Jerry Went Days Without Treatment For a Fractured Pelvis
We are launching an urgent fundraising effort to cover the cost of diagnosis, specialist orthopedic surgery, and recovery for “Jerry”, a cat with a fractured pelvis who was rushed to our Clinic by two good samaritans in North London. This is his story:
Meet Jerry. Earlier in the week, he was found collapsed against a wall on the street, crying out in pain and unable to stand.
A quick search on social media for Jerry's owners yielded no results for the couple who found him, but did reveal that he had potentially lain in this position, grievously injured and suffering, for up to two days. Other local residents had seen him, but had taken no action. Rescue organisations in the area had received sporadic reports of an injured cat.
Not being cat owners themselves, the young couple were at a loss as to what to do - but they were determined to help nonetheless. They rushed Jerry to a local veterinary practice in a cardboard box, where they were informed that in return for their good deed, they’d face hundreds of pounds in vet bills for his X-Rays and treatment. They paid for Jerry to have pain relief, and he was discharged whilst they anxiously considered the dilemma before them.
Thankfully, they were then referred to Catcuddles by another charity volunteer. We agreed to see Jerry at our North London Cat Clinic as an emergency, and upon learning of all the circumstances and of this couple’s desperate attempts to get him the care he needed, we committed to help; and to raise the funds needed to provide that help, until the very end of Jerry's treatment.
The first step was performing X-Rays, which the kind-hearted couple were prepared to cover the cost of. These revealed that Jerry had a fractured pelvis, an injury that can sometimes be healed by long periods of crate rest, but in this case, would require specialist orthopedic surgery to correct. He was also constipated, with a full bladder, being unable to toilet normally due to this injury, and was given an enema and his bladder expressed whilst sedated. Twitching of his legs during these procedures revealed that the nerves in his lower body were functioning in spite of the injury - an encouraging sign for his recovery.
Imagine for a moment enduring days without treatment after fracturing the bones in your pelvis, a core part of the skeletal structure. It is likely that Jerry’s every movement has been painful since he first incurred the injury, which was possibly caused by a severe impact, probably a terrifying and traumatic event in itself.
Although some North London-based rescue organisations have suggested that they may assist Catcuddles with Jerry’s veterinary costs, we don’t feel that we can wait to see if this funding will materialize. Jerry has endured unimaginable suffering already, and any delay in scheduling his surgery would be nothing short of cruel. We need to move swiftly, and that means overcoming our first hurdle ASAP - funding the surgery. We need your help to do that.
Repairing Jerry’s pelvic fracture is not something we can do entirely in-house at Catcuddles - it will require the services of a specialist in veterinary orthopedics, either at a practice that employs such a specialist, or through a specialist visiting our Clinic. This will come at considerable cost, although there is also the potential for our staff to assist a visiting specialist in Jerry’s surgery, and therefore get vital training in surgical orthopedics, which will also reduce costs for similar cases in the future.
Regardless of where the urgent surgery takes place - ASAP - we are looking at a steep bill.
To raise the funds and get things moving for Jerry’s recovery, we once again turn to you, our wonderful cat-loving community. Please consider either donating any amount, be it big or small, or sharing this post with other like-minded, empathetic people.
Should there be any funds remaining after the cost of Jerry’s surgery and rehabilitation, these will be put towards other cases involving injured and unwell stray cats. Whilst other rescue organisations have halted or restricted their activities during the pandemic, we have taken in 75 strays on top of our two regular waiting lists in 9 months, just by having and keeping the Clinic open. Their recovery and eventual adoption into loving homes has been made possible by your donations.
Let’s make recovery possible for Jerry, too - together. Donate at https://www.catcuddles.org.uk/donate#donate-money or using the donate button below.