Happy days for Grumpy the cat after life-saving op by Manchester animal hospital
Beautiful tabby cat gets complex pelvic injuries after road traffic accident
A beloved family cat has received life-changing treatment after a leading team of vets performed emergency surgery to rebuild his pelvis in a complex and difficult operation.
Grumpy, a beautiful 1-year-old neutered-male tabby cat, had been found unable to walk and in distress outside his home by owner Jack Rudkin after an unknown incident.
Jack immediately rushed Grumpy to his local general practice vets, where Grumpy received emergency assessment and care, including intra-venous fluid therapy to treat shock, and pain-relief. The GP vet informed Jack that Grumpy had suffered significant injuries following a blunt force trauma, likely a road traffic accident.
It was recommended that Grumpy be transferred to Manchester Veterinary Specialists, a specialist-led orthopaedic small animal centre. Once safe for transfer, Grumpy was immediately assessed by Anna Condon, an Orthopaedic Surgeon at MVS, who liaised with the specialist-led Veterinary Anaesthesia team, who delivered appropriate triage and pain-relief.
Grumpy was stabilised and underwent advanced imaging of his chest and pelvis (CT imaging and radiography) to determine the severity of his injuries. Imaging revealed multiple fractures to Grumpy’s pelvis. He had fractured his right ilium into several pieces, and had traumatic dislocation/fracture of the left side of his pelvis, leaving his left hemipelvis unattached to the spine.
Both injuries were affecting the weightbearing axis of the pelvis, which meant Grumpy was rendered unable to walk. The left-sided fracture was also very close to vital nerves which provide movement and sensation to the limb. Thankfully, imaging of the chest did not reveal significant injuries that could complicate Grumpy’s anaesthetic.
Surgical stabilisation of the pelvic injuries were necessary to give Grumpy the best chance of a full recovery. To treat Grumpy, the hospital’s team performed surgery to reduce and stabilise the main fractures of his pelvis, and restore early comfort and function. Surgery took over three hours, involved two Orthopaedic consultants, a Veterinary Anaesthetist, and several specialist referral nurses for continuous anaesthetic monitoring and surgical assistance. A screw was used to reduce and re-attach the left hemi-pelvis, and on the right-side the ilial body fracture (which was broken into several pieces) was approached and anatomically reconstructed using bone plates and screws.
Forty-eight hours later, Grumpy began to support his body-weight on his pelvic limbs, was taking tentative steps, and was able to urinate and defaecate without assistance. He required strict crate rest over a period of 6-8 weeks to allow bone and soft tissue healing for optimal function and to prevent complications. Grumpy’s recovery went very well and he returned to full function within three months. Jack was delighted to have Grumpy back to his usual (not-so-grumpy) self.
Owner Jack Rudkin said: Owner Jack Rudkin said:
“After Grumpy was involved in a suspected road traffic accident I was worried his quality of life going forward was going to be poor.
I was initially nervous to receive the call from my local vet that Grumpy would need to be referred for specialist treatment. But when we got to MVS and spoke to Anna, who performed the surgery on Grumpy, I was immediately reassured by her expertise, the explanation of Grumpy's injuries and the operational procedure required.
Anna admitted afterwards she was a perfectionist and spent time getting Grumpy's reconstructive surgery as close to perfect as possible. And I can say that the way he is now, she absolutely succeeded.
Grumpy has recovered amazingly well. There was an abundance of post-operation support by the team at MVS and nothing was too much trouble for them. They gave us an easy-to-follow medication schedule, detailed documentation on post operation recovery and things to keep an eye on. The level of care and attention he received was exceptional.
Grumpy is now a very happy, very mobile, indoor cat and I am extremely grateful to all of the staff at MVS for taking care of him and giving him this second chance at life.”
Opening in 2017 and based on the outskirts of the city, Manchester Veterinary Specialists is a dedicated companion animal orthopaedic referral centre. With a team of over twenty, including European-boarded specialist orthopaedic veterinary surgeons and veterinary anaesthetists, the centre offers total hip replacement, patellar luxation corrective surgery, fracture repair, arthroscopy, tibial plateau levelling osteotomy (cruciate disease surgery), angular limb deformity corrective surgery, arthrodesis (joint fusion) services, and many other complex procedures relating to the musculoskeletal system. As a bespoke site, the hospital is equipped with the best facilities and equipment to allow the clinicians to manage patients to a very high standard of care. Facilities include a modern theatre suite with two operating theatres equipped with climate control; state-of-the-art monitoring and anaesthesia facilities; a recovery ward with one-to-one patient monitoring; dedicated patient kennels with glass-fronted doors; a digital radiology suite, a Siemens 16 slice CT scanner, a fluoroscopic extremities C-arm - facilitating minimally invasive surgery; and high definition arthroscopy equipment. All of which provide the referring GP vets with peace of mind that their patients are in expert hands.