction of shoulder dislocations
• Following fractures of the scapula
• Following fractures of the humerus
• Following inflammation of the bicipital bursa
• Any condition of the forelimb in which weight-bearing has to be avoided

Excessive compression has to be avoided, but the bandage is relatively easy to apply well tolerated with few complications. A written description of how to apply a Velpeau Sling is difficult to follow.If the reader would like to know how to apply this bandage properly the technique (along with many others) is demonstrated on Provets Video "Bandaging and Wound Dressing in Small Animal Practice" CLICK HERE to View Video of applying this sling (courtesy of www.provet.tv)