Care for Cat after operation?
Dear fellow cat-lovers,
I was wondering if anyone could advise, or if you've been in a similar situation. I'm out of my mind with worry. Our little 7 month old male kitten, Socrates, a tortie-and-white Domestic Shorthair, was operated on yesterday. The Veterinary surgeon removed a very long piece of string from his tummy. He's still under observation for about 48 hours. They had to make several incisions apparently and there is some damage. I wish we had known not to leave any long lengths of string around, now we will cat-proof our house once again -- if the little scrap survives. He started vomiting on Friday, as Cats will, at first we assumed it was normal feline response but watched him anyway. When he did it again, every 3-4 hours, we called the vet. By then he was also hunched over and not his usual bright self. It was Sunday and we were lucky our Vet is one of the better ones here in London, they had an emergency backup team and were able to operate on Sunday. However, the vet asked us to leave him behind after an initial examination where he could feel a foreign body lodged in Socrates' abdomen. They performed an x-ray and called us back. I asked to wait while they x-rayed him, which might have been of comfort to Socrates, but the vet advised us to leave him with them. If he makes it through and we are able to bring him home-- do you have any suggestions or experience of how to care for him? Will he have to wear an Elizabethan collar? Is ther a high likelihood of the stitches getting infected? Will we have to change his dressings often? It won't be easy to care for him as he's quite frisky and will object to being handled and will also fuss to be let out into the garden. But I'm assuming we'll have to keep him indoors and not let him jump up or climb stairs? Thanks in advance, Shona (first-time cat mom) |
"Cat Mom" wrote in message oups.com... Dear fellow cat-lovers, I was wondering if anyone could advise, or if you've been in a similar situation. I'm out of my mind with worry. Our little 7 month old male kitten, Socrates, a tortie-and-white Domestic Shorthair, was operated on yesterday. The Veterinary surgeon removed a very long piece of string from his tummy. He's still under observation for about 48 hours. They had to make several incisions apparently and there is some damage. I wish we had known not to leave any long lengths of string around, now we will cat-proof our house once again -- if the little scrap survives. He started vomiting on Friday, as Cats will, at first we assumed it was normal feline response but watched him anyway. When he did it again, every 3-4 hours, we called the vet. By then he was also hunched over and not his usual bright self. It was Sunday and we were lucky our Vet is one of the better ones here in London, they had an emergency backup team and were able to operate on Sunday. However, the vet asked us to leave him behind after an initial examination where he could feel a foreign body lodged in Socrates' abdomen. They performed an x-ray and called us back. I asked to wait while they x-rayed him, which might have been of comfort to Socrates, but the vet advised us to leave him with them. If he makes it through and we are able to bring him home-- do you have any suggestions or experience of how to care for him? Will he have to wear an Elizabethan collar? Is ther a high likelihood of the stitches getting infected? Will we have to change his dressings often? It won't be easy to care for him as he's quite frisky and will object to being handled and will also fuss to be let out into the garden. But I'm assuming we'll have to keep him indoors and not let him jump up or climb stairs? Thanks in advance, Shona (first-time cat mom) Hope your kitty does well. I have one who will eat anything too and have to be so careful what is laying around. What he ate passed through without incident fortunately. I did have a foster who required abdominal surgery (emergency c-section) and was sent home with a collar. We made her wear it for a few days unless we were right there with her. She didn't bother with her stitches when we had it off of her so we did eventually leave it off as she was having a time of it getting around. If they do send your kitty home in a collar and it's not clear, check at local pet stores and see if you can find a clear one. This makes it so much easier for kitty to see what it's doing. Our girl kept on missing the food bowl causing much frustration. W |
"Cat Mom" wrote in message oups.com... Dear fellow cat-lovers, I was wondering if anyone could advise, or if you've been in a similar situation. I'm out of my mind with worry. Our little 7 month old male kitten, Socrates, a tortie-and-white Domestic Shorthair, was operated on yesterday. The Veterinary surgeon removed a very long piece of string from his tummy. He's still under observation for about 48 hours. They had to make several incisions apparently and there is some damage. String is one of the most dangerous types of gastrointestinal foreign objects because it can pleat up the intestine and cut through the intestinal wall. This is what it looks like: http://www.maxshouse.com/Illustratio..._intestine.jpg I wish we had known not to leave any long lengths of string around, now we will cat-proof our house once again -- if the little scrap survives. Here're some tips on cat-proofing your home: http://www.maxshouse.com/cat_proofing_your_home.htm He started vomiting on Friday, as Cats will, at first we assumed it was normal feline response but watched him anyway. When he did it again, every 3-4 hours, we called the vet. By then he was also hunched over and not his usual bright self. It was Sunday and we were lucky our Vet is one of the better ones here in London, they had an emergency backup team and were able to operate on Sunday. However, the vet asked us to leave him behind after an initial examination where he could feel a foreign body lodged in Socrates' abdomen. They performed an x-ray and called us back. I asked to wait while they x-rayed him, which might have been of comfort to Socrates, but the vet advised us to leave him with them. If he makes it through and we are able to bring him home-- do you have any suggestions or experience of how to care for him? Will he have to wear an Elizabethan collar? Is ther a high likelihood of the stitches getting infected? Will we have to change his dressings often? It won't be easy to care for him as he's quite frisky and will object to being handled and will also fuss to be let out into the garden. But I'm assuming we'll have to keep him indoors and not let him jump up or climb stairs? Thanks in advance, Shona (first-time cat mom) He'll definitely need antibiotics to ward off post op infection and peritonitis if the string cut through the intestinal wall, and probably fluids to prevent dehydration and correct electrolyte imbalances. Your vet will probably prescribe a highly digestible food that may need to be given via a feeding syringe such as Hill's Prescription Diet a/d. He'll probably need an E-collar which will limit his activity and help him heal quickly. I see you're in the UK where allowing a cat outdoors unsupervised is ingrained in your culture, but he's going need to stay indoors while he heals so he can be observed and to avoid infection and trauma to surgical site. One of the many downfalls of indoor/outdoor cats is that you have no control over what he gets into- or what gets into him. I think you need to seriously reconsider his lifestyle. Best of luck, Phil |
On 2005-09-26 06:25:56 -0500, "Cat Mom" said:
Dear fellow cat-lovers, I was wondering if anyone could advise, or if you've been in a similar situation. I'm out of my mind with worry. Our little 7 month old male kitten, Socrates, a tortie-and-white Domestic Shorthair, was operated on yesterday. The Veterinary surgeon removed a very long piece of string from his tummy. He's still under observation for about 48 hours. They had to make several incisions apparently and there is some damage. I wish we had known not to leave any long lengths of string around, now we will cat-proof our house once again -- if the little scrap survives. He started vomiting on Friday, as Cats will, at first we assumed it was normal feline response but watched him anyway. When he did it again, every 3-4 hours, we called the vet. By then he was also hunched over and not his usual bright self. It was Sunday and we were lucky our Vet is one of the better ones here in London, they had an emergency backup team and were able to operate on Sunday. However, the vet asked us to leave him behind after an initial examination where he could feel a foreign body lodged in Socrates' abdomen. They performed an x-ray and called us back. I asked to wait while they x-rayed him, which might have been of comfort to Socrates, but the vet advised us to leave him with them. If he makes it through and we are able to bring him home-- do you have any suggestions or experience of how to care for him? Will he have to wear an Elizabethan collar? Is ther a high likelihood of the stitches getting infected? Will we have to change his dressings often? It won't be easy to care for him as he's quite frisky and will object to being handled and will also fuss to be let out into the garden. But I'm assuming we'll have to keep him indoors and not let him jump up or climb stairs? Thanks in advance, Shona (first-time cat mom) I would want a large roomy carrier or pet cage for him for a while. Just at first. He will spend the most crucial time at the vets so that is good. He is young enough that barring complications, he should heal quickly. I definitely would contain him as much as possible for the first week. I woudl not let him outside unsupervised until well healed (though since you are in London, do you have an enlosed garden area behind the house?) Hope he makes it. |
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