Birds Make Good Neighbors

The month of April of 2010 was a rough one. I was laid off after giving over a month’s notice at my job (my husband and I moving back to Arizona in May), so I decided to volunteer at an animal shelter. Actually, I hadn’t planned on volunteering. I had been caring for a stray cat, Jinny, since Christmas 2009; and she happened to be pregnant. I originally contacted several shelters to see if they could take her and her babies, once they were born, and old enough. Every shelter was full, of course. Since I had been laid off and had over a month’s worth of time to spare, I figured it would be good to volunteer at one of the shelters. This would get me out of the house, hopefully help with my panic attacks, be great for a reference and I’d have an “in” for Jinny and her babies. Plus, it was a no kill shelter.

I started at the shelter 4/2/2010. I was there four to five times a week! I got to know the kitties pretty well. I came to love them, since I worked with the same ones day in, day out. Monday, May 17th we had four new arrivals, since we had a few empty cages: two kittens, one cat under a year and another 5 year old cat.

Wednesday, 4/21st, was my first day back since the arrival of new kitties. I was excited to play with the new arrivals! I went ahead and cleaned three cat cages before letting the new cat out, namedVan. Van was meowing, expressing how badly he wanted out of his cage. I felt bad for him; he really wanted attention, so I decided to clean his cage next and let him out to play. As soon as I let him out, he was rubbing up against my leg, meowing, loving up against me. I pet him once or twice while I was working on cleaning his cage. Next thing I know, while I was standing up, he comes over, stands up on his back feet, stretching his front paws up to my knees for me to pet him. I reach down to pet him and the next thing I know he’s biting my arm. Hard! As he’s biting my arm, near my wrist, I realize he wasn’t letting go. I started to freak out, imagining him clamping down on the veins in my wrist. “I’m going to bleed to death when he lets go!” I thought.

As fast as this all was happening, my life was flashing before my eyes because I had no idea why this cat was biting me so hard – and I had no idea why he wouldn’t let go. I screamed as loud as I could, but Van bites down harder. I feel my left arm go numb and then my thumb and index finger begin to tingle. Now I’m in shock, I believe. The animal shelter is located inside PetSmart (PetSmart is legally separate from the shelter and simply allow animals to be adopted at their store). If one has been to a PetSmart, the cat room is usually a small room with glass and is soundproof. I know this because when I screamed, the customers outside didn’t even look over at me.

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This is how much Vega, my cat, and I are in sync: we are both on Clyndamycin at the same time!

BFF’s!

January 7th I took my kitty, Vega, to a discounted spay/neuter clinic here in Knoxville, TN; our regular vet charged double the price. Here is a photo of Vega right after surgery.

A few days after her surgery, she started to develop a hard lump underneath her incision, which caused great concern. I called Fix-a-Pet and they said it was normal, but if her condition changed to call my regular vet. Gee, thanks. I’ve had my share of female kittens spayed, and I’ve also seen surgeries done when I worked as a vet tech; I’ve never seen any lump of the sort. Notice above, Vega has no lump. Below shows the firm, non-painful swelling under her incision.

I called my regular vet, just to pre-warn them that I may be rushing her in at any moment, should she become listless or stop eating, etc. In the meantime, I looked this lump subject up on the internet, in which I found the best (and re-assuring) advice:

Question: Is this post abdominal surgery (i.e. spay) lump “normal”?

Surgical closure of the incision
For traditional abdominal surgeries, most vets do what is called a 3-layer closure. The first (inner-most) layer is the strength layer. This closure is sutures up the body wall. The second layer is the subcutaneous layer; the connective tissue (and fat) between the body wall and skin. The final layer, the one everyone sees, is the skin closure.

Pets will often lick or chew at the suture line. Some animals just a few times, other animals will be obsessive about it; possibly removing sutures in the process. Cats are particularly adept at removing sutures prematurely (before the recommended 10-14 day time).

It is important to note that many vets bury the sutures with suture material that dissolves, so there are no sutures to remove. Additionally, some vets use surgical skin glue to speed closure and healing. Your vet will give specific post-surgery instructions upon discharge.

What is “normal” for post-surgical healing?
This varies of course, with the suture materials used, the doctor’s technique, and the patient. It is very important to keep your pet from licking and chewing and to keep your pet physically quiet (no vigorous activity) while healing during the 10 – 14 days post surgery time. Any redness, painful swelling, and drainage should be mentioned to your veterinarian right away, especially if your pet is listless and not eating.

A lump can be “normal,” sometimes
A firm, non-painful swelling under the incision that appears a few days or a week after surgery is fairly common, particularly in cats. This the body’s way of working on the sutures, called a suture reaction. Some animals “react”, most don’t at all. These types of lumps can take several days or weeks to shrink to normal. If you notice a lump, call your veterinarian. They may want to check it out and make note of it.

When a post-surgery lump is not OK
If you see any redness, swelling, pain, or drainage from the incision, or your pet is listless and not eating, this may be serious – call your veterinarian as soon as possible.

From about.com

In Vega’s case, she turned out to be okay. Her lump went away about a week after I noticed it. Just wanted to post about this, just in case fellow kitty momma’s were concerned with the same issue.

(c) 2009 BMGN . Boston. Winter 2009