Willow's Story

WILLOW SURVIVES HER CAR ENCOUNTER

"Willow" is an eight-year-old female, tortoise-shell cat that went missing one night only to return 2 days later with a swollen, beat-up face. She was also limping owing to a dislocated paw.

She had obviously been hit by a car and had horrible, infected head injuries, mostly involving the head, mouth and nose.

The roof of the mouth was split along its entire length and the lower jaw was fractured in the middle. The lower jaw was also dislocated and there was a communicating hole between the roof of the mouth and the nose.

Willow was placed on intravenous fluids and antibiotics and immediately taken to surgery. Her jaw was relocated into its joint and then the fractured part wired back into position .Her hard palate was realigned and then sutured back together. Infection was rife in the mouth with a lot of infected discharge emanating from her wounds.

A lack of blood supply to tissues in the mouth and head was of concern to us in these early stages of treatment.

Willow with her feeding tube in place.
She also had a blue cast on her dislocated paw.

A feeding tube was placed in her neck and down the oesophagus to her stomach, so that nutrients and calories could be fed to her via a syringe. Over the next 10 days Willow’s wounds began to heal and the infections subsided. Eventually she started to eat again and soon returned to her bright normal self.

Once again the strength and trust of these pets always enchants you as you take them along that arduous trip to recovery. Willow was always so co-operative and understanding in our hospital, and it was rewarding to see her recover the way she did.

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