Chip Chick
According to a press release from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also known as MSPCA, veterinarians chose to sew buttons onto Juicebox’s face.
He currently has 2 buttons on his chin and 2 on each of his cheeks, which “hold sutures in place and stabilize his jaw so that healing can take place.”
Facebook; pictured above is another photo of Juicebox
The Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shared in a Facebook post, “You may have seen our post yesterday about Juicebox, a 7-month-old orange boy who is safely on the road to recovery here at the MSPCA-Angell after suffering horrific injuries to his face.”
“You may have thought to yourself, “okay, that’s really cute, but why did they put buttons on his face?” The button use is a technique that was researched by one of Angell Animal Medical Center’s dentistry staff, Dr. Alice Ekerdt.”
“With certain types of fractures in specific areas of the jaw – like the type that poor Juicebox suffered – the fracture can be difficult to stabilize, and in some cases other implants can be difficult to size.”
“The suture is what actually holds the jaw in place – the buttons improve comfort and prevent the suture from digging into the skin.”
“We’ll continue to keep you updated on little Juicebox’s progress – you can donate toward his care at www.mspca.org/juicebox. Thank you for supporting our work!”
Juicebox will need to have his buttons for about 4 to 6 weeks, and then they will be taken off.
Juicebox’s family decided to surrender him to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals so that he can find a new, dog-free home.
He is looking for a new, loving family, and you can apply to adopt Juicebox on the MSPCA’s website.
