Help for Three Legged Cat ???

Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (Full Version)

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FelineFae -> Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:32:05 PM)
i'm staying with my family right now, and one of the yard cats was found greatly injured yesterday. We don't know what happened to him, my adoptive sister found him beside her car when she was leaving to pick up her child from school. The following is graphic ; One front paw was very very very swollen and the claws looked mangled. But the worst was that his back leg was gone. His thigh was there but only a piece of a claw dangled off his thigh by two tendons and a very dirty scrap of muscle. There were some bones showing through his thigh. It's weird because none of his injury was bleeding. We rushed him to our normal vet, but they were closed. We got to the next closest vet. They took him in and said they could save the front leg. We got him back today. He is set up to recoop in my huge master bathroom. He takes a dropper full of an antibiotic/painkiller twice a day, and it makes him kinda stoned. But the poor baby gets so angry when he tries to move. There's bandaging over his front paw, so he can't feel his paw pad when he sets it to the floor. And he wants so much to move his leg that isn't there. They had to remove it at the the hip. And i know he hurts when he's moving. He gets so frustrated and then he just rolls so that he can move... How can i help him through all this ?

SylvereApLeanan -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:40:22 PM)
Poor fuzzybutt. [&o] I don't have an answer at the moment, but I'll check with a buddy of mine who does a lot of cat rescue and see if he has any tips. I'll get back to you as soon as I can. With any luck someone else will have more immediate suggestions.

FelineFae -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:46:15 PM)
Of Weasel; He's always been a playful, affectionate, outgoing cat. He loves being outdoors more than being inside, though he's clever and is well known for getting into mischief and being naughty in harmless ways. He's a black American bobtail that showed up at my mother's place a few years after i got my Japanese Bobtail, Banshea, also black. They have been our little book end kitties. i took over caring for him and my mother's other cat, Goofy, because of my mother's health complications. I've helped cats that have had to wear casts, but never an amputation. It kills me to see his emotions and pain.

FelineFae -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:47:15 PM)
Thank Yous, Syl. <3

DomKen -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:54:19 PM)
I hate to say it but you may just have to let the cat relearn how to walk. I'd keep him doped up as best you can till the cast/bandages comes off, assuming it will be off fairly quickly, and then let him figure things out by trial and error. I doubt he can ever be an outdoor cat again.

FelineFae -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 5:57:34 PM)
Yes, sadly that's what the vet said, he'd have to be an inside cat from now on. We live way out in the sticks here and there are wild boar, raccoons, and other predators. It has even been guessed that the cat may have been injured by a hunter's raccoon trap.

MalcolmNathaniel -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 6:20:21 PM)
You are going to have to let the little furball relearn how to walk. Cats aren't like people or dogs. They will harbor resentment if you try to do too much. Give him some time and he'll figure out how to walk again on his own. As for what the vet said, "PBBBBBBBBTTTTTTTT!" Forcing the cat to stay inside just because of a missing limb is going to make the cat go batshit-crazy. Think of it as quality of life: the vet is saying you've got to keep him in a nursing home. The cat will not thank you for that.

SeekingTrinity -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 6:29:55 PM)
~FRing it~ Not much you can do to help the little kitty get used to his new normal aside from providing him the care he needs while he is recovering. Cats, like dogs, are pretty resilient and he will no doubt learn how to navigate as a three-legged being in time. It just takes time to figure things out.

FelineFae -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 6:39:39 PM)
i really do thank you all. He's fell asleep purring while i was light scratching his head. After all this, i think it'll be an early bedtime for me too.

Toysinbabeland -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 6:44:39 PM)
Lots of love and scrap meat. Poor baby.

SylvereApLeanan -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 10:42:01 PM)
I heard back from my friend and he gave the following advice to help keep kitty calm: Get a heated bed or find a way to give him warmth. A hot water bottle wrapped in a towel or a towel warmed in a dryer and tucked in his bed should work. Play soothing, classical music. (Apparently, cats like the classics.) Get a calming diffuser. http://m.petco.com/N_23_4294956712/Cat-Calming-Aids.aspx If nothing else works, the vet can prescribe Kitty Prozac for approximately $10 per month. Hope this helps.

MistressDarkArt -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/18/2013 10:45:38 PM)
Fae, I can't help with advice for the recovery, but afterwards maybe something like this will help keep him safe and still allow him some partial 'outside' time. I built it for my 3 cats who are all rescues. One boy was obviously an outdoor cat, and he HATED being house-bound so I thought this would be a good compromise. He still tries to get 'out out' every chance he gets, but it was either this or the pound, and he wasn't very adoptable when I took him in so his chances for survival were almost nil. [image]local://upfiles/905271/C6A1F79F051042D6B94BB413624CEC8A.jpg[/image]

Rule -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 5:22:08 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: FelineFae How can i help him through all this ? Leave the cat alone.

ShaharThorne -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 6:27:22 AM)
I still love that, MDA. Our neighbor's cats come over and lay on the porches until Mom shoos them off (she hates cats especially indoor ones). God forbid if Mom passes on, I will foster some cats and build them a cat aviary to be in.

MariaB -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 7:11:43 AM)
Fae, I'm so sorry this has happened to your cat and so sorry you are having to go through this emotionally but it sounds like you are doing all the right things. We have a tripod Bengal boy. Like you, we don't know and never did find out what happened. His leg wasn't ripped off but it had to be amputated because the injury was too severe. Its his front leg and not his back leg. I remember his anger and frustration during his recovery but animals are incredibly resilient and they do bounce back much quicker than us humans. He still washes his invisible limb 3 years on! but he gets around just fine. He even climbs things! His nature changed a lot. He was always a very independent boy who didn't like peoples laps but now he's overly affectionate and loves nothing more than a good cuddle. Well done for not giving up on him and nursing him through these tough times. It will be okay, it really will. Sending all our best for your poorly boy, you and your family.

FelineFae -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 8:38:53 AM)
i have plenty of rice for making microwave hot-socks... Thanks again, everyone, for all the advice. Our little guy, seems to a little more together this morning ( at least before his meds ). Lol, i had to stop typing for a little because my adoptive sister came in to visit him[:)] i know having that bandage (not cast) on his front paw has to be weird for him, but does anyone know how long it might be before he can stand up again ?

kalikshama -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 9:13:23 AM)
Mom lives on a pond, and one of her neighbors has a friend who brings over his three legged dog, who seems to have completed adapted to his situation. He plays with the other dog, jumps off the deck, swims, etc. Other than his awkward gait, he presents as a normal dog. Best of luck to your kitty!

servantforuse -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/19/2013 12:01:57 PM)
I guess I'll never understand why people who love their pets would let them roam wild. They can be injured or killed by cars, other animals and birds of prey. They are also subject to getting rabies and other illnesses.

MariaB -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/20/2013 4:36:21 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: servantforuse I guess I'll never understand why people who love their pets would let them roam wild. They can be injured or killed by cars, other animals and birds of prey. They are also subject to getting rabies and other illnesses. In Europe people only tend to keep their pedigree cats indoors and that's normally because they are entire. The UK doesn't have rabies or birds of prey big enough to take a cat (unless your in Scotland). We don't have Coyotes or beasties that will drag a cat away in the night. Personally I couldn't have a (four legged) cat and not allow it to be out doing cat things but I'm from a different part of the world to you and our culture towards our cats (which we love btw) is very different to yours. Most of us here would let their cats out BECAUSE they loved them and not keep them locked indoors.

servantforuse -> RE: Help for Three Legged Cat ??? (12/20/2013 4:46:14 AM)
There are many rodents with rabies here, and birds of prey big enough to take a cat for dinner. Just a few months ago my neighbor and I watched a hawk kill a cat and fly off with it. Don't know who it belonged to but it never went home that day. All that was left was a poof of fur. I leave mine in the house where it is safe.

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