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A light-coloured puppy lies on a blue blanket at a veterinary surgery, wearing an orange harness. A person's hands gently comfort the puppy, who appears relaxed and slightly sleepy.

Could we help Daffy keep his broken leg?

Found on the side of the road with a badly injured leg, Daffy needed immediate help to avoid emergency amputation.

When two-month-old Saluki Daffy arrived at Woodgreen, he immediately charmed our staff with his sweet and friendly nature.

But something was wrong. He was limping and seemed to be in pain. We took him straight to our veterinary team, who needed to do surgery as soon as possible to find out if we could save his injured leg from amputation.

A small, light-coloured puppy with a shaved front leg and bandage sits on blankets surrounded by colourful toys in a cosy indoor setting.

Keeping Daffy on his paws

During surgery, our veterinary team discovered that Daffy had a fractured tibia in his back leg.

They decided to try to repair his leg instead of amputating it. It wouldn’t be an easy recovery process, but we wanted to give Daffy a chance to live life as a normal puppy – on four paws instead of three.

Carefully, we re-aligned his broken bones and secured them with a metal plate. The next step was a dedicated foster home, where his recovery could be monitored closely.

It was essential that Daffy got plenty of rest as he healed in his new foster home. But being such a young puppy, he also needed to learn about the world and get used to everyday sights and sounds.

So Daffy’s foster carer, Abigail, started to take him out and about, using a pram to protect his leg as it healed. She took him to lots of different environments so he wouldn’t become fearful of being outside his foster home.

Abigail also helped Daffy practice physiotherapy exercises to help him gain strength in his injured leg.

In between, he was on strict instructions to rest. Over time, we were able to increase his exercise allowance to five minutes of free time in the garden. This was challenging for such an energetic little pup who loved to play!

A cream-coloured puppy wearing an orange harness and green collar with a blue name tag sits indoors on a light-coloured floor, looking up with its head tilted.

The moment of truth

After a month in foster care, we brought Daffy back to Woodgreen for some x-rays. It was time to find out for sure – could Daffy keep his leg?

To our relief, the x-rays looked amazing. Not only was Daffy able to continue bouncing around on all four paws, but he could finally have more than five minutes of playtime!

As Daffy continued to go from strength to strength, we were able to start looking for a new family who could continue to support his recovery, with regular hydrotherapy sessions funded by Woodgreen.

Despite the challenging circumstances Daffy had been through, his personality never failed to bring a smile to everyone he met. Snuggly, playful, and just a little bit clumsy – it didn’t take him long to find a new home where he could finally enjoy being a normal puppy.

A woman in protective clothing holds a small dog with a yellow bandaged leg in an animal care setting, with toys and blankets visible in the background.

We were able to save Daffy's leg

Daffy could have lost his leg, but thanks to the support of generous people like you, Woodgreen were there to help. Will you be there for the next pet like Daffy?

Monthly donation Single gift
£

£35 could go towards a veterinary health check for a pet like Daffy when they first arrive at Woodgreen.

£

£8 a month could cover the cost of a microchip for a stray pet that comes into our care.

Woodgreen Pets Charity is a registered charity (no. 298348)

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© 2026 Woodgreen Pets Charity. Woodgreen is a registered charity (no. 298348) and a company limited by guarantee (no. 02073930). Registered office Kings Bush Farm, London Road, Godmanchester, PE29 2NH.

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