A severely deformed kitten, who had a truly horrific start to life, has made a miracle recovery.
The cat, named Peanut, was found abandoned on the side of the road, after being dumped alongside the bodies of his mother and her litter.
Ashley Wemple, a veterinary nurse, first saw the moggy when he was taken into her practice by the RSPCA.
‘My colleague Helen Spry and I agreed to take him on as a foster kitten and hand-rear him,’ she said.
‘We’re both vet nurses and often share the responsibility of hand-rearing orphaned kittens.
‘As Peanut grew and became more active, I noticed he became tired easily and was often short of breath.’
Specialist vets found a severe deformity in Peanut’s chest which was compressing his heart and lungs – making it difficult for the kitten to breathe and restricting his growth.
But, thanks to some fundraising efforts by Ashley, charitable donations paid for Peanut to be treated at Wear Referrals in Bradbury, County Durham.
The vets were able to save his life by performing an ‘exceptionally rare’ and complex corrective operation – one that doesn’t typically have a high survival rate.
Peanut was just 12 weeks old when he underwent the highly dangerous procedure.
Jon Hall, an RCVS and European specialist in small animal surgery, carried out the risky corrective surgery.
He said: ‘We had to make a splint out of casting material which would fit on to his chest but still be able to accommodate him growing.
‘We then inserted a series of stitches, carefully manoeuvring our way around the breast bone and the ribs, taking care that the needle didn’t puncture vital organs such as the heart and the lungs.
‘All those stitches then had to be pulled to open up his rib cage and pull his chest into a more normal position and then be tied to the splint.’
Thankfully, the black shorthaired kitty made a remarkable recovery and is now enjoying his new life.
Jon said he’s amazed with the progress Peanut is making.
He added: ‘Everything went very well and, as soon as the surgery was done, Peanut was much more active, better able to meow and grew more quickly.
‘He is now four and a half months old and even I am amazed at how well he is doing with the splint now off.
‘He really is a special little guy.’
We couldn’t agree more.
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