For the past week or so my cat, Toulouse, has been limping and favoring his left leg. I thought maybe he had played too rough with our other cat, but when I tried to look at his leg, he moaned in a way I never heard him meow before, clearly in pain.
I monitored him closely the next few days to see if it was something minor that would go away or something more serious. Unfortunately, his discomfort persisted. Due to his sweet and playful nature, he still tried to jump on things and play with our other cat, but I could tell it was hurting him and something needed to be done.
I took him to the vet recently to see what was going on. They x-rayed him and found a fracture of the growth plate in the femoral head and neck of the hip joint. They told me that this wasn't caused by a specific event, but studies show this is a common genetic issue for male cats. Thinking of my roommate's cat who is my cat's biological brother, I asked if there was anything we could do to prevent this. Unfortunately she said it isn't preventable.
So it looks like Toulouse will need surgery, an FHO procedure. I am so nervous and scared about it. Has anyone had experience with this sort of thing? I've done a little internet research and it seems that most cats do well with this, I just wondered if anyone had any personal experiences, suggestions, or advice they could share.
As far as the surgery goes, it's incredibly expensive. If anyone is interested, I have a fundraising site for my little buddy posted here: (I'm even offering some personalized reward incentives for those interested!)
Thanks so much in advance for any help or words of wisdom!
I monitored him closely the next few days to see if it was something minor that would go away or something more serious. Unfortunately, his discomfort persisted. Due to his sweet and playful nature, he still tried to jump on things and play with our other cat, but I could tell it was hurting him and something needed to be done.
I took him to the vet recently to see what was going on. They x-rayed him and found a fracture of the growth plate in the femoral head and neck of the hip joint. They told me that this wasn't caused by a specific event, but studies show this is a common genetic issue for male cats. Thinking of my roommate's cat who is my cat's biological brother, I asked if there was anything we could do to prevent this. Unfortunately she said it isn't preventable.
So it looks like Toulouse will need surgery, an FHO procedure. I am so nervous and scared about it. Has anyone had experience with this sort of thing? I've done a little internet research and it seems that most cats do well with this, I just wondered if anyone had any personal experiences, suggestions, or advice they could share.
As far as the surgery goes, it's incredibly expensive. If anyone is interested, I have a fundraising site for my little buddy posted here: (I'm even offering some personalized reward incentives for those interested!)
Thanks so much in advance for any help or words of wisdom!
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