Sammy Jo and one of his many war wounds. This was taken in my old basement apartment which was always damp and cold. He would sit by the heating vent and rest his head inside to take a snooze.Three years ago on the week before Halloween he went out for a prowl and didn't come back. The first night I wasn't worried but by the second night I was getting a bit frantic so I went out looking for him. I combed the neighbourhood to no avail. As I sat on the porch stairs wondering where the heck he was, I heard a plaintive meow sound. I found him in some nearby bushes and it was immediately obvious he had hurt his back paw. The next morning, which unfortunately was a Saturday, and his regular vet is closed I had to go looking for a vet. Luckily my sister drove me around. We phoned one place and they said they would be open at 10:00 and they could take a look at him then. So we truck on over there only to find out they are open but the vet doesn't come in on Saturdays. It would have been nice to know that before hand!
So they phoned another vet clinic with a working vet and we were able to get in there. We head over there and the vet takes a look at him and says, "Oh, it's nothing we just need to clean his wound." She takes him into the back room and a few minutes later comes back out to say, "I'm sorry to say it's a lot more serious than I thought. We're going to have to amputate."
I just looked at her and said, "Not a chance. I want a second opinion." So she bandages up his paw for transportation. Her bandage was enormous. It looked like he had a second tail, only bright pink. I took one look at that bandage and thought, "Lady, you're a quack!"
Thank goodness I got him out of there. I called a friend with lots of animals to see who she takes her animals to and so that's where we went. When I took Sammy Jo out of the cat carrier the vet took one look at the bandage and said, "That has to come off." When I told him a vet did it. He gave me such a look of disbelief that my sister stepped in and said, "It's true, a vet put that on."
Found out his paw was broken but they were able to put him back together for $800! Of course they don't knock you with the price all at once. Oh no. They do it in stages and they do it in the waiting room with all the other pet owners staring in your direction waiting for your reaction. Over the course of the whole broken paw fiasco I had three different vets say, "We have a saying about cats. Put in him in a box and they'll be fine." By the third time I said, "Next time, I want that presented as an option."
By the second day after having his paw set and cast he was wanting outside. He couldn't walk down the stairs of course so I would carry out into the backyard and he'd hop around for a couple of minutes and then I'd carry him back him. A few more days and we'd walk the perimeter of the house together. Within a couple of weeks we would walk up the back lane and up a hill nearby. Although his paw is now 100% and he goes off prowling on his own , we still take that same walk together a few times a week.
12 comments:
our cat disappeared for a whole ten days! when he came back he was covered in fleas. unfortunately, the fleas were not noticed until it was too late. they then took over our home and our other long haired cat, diva. she was allergic and got septic. even more unfortunately we did not notice until it was too late as she never came around as it was. she was always curled up under the bed. we had to have her put down and then eventually pepper had to be put down.
he would not stay in the house and kept running out and getting more fleas. we went through this the entire summer. when i took him to the vet (for the fourth time) and exasperately told the story... for some reason the vet said, let's check his brain. pepper is not acting at all like his normal self. turned out he had a brain tumor and was freaking out with it. so, both of our cats, gone. :o(
this was two years ago.
we just recently got a dog. we really like him, but they are so different than cats.
Aw, it's so hard when you have to put them down. I remember putting down our family cat and my brother and I went together. I couldn't take it and starting crying and left my brother alone to deal with it.
i'm glad you finally found a decent vet!
so far, my dog hasn't had any major war wounds. a few scratches from the cat down the road. and a mystery wound to his tail that went away. my vet is awesome. he makes me laugh. he basically said, the tail is big, it gets in the way, they will hit it or something eventually.
and the best thing about my vet is my dog LOVES him. he really only goes for shots and he still loves him. i think it's the cookies. and the nurses. :)
oh, and i forgot to say, i love how you and your kitty take that walk together still.
Awwwwww! Poor Sammy Jo! I am horrified by that vet who wanted to amputate! Holy! I'm happy that he recovered. Why do Vets charge so much I wonder. I've never had to take an animal to the vet,and now I'm scared! I hope Loki stays healthy and out of trouble! There is always the SPCA hospital I suppose they don't charge as much, but I'm not 100% sure about that. As 668 said, I too love that you still take that walk together. :)
PS Jennifer's story is soooo SAD :( *sniffle*
Hey 668, I hope your dog stays wound free. Vet bills are deadly. When Sammy Jo broke his paw I was studying at university. Man, that was not an expense I needed!
Hi Mellowlee. Thanks for stopping by. So, this site is the one that I made as a direct result of you and Loki's site. I think it's a good idea but I have lots of animals stories and love them but I know not everyone is so into the whole animal thing.
I look forward to reading more animal stories here!!! :D
I love the animal stuff.
I always was a "cat" person too but my ex was allergic and he'd been a dog person. So we (reluctantly) got a dog 20 years ago. I was skeptical at first, but that lasted about eight seconds. She was my best friend and, although she's been gone a few years now, I still miss her dearly. So now I'm a cat and dog person.
Deb, growing up we had both so I've always been a cat and dog fan. Our dog by the way was called Roughie after you guess it, the Roughriders.
Mellowlee, when I first read Jennifer's story I didn't know what to say. When I was reading it I kept thinking well something good has to happen but sadly it just kept getting worse.
i keep meaning to do one for my dog. i even have all the pics but....
You should. This one is really fun. I actually find it easier than the other one. Sadly, for my "regular" blog I have trouble coming up with something to say. I end up thinking, man my life is boring! I should point out the idea for this came from Mellowlee.
Post a Comment