Hi you two....
just to say Tango has come home today after having his front leg amputated following his car accident. He's totally wowed the vet staff, chattered at us all the way home in the car, been full of himself, had a couple of comic moments when his balance has gone, but as mrs CK said " look, he's already putting his other front leg 'central' to his body to compensate..."
He's simply happy to be at home with us, and we're similarly happy to see him looking so upbeat and full of beans.
It is a bit of a stomach churner to see him, body shaved and stitches in place, but that will pass as stitches go and fur re-grows. My eldest daughter is really upset but is slowly coming round.....
and i confess to at least 2 totally sleepless nights. Mrs CK has also acknowledged a similar lack of sleep, so it's not just me!
Thanks you two for your support at a really bleak moment for me......
as mrsflash said " he'll be fine........"
phew........
Qx
What were you doing letting him drive a bloody car?
Seriously though...good news. Glad he's well. My mate who's a veterinary says animals always do really well when they lose a leg - just compensate and get on with it...no counselling required, unlike the owners (hehe, don't worry, I'd be the same).
'councelling for the owners....'
I think this has been the most stressful time of our recent lives..... we were reduced to crashing out in front of a Harry Potter dvd and eating chocolate when he came home, such was the relief!!!!
Needless to say, Tango chose the most comfortable lap and slept!!!
cheers
Q
Great news 🙂 I think we need a picture of Tango, he sounds like a real character.
I can relate though, when Wellie was hit a while ago we were both in absolute bits. The vet was great though, said we could visit at any time (and we did - we went at about 10pm the first night he was there!). It's incredible how quickly they recover though. He had to be caged to stop him jumping and re-dislocating his hip and he really did not want to be in there.
I'm really glad that things are turning out well. I've just got back from taking Louis for a really long walk as I'm on a day off today, he's been running his little legs off and its lovely to see. The most difficult time for me has been making sure he recovered properly. HE was totally unfussed by having a broken elbow and was jumping over our 4' fence whilst my wifes back was turned 2 weeks after the break!
We kept him crated (I find this is a posh word for a cage in doggy circles) for as long as possible, and tried to keep him calm whilst it all repaired. Touch wood its all settled down now and we shouldn't have a problem for a while.
Thanks for letting us know, good luck to Tango with his recovery.
Regards
Pepper
How is Tango doing now Christowkid?
Hi mrsflash - how kind of you to ask!
Well, after the euphoria of him coming home, he did have a bit of a slump. It was almost like he was depressed, and quite possibly was. He didn't move around much and we really had to tempt him to eat, putting some water in with his food-with-jelly to get some fluids in. He had to wear a collar to stop him licking and pulling his stiches out - it was driving him frantic, he hated it, but without it he'd nibble within a second!
At the beginning of last week we were concerned, but he did pick up gradually over the week. On saturday we felt he had improved, took him back for his stitches to be taken out. The vet was pleased, talked us through our concerns and also said we were right in our rehabilitation - lots of cuddles, tempt him, keep water up etc. .....and took his collar off!!!!! He's left the stitches in until tomorrow, on the understanding that if Tango pulled them out it actually wouldn't matter! The other vet also explained that for cats it's a huge psychological adjustment - they *will* get over it, but it takes time.
Every day this week has seen a significant improvement - really noticable.
He's moving around normally, I've just got out my chair and he was there almost before i was fully upright!!! Yay!!! that's normal! His fur's growing back, the spots are now evident ( he's a spotted cat ) and tomorrow Mrs CK will pop him back to get the stitches out fully confident we're on the way to normality!
But we really were concerned! Phew.
Here's a couple of images before the accident. i haven't had the feeling that I want to take any more yet.
[img] http://images.fotopic.net/?id=57871210&=1 [/img]
[img] http://images.fotopic.net/?id=57871216&=1 [/img]
He's a bit of a star!!
.... and thankfullt *still* a bit of a star!
thanks for the thoughts
Q
He's a stunner!
Glad he's improving.
Now that's a great looking cat!
Glad to hear things are getting better with him too 🙂
thanks peeps.
Stitches out today - then the vet *insisted* on a cuddle! He's totally won all them over, even those that do the large animal stuff. Vet pleased with everything too. The top of oneline of the scar is now starting to flatten and disappear....quite amazing.
I was greeted by a shout this morning as I opened the kitchen door, then he went to his bowl and stood patiently, tail over paws, until fed. Tonight got head butted until i stopped sorting the woodburner and fussed him. Both things *very Tango*.
I feel we really have now got him back.......
not sure he wants to go out though!!!!!!!!!
thanks for all thoughts, much appreciated
Qx
Great news, I'm so glad that the recovery is now going so well.
You might well find he is wary of traffic for a long time (good thing too!) Wellie is still quite anxious around the road - he actually looks both ways before crossing, it's very cute!!
Well, if he doesn't venture onto the road again ever it'll be fine with me.
Yesterday Mrs CK came home dinnertime and put some washing on the line, leaving the kitchen door open..... and lo and behold - Tango was outside in the garden!!!!
I came home at 5-ish, he was still out there, mooching around, and today first thing he wanted to do was go outside! We've the back door open and he's in-and-out as per normal. Essentially he just likes to hang out with someone, so we've planned to be in the garden over the weekend, that'll be fine. As the vet said, it's important now to treat him normally, let him out if he wants, and reassure him that life is normal.
...and thank goodness it seems he's acting normally. He looks it in his face too.
Might get the camera out!!!!!
have a good weekend, forecast here ( Devon ) good, so hope it is for you too.
cheers
Q