Today Freya managed to get around some more, she had a solid movement (oh joy) and has taken her required doses of painkiller and antibiotics. The antibiotics in particular feel like a win – she doesn’t take them orally at all well and so I sneak them into some of her food (strong smelling fish broth) and for the most part she eats it. She sometimes stops and there is still food there and so I follow her around with the bowl, tilting it for her and after several impassioned pleas to be a good girl, she eats it all. I just hope that it continues this way for the next four days.
She slept well last night, sharing the mattress I moved downstairs into the room she is recuperating in. I managed to sleep quite well too. She has stuck quite close and usually is lying next to me as I read or type. I just had to move then to avoid having her sit on the laptop, or walk across it, as is her wont. I kept an eye on movements to see when I should give the next dose of painkiller – once a day is the recommendation but if need be I would move it up a few hours, but she did well. When I did notice the start of some discomfort I dosed her up (in food) and she settled.
She really doesn’t like the Cone of Shame and that almost causes as much trouble for her moving around as the loss of her leg does. It came off the first day and I did keep a watch and unfortunately she did start to lick the incision site so I put it back on. She just them managed to remove the soft cloth at the back of it, but it has stayed put. I think I might remove it tomorrow afternoon and observe her actions again. I would remove it tomorrow morning but I have to take a feral kitten in to the RSPCA and she will have to be left alone for the hour or two that will take.
That’s a whole other story. Suffice to say that on top of worrying and caring for Freya, a mother cat and six kittens turned up in my yard four days ago and after some feeding I got one of the kittens tonight and have placed it in a cage. It was not pleasant and I’m thinking that I might see if I can get a humane trap from the RSPCA but it seems like such an unnecessary complication in my life right now. I want to be focusing on Freya and her recovery but instead I’m having to spend time trying to work out how to deal with a feral cat situation! Part of me wants to just ignore it but I know someone has to take responsibility at some time.
I’ve also been doing some thinking about the incision as I got feedback that internal sutures without any external ones is a bit unusual. I know most of the photos I’ve seen are of staples and the length of the incision seem so long but Freya’s is about the length of my hand and looks quite … well, smart isn’t the word, but quite neat I think. I’m not sure if this is an Australian thing but my vet said he was old fashioned and didn’t use staples. He also made the call to make them internal and I’m guessing that was so she didn’t need to go back to get stitches out – she would probably have to be sedated and that would be unnecessarily harsh for her so soon after this procedure. He’s been a brilliant vet, and I feel quite lucky.
There also appears to be a different approach to amputation overall here (or at least at my vet) as Freya was only in overnight and back home the next day (the vet said I could have taken her home the next morning and that would have been less than 24 hours) and she is only taking pain killers once a day. I know from some of the other blogs that it can be days at the vet and the pain management regime seems quite intensive. But Freya doesn’t appear to be in pain (no head to floor posture, etc that can sometimes be the only indicator) and she is currently lying on the incision, so I am making an assumption she is not in pain.
Freya has begun to want to investigate more and it was all I could to stop her sneaking in to try the stairs! I’m glad she’s feeling that way, but I’d like her a bit more stable before she tries the stairs. I am however thinking that I might open the bottom of the house to her tomorrow. I’ll have to go through and shift some of her favourite jumping places, and place some assists (small boxes) to the couch but that should be fine.
So, Day 2 is drawing to a close and it has been a good day.
Hi,
and thanks for sharing Freya’s story. Freya seems a lot like my cat, in spiritwise, as in looks.
My cat had her hindleg amputated over 3 years ago, and she is doing ok. She has bone cancer.
I took her to the vet in the morning, and got her back home in the afternoon, some hours after the op.
She had painmeds once a day for a week or so (don’t remember), a pain cannula (that went into the incision wound) for 3 days – lidocain was pushed every 6 hours, no antibiotics.
She had removable stitches.
She was up and about right after she got home, a little wobbly at first. I had to take her to vet twice, because she didn’t wee. But after that, everything was ok, more or less.
Now, even today, she is on painmeds when ever she seems uncomfortable. The cancer has spread, so as long as she is painfree (and not constantly on meds) she will be with me.
I like to read about other’s success stories. So glad Freya has one more to add!
Happy Holidays