Clinical report of coincidence of congenital terminal hemimelia in tibia and bilateral agenesis of the phalanges in a kitten

A 4- month- old domestic short hair (DSH) kitten with malformed, non weight bearing and painful left pelvic limb without any history of trauma was referred to small animal hospital. Hemimelia is a congenital complete or partial absence of one or more than one bone in limbs. All appendicular bones can be affected and many variations have been shown. Radial, tibial and ulnar hemimielia are usually common. In the present clinical report we found terminal hemimelia in the left hind limb along with agenesis of tibia, metatarsal bones and phalanges and agenesis of metatarsal bones and phalanges in the contralateral hindlimb. In treatment of tibial hemimelia, it may be possible to prevent permanent muscle contraction, bone deformation and varus but in this case, amputation of affected limb was recommended to the owner because of severe limb deformities, limb rotation and impossibility of arthrodesis. Castration/neutering to prevent congenital spread and radiography of other body parts to detect concurrent disorders is recommended in these cases.