Sassy’s Story
When Sassy, a ring-tailed lemur, suffered a hip dislocation, a surgical repair using the Mini TightRope® implant helped her return to movement and life in her forest habitat.
Sassy lived at the Lemur Conservation Foundation (LCF) in Myakka City, Florida, where she spent her days in a five-acre forest enclosure. Known for being active and social, her behavior changed suddenly one morning.
A Sudden Change
“She’s usually so active,” said LCF Curator of Primates Caitlin Kenney. “We knew something was really wrong when she was laying down most of the day.”
X‑rays revealed that Sassy had dislocated her left hip, likely from a fall.
While some hip dislocations can be treated without surgery, her injury was more severe.
“Not all hip luxation [dislocation] will require surgery, but Sassy’s injury was pretty severe and we determined that she would need it to get her quality of life back,” said Scott Rose, DVM, chief of surgery at Veterinary Surgery Center of Sarasota.
Choosing the Right Repair for Hip Dislocation
In some cases, hip injuries are treated by removing part of the joint to create a new, false joint. However, this approach can limit normal movement—especially for animals that rely on jumping and climbing.
Dr. Rose determined that preserving joint function would be critical for Sassy.
He chose to stabilize the hip using a Mini TightRope implant, designed for small animals. The implant uses strong suture material and small fixation points to help hold the joint in place while the surrounding tissues heal.
Surgical Repair and Early Recovery
Dr. Rose repaired Sassy’s hip by securing the joint with the implant, helping keep the femur positioned correctly in the socket during movement.
After surgery, Sassy recovered with close monitoring from the LCF team.
She was first kept in a small enclosure to limit movement, then gradually transitioned to a larger indoor space where she could move freely without climbing.
Because lemurs are highly social animals, her partner joined her during recovery. “Lemurs are extremely social, so we brought in her male partner, Molson, to spend a few days with her in the enclosure,” said Caitlin.
Regaining Movement After Hip Surgery
As Sassy continued to heal, her mobility improved.
“They couldn’t see her limping or favoring her left leg while walking anymore,” Caitlin said. “She’s standing up normally and walking just fine. Now we can start working back toward climbing!”
Her recovery progressed step by step, with gradual reintroduction to her environment and activity levels.
Over time, Sassy transitioned back to larger enclosures, with enrichment designed to rebuild her strength and confidence. Low branches were introduced first, followed by higher climbing opportunities as her recovery continued.
Built for Strength and Stability
“The hip joint sustains tremendous forces when an animal jumps, especially from branch to branch, or darts through an enclosure,” said Dr. Rose. “Any surgical implant to hold the hip in the socket needs to be very strong to cope with these forces while the tissues heal. The strength of the TightRope implant for its size made it the perfect implant for Sassy’s injury.”
Back to the Trees
As healing progressed, Sassy was able to return to her forest habitat and resume natural behaviors like climbing and moving with her group. A carefully chosen surgical approach and structured recovery plan helped restore the stability she needed to move comfortably.
