Kittens are naturally curious, sometimes to their own detriment. Curiosity very nearly did kill a poor 7 week old kitten who was brought into Pride Veterinary Centre by police. Fire Cat had extreme burns to his face, feet and fur. It’s believed he may have ventured too close to a bonfire which resulted in the life altering burns.
Treatment, surgery and taking time to heal
Once in our care, the kitten was immediately placed on fluids, oxygen and given pain relief, his burns treated with cream and medication. He was so badly burnt, there was a question about his quality of life and if it was ethical to keep giving treatment. However, he was showing great signs of being a fighter, so the team continued to provide 24-hour care and nurse him back to health.
After a week in the hospital, no owner had been located for the kitten. As such, one of our fabulous nurses, Jenni, offered to foster him whilst he healed. Jennis’ son aptly named the kitten ‘Fire Cat’!
Healing took a little time and it did have its less glamorous moments. The burnt skin needed to peel away to allow new skin to grow. This was managed with pain relief and soothing cream applied to his burns. His feet were wrapped in cling film to help the cream absorb.
During the healing process, the skin around Fire Cats eyes began to tighten. This caused inversion of his eyelids, meaning essentially his eyelids turned inside out. One of our Ophthalmology specialists confirmed he would need corrective surgery to ensure his comfort and lessen the risk of him going blind in the future.
Surgery does come with a cost however. With the help of social media and appearances in local news articles, a fundraiser covered the cost of the required surgery.
Fire Cat has received two surgeries on his eyes and they are now healing nicely. We won’t know the final outcome of the surgery until he is fully grown, unfortunately there is a possibility may need further corrections
The future for Fire Cat
Despite recovering well, Fire Cat does have a few aesthetic differences which was to be expected. The tips of his ears and nose sloughed off, spots of patchy fur, plus a few crinkly whiskers. Overall however, he has recovered well and is now enjoying life as a kitten should, with no other lasting damage.
Jennis’ offer of fostering Fire Cat soon turned into ownership. Now 6 months old, he lives a fun filled life playing with his two brothers, Jennis’ dogs Harvey and Ringo.
And no rehabilitation case is complete without a social media page! Fire Cat has his very own instagram page if you want to keep up to date with his latest adventures @firecat_2020
