injured cat - back pain?

Hello, 

   I really need some advice on how to help this cat I found yesterday,on the road near my apartment, he was laying on his side, feet spread apart and was in hypothermic shock, could barely make a sound but kept following me with his eyes, so I rushed him to the nearest vet, he gave him some antibiotics, vitamins, some IV and not sure what else, but he said he did everything he could for now and wasn't sure about the extent of his injuries, but suggested that there is no use in doing any further investigations as long as he's in shock any anesthesia could be fatal for him and all we could do was pray he would get through the night. He wasn't bleeding and didn't have any visible injuries and cried only when he was lifted or carried. The vet thought he might have internal bleeding and a sever back injury. He wasn't able to move his legs on his own, though when the vet tested for some reflexes, he did move them.

    Well, he survived the night, got his temperature up and ate well, even if it was just blended wet cat food as he wouldn't chew anything. In the evening we went to the vet again, for a second shot of antibiotics and vitamins but no IV. The vet was now sure he had no internal bleeding, legs were not fractured, but his back pain was still concerning. His suggestion was to keep him on this treatment for a few more days as he did show a big improvement from last night and that it might just do the trick and he won't need anything stronger or more invasive methods. He's still not able to stand, but started moving his legs and crawling around the box he sleeps in. He did pee and poop in the box,  and cried a bit while pooping but the doctor said that if the did manage to do that, there is a chance his back is not really broken just injured, but still there is no telling yet if the damage will be permanent. 

    I would really like to know how to help him and what to avoid. He can't leave the box, crawls a bit in it sometimes and changes position and moves or stretches his legs, he does purr now pretty much when we pet him and we would really like to make him as comfortable as possible. 

   It is still unknown what really happened to him, I thought he got hit by a car but the vet said it seemed more like someone hit him really hard. 

   I can't say how old he is, forgot to ask the vet but will do that tomorrow, anyway, he seems to me like a young adult cat. He was a stray but I believe he belonged to someone at first because he is way more friendlier than the other strays in the area and is not afraid of people.

Thank you!

1.) Did the vet take any x-rays?? I would do this for certain. Can show breaks, fractures or swelling in the spinal cord.

2.) Kitty needs to be kept as still as possible in the event there is a back/spinal injury. I would suggest getting a small dog crate and placing his box inside this in the event he starts to move around more.

3.) Is kitty on any pain medication? Anti-inflammatory treatment?

Oh, poor baby. Thank you for rescuing him. Even if he doesn't make it, he will be more comfortable...

I'm wondering how he is going to the bathroom and how you can help him in this without injuring him. I too wonder why vet didn't take an x Ray though I can understand if cost is a factor. Prayers for the poor kitty!!

  To be honest I think he didn't have the necessary equipment for x-rays, but he also said they can't really show the real condition of his back, or something like that, he talked about x-rays being outdated and maybe an MRI would have been more useful. He did say that in case there is no significant improvement regarding his back, from these vitamin and antibiotic shots, he could then try some stronger anti-inflammatory shots directly into his back and if that also wouldn't work, he knows a good surgeon that works on spine injuries. But then again, he did remind me, that if his condition is permanent we will have to put him to sleep. 

   He is not on pain medication, the vet did give me something in case he would get worse on the first night, but he was quiet and ok so I didn't give it to him (the vet said something about pain killers would lower his body temperature, and I was supposed to raise his, so not to give it to him unless necessary). An anti-inflammatory treatment I think he is getting between those shots he gets every evening.

   I will go look for a dog crate, thank you! I think that will work. Someone told me to get some diapers to put in the box under the kitty, I've been using tissues and paper and old towels, but I will end up running out soon.

  I also didn't find a better way of feeding him, than shoving a spoon with food under his nose so he can lick it off, he ate from a bowl only once, again shoved under his nose.

  His purring gives me courage, but I have to find a way to make things better.

Purring isn't always a sign of contentment/happiness. Cats can purr when they are stressed/in pain, so keep this in mind.

What country are you located in?

CatPack is certainly right about purring.  Cats purr when they are in pain.  It is a way to calm & try to heal themselves.  You should be commended on picking up this poor kitty & taking him to the vet.  A lot of people would not give this much time, effort & money to help a homeless cat.  You are a really good person & we are all pulling for a complete recovery!!!  Keep us posted.

Oh, I did not know that about the purring, but it does make sense now.  

I'm from Romania. 

I just couldn't leave him laying on the road, and I also recognized him, I played with him a few days ago in the same area, he was way more friendly than the other strays and I keep thinking I should have picked him up then, since we thought about adopting one anyway this spring.

Thank you for the wishes, I will post again after the visit at the vet.

   So the vet said he seems to be on the right way and there might be no need, at least not yet, for the stronger shots. He still can't walk, but making progress in moving his legs so we're very hopeful at the moment. From the way he behaves when we touch him, the problem seems to be with his lower back.

   At least he's eating right, we just found out he doesn't like wet cat food but is into cream, fish or other cooked meals - he just finished up 5 full tablespoons of sour cream. 

   Tomorrow we have another visit at the vet.

  So it's been a week since the accident and the vet said the chances are great for a full recovery. The vitamin and antibiotics treatment worked very well and no other intervention was needed. 

  Berry (short for Cerberus ), now by his new name, already uses the sand box and manages to climb up the bed. He's still very shaky on his legs, but he's improving day by day.

  Hopefully by the end of this week we will also manage to give him a bath since it seems like we will have to share the bed with him.

He's one lucky cat...

How great is this news??!!! Congrats!!!!!! Can we have a picture of this fella?

Hello, I’m back with some updates. Kitty was doing so much better, jumping again and running around and playing and everything. Eventually we took him to the vet to get him neutered.  Everything went fine and by the evening he acted like nothing happened. The vet kept saying he never saw such a brave and calm fella. But one week after he got neutered he started acting strange, he went to the litter box and tried to pee but couldn’t, I mean he did pee, but it was like he felt the need to pee all the time, I imagined it’s like when people get an urinary infection and feel that need to pee though they just went before. After he woke up usually, he did pee a normal quantity but he started to have the need to go more and more often, the first day I saw that I did not know if he was just constipated but the second day I was sure something was wrong and we rushed him to the vet again. The vet said the ph of the urine probably changed, gave him a shot and some pills and gave me some paper to test his urine at home which did turn out to be not acid enough.  We continued the treatment for like 5 days and put him on a special diet. He was better and better and back to normal again. During this time he never really changed his attitude, he was still playful and eager for our attention, but the vet also said that the reason kitty got sick again, might have been the stress from changing the environment – since he used to be an outdoor cat, he had to settle now for a one room apartment. So we decided to take him to my parent’s house, they have a garden, and chickens and a lot of trees to climb around.  I took him there on Saturday morning, like three days ago and stayed with him for only two days since I had to go back to my job. The day before I left, like a few hours before, I saw he started doing that thing again, where he tried to pee but didn’t… My parents didn’t notice it today, but I also can’t get them to stay around him for hours to watch his habits.  So now I feel terrible and I’m not sure if what I did was right. I will only get back there on Friday since they live in another city. The thing that gives me hope is that when they pet him he purrs and enjoys it and is still playful, so I think that it might be again because of the stress of changing the environment and meeting new people.  He’s also not on his diet right now since we had to order the food and it’s still on it’s way, hopefully he’ll be on it by Friday. 

Hello again, I think everything is ok now and kitty is happy and doing fine. He loves his new home at my parent's and gets more and more comfortable. He comes when we call him and is always around us. He loves exploring, sun bathing, digging up ants and my dad's onions and rolling on his back so he can get belly rubs. I think I can safely say he's gonna have a good life and I'll be there every other weekend to check up on him. 

For unknown reasons, Berry passed away yesterday morning. We didn't notice any symptoms, nor strange behavior, nothing. The night before he ate, played with my dad and purred and seemed perfectly fine, but in the morning he found him dead at the front door on his pillow where he likes to sleep (he did have an indoor place but usually preferred this one since it got warm outside), the only strange thing was that there were two pieces of feces next to him. I simply can't imagine what happened to him and my dad refuses to take him to the vet and sees no point in it and I'm not in my home town to do it myself. Just not knowing if and what we did wrong is killing me.

Before him, we had another cat, for almost a year and a day before her appointment for sterilization, she just vanished. Also did the cat before her, which we had for like three years (also sterilized and everything, she just didn't show up one day ). 

What are we doing wrong? What are we doing to these cats? There are no neighbors that use poison for rodents or anything, they all have cats or dogs and I also never heard of any of them going missing or dying like ours do. They would have all come back unless something happened to them or they were trapped somewhere, but all the neighbor know us and also the cats and still no clue to what happened. 

My dad told me now that a month ago he found a tick on Berry but managed to remove it and a week ago he got him a flea collar. But it's hard for me to believe that these might be the cause of his symptom free death. Still I feel guilty now for not taking him to the vet after the tick bite. But after all he's been through could something like this get to him? I also don't believe that it could be related to his accident, he was hunting down birds, lizards and probably other things we don't know about - he was a normal cat - but still very friendly and calm, but he was like this from the beginning, even before the accident, I believe that this was his personality, some are wild and crazy and some are not, and he was one that never even tried to scratch us, not even the vet, or even if we gave him belly rubs he actually enjoyed that. 

Every single cat we had was different and special and had her own way of doing things and interacting with us, but by far he was the friendliest of all, even though we had him for just a few months, not even the cats we raised since they were kittens were that friendly.

I'm going to miss him... 

I am so sad to read your update about Berry.  Your photographs show a stunning cat who looks very happy in your parents' garden.  

I can see no reason for you to feel guilt or worry over anything you might or might not have done: you took Berry in to your home and provided veterinary care for him when he needed it most.  You took him to the vet so he could be neutered, and thought about his happiness and considered factors that might stress him and cause illness.  Then you did the most loving thing anyone can do in such circumstances and introduced him to another loving home where you thought he might be happier and run  free outdoors when he wanted.  You have everything to feel positive for in giving a cat loving care and a new chance in life.  This life was not as long as anyone would have wanted but it was certainly one where Berry was loved and cared for.  

This loss of life could easily have been down to something from the injuries he sustained when you found him, or some other undetected health problem - but if it was it was not your fault that it was undetected as he had been seen by a vet on a number of occasions and you and your parents paid attention to his health needs.  Sometimes illnesses are hard to find, especially in cats.  It is also possible that a further injury was sustained, or a sudden illness happened.  What matters is the love and care Berry experienced over the past couple of months.  Remind yourself of this as often as you need to.

On behalf of the TCS team I would like you to know that we are so very sorry for your loss. Threads are locked after someone has suffered such a loss, as a sign of respect. We invite you to place a tribute at: http://www.thecatsite.com/f/19/crossing-the-bridge  as an enduring testimony to Berry.  Please post there if your questions do not settle, or feel support would be helpful.