London-based aninmal welfare charity were shocked to find a tortoiseshell cat with a missing tail while out to neuter feral cats.
Animal welfare officer, Libby Cannon found the young cat in a local colony and although the wound did not appear to be fresh, the skin and surrounding stump looked dirty, dark and sore.
Libby took Mimi straight to Mayhew’s community vet clinic where she was assessed by the vet team, where no other injuries were found, and she was settled into the hospital ward to be monitored.
One of Mayhew’s Vets, Steph Panayioutou also prescribed some pain relief for Mimi, and booked her in for a full tail amputation a few days later to remove the remaining stump and ensure the surrounding skin could heal effectively.
Unusually for a cat trapped in a colony, Mimi was affectionate and friendly with both Libby and Steph, which led the team to believe she was likely to be an abandoned or lost pet rather than a feral cat.
Luckily, Mimi’s amputation surgery went smoothly, and we also neutered her whilst she was under the anaesthetic. She was then settled back into her warm cabin to recover.
Steph said: “Mimi’s tail amputation was very successful. I had to amputate quite low down to ensure there was enough viable tissue for closure, as what was mostly remaining of her tail was ulcerated. She then recovered very well and was very comfortable post-op bouncing around and purring with no more signs of pain or discomfort. I am happy she will now go on to lead a normal happy cat life.”
Two weeks later, Mimi was readmitted into theatre for some dental work – Mayhew’s vets had noticed that her upper right canine was fractured on intake but hadn’t wanted to add to her distress by carrying out three different surgeries at once.
Once her gums and tail area had healed fully, Mimi was placed up for adoption – as the team at Mayhew were unable to locate any previous owners due to her having no means of identification.
Thankfully, somebody fell in love with Mimi straight away and although she is now missing a tail, she has found her very own forever home full of love, care and attention.
To find out more about Mayhew’s community vet clinic and the work the vets and vet nurses do, you can visit www.themayhew.org.
