A cat that recently crept into a home's crawl space wearing an old, discoloured cast found a reprieve from what BC SPCA officials have described as shocking pain, but it's still on the road to a full recovery.
Homeowners found the cat, which was hissing at them and clearly in distress and took it into the nearest animal hospital. That's when the full extent of its injuries were revealed.
“There was a foul smell coming from the cast," Sarah Ringer-Vennard, manager of BC SPCA Abbotsford, said in a media release.
"We immediately brought him to an animal hospital for treatment and to get him some relief from the incredible pain he must have been in.”
Pain medication was dispensed and the rotting cast was removed.
What was underneath that cast is something that the BC SPCA has described as shocking.
“There was a huge amount of exposed broken bone and necrotic tissue, due to the wet cast,” Ringer-Vennard said.
"It was obvious this was an old injury. I can’t imagine how he was able to walk at all, let alone crawl into a home for help.”
The veterinarian determined that the leg was in critical condition, and that the leg needed to be amputated.
“When they were performing the surgery, they realized that that a lot more of the tissue surrounding the injury was dead than we had initially thought,” Ringer-Vennard said.
“They ended up having to do an amputation to the shoulder.”
In addition to the surgery, a bloodwork panel was done and some of the results were consistent with the trauma. He is anemic and has high glucose levels. Some of his bloodwork was indicative of pancreatitis but this could be that the liver is shedding similar enzymes to pancreatitis because of the infection in the bone.
"The veterinarian expects these levels to normalize in about 30 days,” she said.
Now that the cat’s pain is being managed and he is on the mend from his surgery, his personality is starting to shine through, said the BC SPCA
"He is warming up to people more now,” Ringer-Vennard said.
Anyone who can help this cat and other animals in need at the BC SPCA is asked to visit the non-profit's website.
