Fig. (2) Kirschner wire (K-wire) marker placement as an indicator of bone growth post operatively. Antero-posterial X-Ray of a lamb tibia indicating K-wire marker placement (A). The white arrow indicates the location of the growth plate. Epiphyseal and diaphyseal pins were placed 20 mm apart on the day of surgery using an F shaped template to ensure parallel and equidistant insertion of the K-wires (B). The distance between the pins was measured using callipers to determine the amount of post-operative limb growth in 5 weeks (C). Total limb growth is estimated by the 5-week differences of the distance (mm) of the two implanted K-wires below and above the defect (mean ± SEM), showing no statistically significant differences in the rates of limb growth between groups compared to non-injured control.