Cat Swollowed String

It is currently 12:58 New York City time and about an hour ago, my 2 and a half year old cat ingested string. She is a very small cat and I found her on the street corner, dirty and starving and about 4 1/2 weeks old, (vet's estimate) She has done this before with wrapping ribbon and after watching her cry and not eat, I noticed it exiting from her anus and took her to the vet who had to pull it out manuelly.

But this string is very strong. It is about 14-20 inches long and it is from a pastry box. Very strong, expecially considering its size. I remember the vet's warning about it cutting up the intenstines and I am very worried about her.

Presently, I am keeping a close eye on her. Is there a vet in the house? Do I need to take her to an emergency cat hospital or should I give her a day or two to pass naturally?

She is presently eating normally and playing. Should I offer her some treats/canned food in the hopes that it will bunch up and pass more easily or should I remove her food? Why does it always seem to happen when my vet is closed?

Any help?

While this is defintely an SOS emergency, I'll move this to Health & Nutrition where our experts can answer your questions.

PLEASE take her to an ER vet now. String can get caught in the throat, wrapped around the tongue, cut internally if you see any string hanging off her anywhere DO NOT PULL IT- Let the vet do it- otherwise you can really hurt your cat beyond being able to repair the damage

Thank you hissy,

After I read your message, I went to an emergency vet hospital in NYC. For several days we were on a roller coaster ride as the doctors were close to doing surgery. She also shut down. She had a very high heart rate, high fever and stopped eating, drinking, cleaning herself and moving her bowels. She also had nose crust. Needless to say, she dosen't like being away from home.

She was in there for three days as they did xrays, sonicgrams etc. Well, after all that, she came home and eventually passed it on her own. $1600 for tests, IVs and the hospital stay.

But she is my little girl and I couldn't take a chance of losing her. As soon as she came home, her fever went down and her heart rate went way down. (she was up to 300 beats per second in the hospital) She cleaned herself and began to eat.

The good part was that I realized once again how much she means to me and the Mrs. Money... comes and goes, but a companion as sweet as she is makes her worth every penny. The reason she was in the hospital for so long is because if she started showing alarming signs such as vomiting or stomach pain, they could take her right away for surgery and still save her.

She is sleeping next to me right now as I type. Now, if only the other cat would stop hissing at her. The two are best friends except when one visits the vet. Then, it is like they never met before. He is getting better and one more day and I can look forward to them keeping me up at night as they chase each other around the apartment. I can't wait.

Thanks again,
Andrew

That is such great news, Glad to hear she's doing better

You did the right thing, Andrew, by taking her in. I'm just so very thankful she is feeling so much better now! Thank you for her update! Enjoy snuggling up with your baby tonight!

Originally Posted by nycphoto

The good part was that I realized once again how much she means to me and the Mrs. Money... comes and goes, but a companion as sweet as she is makes her worth every penny.

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Oh, that is so true! It's a good thing you were there to see her eating the string! I'm so glad your baby is going to be ok!!

the poor thing! Maverick ate string a few weeks ago when i was out. Luckily my mum was there and saved her. cats do the silliest things.

hope your baby recovers ok.

Andrew, I am glad you acted on her behalf.I am sorry it was so expensive of a lesson. I think cats look at string, cords and ribbons as mouse tails- a delicacy to be sure, and some of them can't get enough-

Thank goodness she is all right and you knew what the matter was!

So glad your kitty is ok. I remember the day we brought Wallace home, he was 6 months old and I gave him a mouse to play with. Not thinking cats would eat a toy mouse, didnt' even enter my head, Wallace proceeded, within seconds to chomp off the tail and swallow it. I was very scared. I ended up waiting it out and watching carefully because the "tail" was so short and soft and he ended up being fine. Needless to say, all of our mice are now tailess, whiskerless and eyeless.