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Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

The litter tray

Urgent help please - horrendous cat situation, should i pts?

31 replies

Tolalola · 15/05/2011 20:39

This is so upsetting. Please don't read if you're squeamish.

My cat was attacked by a dog last night. At first I though she was ok, but when I picked her up, I saw that her mouth was in a real state. I thought she had a tooth hanging loose, but when I looked closer, I saw that it is her lower jawbone hanging out of her mouth.

I live on a small island where there is no vet. A vet comes here on Tuesday and Thursday. I called her emergency number and explained the situation and she said she'd see me first thing Tuesday.

The cat would not stay inside (is really a countryside, outdoor cat and only comes in for food) and was out for the night and all day today. I've just brought her in and given her some soup and milk, both of which she wolfed. She even purred when I picked her up . She went straight out again after eating, but I got a look at her mouth and it looks awful.

Should I wait until Tuesday, or would I be better to take her down to the Shelter today, where they could not treat her but could pts? Is there any hope for a cat with a badly broken jaw, or am I being horrible waiting for her to see the vet on Tuesday while she suffers?

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aStarInStrangeways · 15/05/2011 20:41

Oh poor kitty :( Sorry, no advice but didn't want you to go unanswered.

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SecretNutellaFix · 15/05/2011 20:45

take her down the shelter- they may be able to get the vet out earlier if there is a chance she could be saved. or they could give you realistic options.

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piratecat · 15/05/2011 20:47

why did you let her go out again.

please go and get her in and put her in a secure room if poss.

can you ask the vet for advice, are you able to get any antibiotics for her from anyone

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WishIWasRimaHorton · 15/05/2011 20:48

oh poor puss. :(

it sounds like she is not in utterly horrendous amounts of pain if she is eating and going in and out. cats tend to absent themselves when they are in loads of pain. but i can imagine how distressing it is for you...

it's not that long to wait until tuesday now, and i guess the biggest risk now is infection. if she is still coming and going and turning up for food, then i would be tempted to hang on in there. although i can imagine how sick it's making you feel seeing her. did you tell the vet you thought her jaw was broken or did you only notice afterwards? any chance you could call the vet again now you have a clearer picture?

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aStarInStrangeways · 15/05/2011 20:49

Would the shelter be able to give her pain relief until Tuesday?

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hellymelly · 15/05/2011 20:49

A broken jaw is completely fixable,don't have her pts. Even in the 30's they could sort this out,I remember reading about a hideously smashed up jaw in James Herriot's books as a teenager. The danger is infection in the meantime,could the shelter give her antibiotics and painkillers do you think? Is there no way of taking her on the boat to the mainland?

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thisisyesterday · 15/05/2011 20:50

next time she comes in, keep her in.
although, if she is eating ok and has been coming and going i'd say she must not be feeling too awful????

but is there any way you can get her to a vet tomorrow? can you travel off your island to get her seen?

either way i think i would take her to the shelter and just see if they can suggest anything to make her more comfortable before tuesday if that's really the earliest you can get her seen

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Tolalola · 15/05/2011 21:02

Thanks so much for all the replies.

I had seen her jaw when I phoned the vet, so she knows to bring her portable x-ray on Tuesday. The vet told me specifically not to give her any painkillers, and she doesn't actually seem to be in miserable amounts of pain. She is jumping and lapping ok. I asked about taking her to the shelter for antibiotics but she told me to wait until Tuesday.

I tried to keep her inside in a separate room, but she completely freaked out and started yowling and clawing and leaping all over the place, and in the end I thought she'd likely do herself more damage. She has always seemed very claustrophobic. Getting her to the vet will be a nightmare as its a 45 minute drive away and she goes mad in cars.

The vet is actually on a neighbouring island which belongs to another country, so by the time I could get import/export permits for the cat it'd be Tuesday anyway.

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thisisyesterday · 15/05/2011 21:06

aww i hope she is ok. you're probably right about letting her out if she's very unhappy indoors

sorry to hijack, but where do you live? i am daydreaming about life on a tropical island but can't persuade DP- i realise you may not actually be on a tropical island but if you are tell me about it!!!

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RabbitFood · 15/05/2011 21:07

oh dear I would think that if she is still eating, and eating well, there is hope. She also seems able to move around well, so fingers crossed she will make the vets on tues. Doesn't really look like you have any other option than to wait really.

Hope everything works out ok.

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Tolalola · 15/05/2011 21:31

Thanks again, everyone. I'm feeling a bit better and more hopeful reading the replies.

I thought it might be hopeless, and maybe I was being cruel by making her wait if the vet would inevitably pts, although I was actually really surprised at how normal she seemed when she came in today, except for her poor mouth.

I just went to visit her outside and she seemd pretty content, really. She gave a big yawn and a stretch and a little meow hello.

Planning strategies on how to get her to the vet in one piece. Last time I had to take her (for jabs) the poor thing arrived there minus two claws .

Yes, thisisyesterday, it's a tropical island. I'm in the British Virgin Islands and the vet's in the US Virgin Islands, so it's full-on American style import hassle to get animals to her there. Living here definitely has its plus points, but downsides too cos it's very small. And there's no bloody vet .

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ImeldaM · 16/05/2011 10:14

If she's managing to eat then she's doing pretty well, tough cat, only thing to suggest for vet trip some kind of sedative you could put in her food? Poss could get from shelter, or vet might know someone who could give you some.

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thisisyesterday · 16/05/2011 10:52

oooh how lovely! (aside from things like no vet).
were you born there or did you move? i am currently investigating possible locations so i can present my findings to dp and show him how eeeeasy it would be.
will make a note not to have any pets tho

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WishIWasRimaHorton · 16/05/2011 11:52

please let us know how it goes. poor puss...

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WishIWasRimaHorton · 16/05/2011 11:53

oh and she must be as hard as nails. us girls, you see. we are made of tough stuff!

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SecretNutellaFix · 16/05/2011 18:24

how is kitty doing today?

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Fluffycloudland77 · 16/05/2011 19:16

I saw a photo of a cat with a broken jaw once and it sounds like what you described.

How is the cat today??

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Tolalola · 16/05/2011 20:39

Mini-update:

The cat wasn't sitting in the garden waiting to come in this morning, and we were all getting v. worried, but an hour or so later she emerged.

She looked a bit rougher today than yesterday, just a bit tottery and unwell, so I called the vet again, and she agreed that I should get some antibiotics in her (not sure what her reluctance was to do this straight away, tbh).

I sent DP down to the shelter and he got them to give him a syringe-dose to bring home and give her subcutaneously (he's a medic). It was really good not having to take her in the car. He also pointed out that her bruises are proabably feeling at their worst today.

I made her a little nest of towels in a laundry basket, and after some unhappy meowing, she sort of looked quite relieved and settled down for a big sleep. She woke up and ate almost a whole can of tuna mixed with water and was desperate to go out, so I let her.

I'm going to try and get her in a bit later and keep her in tonight. Will be so relieved to get her to the vet in the morning.

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thisisyesterday · 16/05/2011 20:41

poor little thing :( glad you were able to get her comfy though and give her the anti-biotics.

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RabbitFood · 16/05/2011 20:46

oh at least she is still with you. hopefully she can get a proper look by vet tomorrow.

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Tolalola · 16/05/2011 22:06

btw thisisyesterday, you can PM me if you're really pondering moving - I can give you info on here and on other places in the Caribbean.

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Tolalola · 17/05/2011 17:28

Another little update

All looking a lot more positive, thanks so much for everyone's hand-holding!

I managed to keep the cat in last night, and she was pretty good, bar a bit of middle-of-the-night yowling to get out.

The trip to the vet was a family event -DP drove while I held the cat all wrapped up in a towel. She yowled and wriggled most of the way there, but didn't manage to escape.

The vet was really positive about it and said she looked pretty good, all things considered. She's going to put her out and have a proper look at the damage, but she didn't seem to think it was anything unfixable.

I should be able to pick her up this afternoon...Yay!!

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RabbitFood · 17/05/2011 17:35

oh so pleased . keep us posted

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SecretNutellaFix · 17/05/2011 18:13

Hope it continues to be good news

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hellymelly · 17/05/2011 20:43

really good news.

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