Front leg amputation of our dear little puss

[lyndel62]

Hi fellow cat lovers, I am here to share the events of the past 24 hours after finding our deal little burmese with a broken leg. We are not 100% sure how the leg was broken but the vet believes it was a dog attack.

Upon finding little Bella who we believe had been attacked at about 10pm at night but was not found until 8am the next morning we took her to the vet. Her leg was x-rayed and as the break is so bad the vet has suggested her front leg be amputated. The damage to the socket is considerable and is fractured too severely to be repaired so amputation is likely.

She is currently in surgery as I write this and I am waiting for the vet to call with the outcome. I have asked that her leg be saved if possible despite the cost involved, however it does not seem that this will be possible.

I want to share this with you all for those who may have been through this process of front leg amputation and for those who may be facing the same situation with their own puss.

Bella is my 12 year old daughter's cat, she is a blue burmese and we have only had her for 2 months. Having Bella put down due to this injury was not an option as we have all become very attached to her. Prior to Bella coming to live with us my daughter had a beautiful little Devon Rex, Bill. Bill met his fate after being bitten by a snake....:cry: yes luck certainly hasn't been on our side with my daugther's cats. We have 3 cats, 2 of which are indoor cats and the third is out rodent eliminator :roll: who is a big ginger tom, who is tough and resiliant and stands his own ground with dogs. Our other 2 cats are indoor cats but unfortunatly there is always the occassion that they do their escape outside. We are now in the process of building a cat enclosure so that the cats can freely go outdoors safely, but they still push do their very best to get outdoors through other means. We are going to get 'tough' now with visitiors and make a very strong point that our cats don't go outdoors.

I have googled information today about cats having legs amputated and have read many positive stories. I hope that I can write back with more positivie information when Bella arrives home after her surgery and welcome any feedback from others with similar stories. We have a cat enclosure to keep Bella in when she arrives home so that she can recover.

We are expecting that the operation will cost us $1000.00 AU but are preparing ourselves for this bill to be a bit higher should they be able to save her leg.

I am pleased that I have been able to find a forum so that I can share this information with other cat lovers and hope that it is of use to someone.

Meow's and purrs to you all.
Lyndel

[lyndel62]

oh my.... what a shocking first entry to your forum... i have just read through my post and noticed all the errors.... so sorry that I didn't proof read before posting.

[Leesy]

Hi:smt039 Lyndel and a big welcome to Catsey,
I am so sorry to hear about your little Bella and her broken leg and I do hope that all has gone well at the vets for her, fingers crossed that they can manage to safe her leg for her, if not:( I belive that they can still live a very agile and happy life and learn to adjust very quickly.
Again I do hope that all has gone well, do let us know how she has got on and please give her a big chin rub ((hugs)) xxx.

[yola]

Hi, and please don't worry about typographical errors when you're pouring out your heart with such a sad story!!

I hope that little Bella comes through her surgery OK - and that whatever the outcome she goes on to live a long and happy life. We have got a few members who have experienced amputations with their cats so if this ends up being the case for Bella, I'm sure much good advice will be forthcoming.

Please do keep us updated with her progress.

[lyndel62]

Thank you so much for the warm welcome Leesy.

I had a call from the vet about an hour after her op. to say that they could not save her leg and it has now been amputated. I was relieved to hear that she was doing well and that we could visit her in about 4 hours time. Hmmmm well............... 4 hours became 3 hours and we couldn't wait any longer to go and see how she was. My daughter and I went in to see her and we were welcomed by the most delightful little girl who was so pleased to see us. I must say that I was worried how she would look with her leg gone, however I didn't even notice it as the first thing I saw was her beautiful cute little face. My first instinct was to pick her up, which I did and then after a few minutes of cuddles decided to look at the wound. I was pleasantly suprised as to how good it looked and was not at all alarmed by the loss of her leg.

The vet told me that they had let her out of her cage earlier and she was coping very well with the loss of her leg.
She encouraged us to let her down on the floor so that we could see how well she was doing and I was amazed at how well she adapted on 3 legs. The vet said it would take some time for her to learn new skills like jumping and landing on her feet... I was then crouched on the floor and to our complete delight Bella jumped on my shoulders and smooched my face!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4 hours afer her op. Bella has been allowed to come home with us. She is still on pain relief that will wear off after 36 hours. We have been lent a cage from the vet to keep her in, however she seems to be more happy sitting on the couch. YES..... she is able to jump on the couch and is continuing on as though she is still a 4 legged puss.

Bella is even more special to us now than she was before. My daughter is not at all upset at the loss of her leg. My son who is 15 was a bit reluctant to look at her when she first arrive home, but within a few minutes he had a smile on his face, as could see that she is the same puss she was before.

All in all a very wonderful experience for us, despite the initial upset. I would recommend the choices that we have made to anyone who is faced with the same decision.

Meows and big purrs to you all
Lyndel

[lyndel62]

Hi, and please don't worry about typographical errors when you're pouring out your heart with such a sad story!!

I hope that little Bella comes through her surgery OK - and that whatever the outcome she goes on to live a long and happy life. We have got a few members who have experienced amputations with their cats so if this ends up being the case for Bella, I'm sure much good advice will be forthcoming.

Please do keep us updated with her progress.

CHEERS Yola and thank you for your message.... as you can see I have now posted a very positive reply on how Bella is.... i will post some photo's as soon as I work out how to add them to this forum.

[yola]

Fantastic news!!! I hope she continues to get better - I'm sure being home will be just what she needs. Please give her a gentle hug from me and tell her she's been a brave little girl :D

[Mags]

Welcome to Catsey, Lyndel :D

So sorry to hear about Bella's broken leg and subsequent amputation.

I'm so pleased to hear the operation went well and am amazed that she is coping so well so soon and that she has been allowed home with you and your family! That's wonderful news!! I hope her recovery continues to progress smoothly, she's such a brave girl...:D

Looking forward to reading further progress reports about Bella....

You will find instructions for posting your pics here (http://www.catsey.com/showthread.php?t=8195)

[MrsH]

Welcome! I've just logged on and read your tale about Bella. Such a sad thing to have happened but I'm so pleased that she's come through the op so well.

I've not got any advice, I've never been in your situation, but I've heard that cats (and dogs) adapt amazingly well to the loss of a leg. What good news that she was allowed home so quickly, your family must be so relieved. Please keep posting with updates on her progress.

What a brave little girl!

[Leesy]

I am so sorry to hear that they couldn`t save Bella`s leg but WOW isn`t she doing great you and your family must be soooooo pleased that she is doing so well so quickly:D :D , that is amazing she must be one little tough cookie.
That was so sweet that she was able to jump on your shoulders and have a smooch with you, it bought an emotional tear to my eye, bet she looks so sweet, I can`t wait to see some pics of Bella.
Please give her a gentle BIG cuddle from me Xxx:D

[angieh]

Hi Lyndel and welcome to Catsey.

When I first looked at this thread, I am afraid I couldn't read it through but have managed to second time round. You are so positive and upbeat I am sure that Bella will have the best possible quality of life after she has recovered from her op.

Your decision to build an outside safe run for your cats sounds very much like the best option. Several people here have done the same thing and if you use the Search option you will be able to track the relevant threads.

Please give Bella a gentle cuddle from me and my little rescue cat Kizzy. I do wish her a whole bundle of grit and determination to add to her undoubted courage - and your's and your family's too.

[Elaine]

Welcome to Catsey, just sorry it was under such traumatic circumstances. So pleased kitty is doing well, I think they adjust much quicker than many of us humans do and it isnt us who lost a limb, atleast I certainly hope not.

[MadCatLady]

Hello & Welcome Lyn!!!:smt039

I know this is a horrible shock and I know the sense that you feel you have somehow failed poor Bella for letting her escape, getting attacked & then not finding her immediately... but don't!!!! :cat11

Accidents happen and at least you are rectifying the problem by building a cat run, something I would do if I didn't live in a 3rd floor flat!!? :roll: :cat19

Now... cats adapt brilliantly to losing limbs, far better & quicker than us poxy humans!! They don't whallow in the self pity stage and meander through a whole list of if's and buts they just get on and deal with it!! :)

Not quite the same but when I chopped off RigbyBigBears willie and he had 28 stitches right up his bottom!!! :cat14 He recovered in a day was home and ruling with a claw of iron within 48hrs and not once did I hear any whinging about losing his 'cathood'.... He is the same fab, chilled dominant male he was before however he can now pee without constant blockages... although he does pee like a girl now but I don't think anyone has noticed :cat20

[dandysmom]

Hi, Lyndel, and welcome; sorry your introduction was on such a sad note, but wonderful that little Bella has come thru the op so well and is home with you. Cats do cope amazingly well with the loss of a limb as others have said. Do post some pics of her when you can; would love to see her. Do please keep us posted how she's doing.

[farthing]

Hi Lyndel, glad to hear bella is doing so well.
We had a cat who lost his back leg. Sadly his owners were less caring than you and had decided to PTS, until the vets asked if we would take him. WE collected him the day after his op, and I have to say I was quite shocked at the swelling, but he recovered really well. iI took him a good couple of months to get fit and build up muscle, but after that he went out hunting and could keep up with all the other cats,the only thing he couldn't do was sit up on his back leg.
I would just say keep an eye on his pain relief, as once it wears of they can get pretty sore, but the stitches come out after 12 days and they are off, recovery is actually quicker than a leg break.

[Kim]

Hi Lyndel

Welcome to Catsey.

So sorry to hear about Bella's broken leg and amputation. I think cats adjust very well to disability. We have a disabled cat and he manages very well. Fantastic news that Bella is doing so well. Please give her a gentle hug from me. x

[Leesy]

Hi Lyndel,
How is our little Bella doing today, is she still doing well.
Do let us know please Pauline Xxx.

[pookyandjo]

Hi Lyndal,
Glad to hear that Bella has come through her surgery and is home with you.. My cat Tinky Winky had a rear leg amputation earlier this year due to a cancerous tumour.. his wound was healing very well but he passed away due to a blood clot a week after his surgery.
One of the main things that you need to do with Bella during her recovery is to keep her quiet and encourage her to rest... of course she will want to get up and walk around and get used to getting around on 3 legs... but she has had major surgery and the wound will probably under some tension with quite a few layers of stitching which needs to mend without breaking down just keep an eye on it for any swelling, redness or discharge..
Hope she continues to thrive and heals without any complications

Jo

[jan]

Hi Lyndal,
welcome to Catsey! So sorry to hear about Bella but relieved to hear she is full steam ahead. Hope she continues to come on in leaps and bounds (literally) Keep us updated! Jan x