A call came in notifying me that one of our community dogs had bitten a kitten and it was looking really bad for the little one. I arrived at the scene and there I saw a skinny, flea infested kitten with no lower body movement or bowel control.
The person who had rescued the little one had taken him to a nearby vet and they told the rescuer that she won’t make it. She? I exclaimed. Upon observing the lower body I had already noticed that this little one was a he. With that information and the credibility of the vet, I and the rescuer decided to take a second opinion. We were asked to take the kitten for an x-ray examination by another vet that we have been taking our cats to for years.
Then started the series of tests and treatment for our little fighter. And, also this was the point when the rescuer who was keen on saving the kitten started to ghost out on the responsibility. Upon the reviewing the x-ray report, it was clearly visible that he had a fracture at the point where the legs join the hip. I informed this to the rescuer but she made it clear I was in this thing alone.
The kitten was prescribed with antibiotics for infections and possible internal injuries. The first night I brought him home was the longest night I remember from last year. He was in so much pain, and agony that he couldn’t even make a sound. All I could do was hold him in my arms and hope he makes it till the morning. And, guess what, he did.
His troubles still weren’t over in the morning. Due to his struggle overnight he had grown too weak, he hadn’t eaten anything solid and was on syringe feed. That particular morning the little kitten collapsed and his breathing started to fade. Panicked, me and my sister carried him in a crate and rushed him to the vet which was 30 mins away cause we had just moved to our new place and didn’t know any vets we could trust nearby (also cause the he/she thing happened the same week). It was constant checking to see if he is breathing or not throughout the way.
Finally, we reached at the vet’s with the little one still breathing. He was immediately put on oxygen and given supplements and meds through saline. After 3 -4 hours of waiting at the vet, he was finally stable and we could bring him home. After getting home and attending a week of isolation, defleaing, deworming, and bathing, our little fighter was a little bit stable and eating on his own. A 500gms kitten had so much fight in him, it was at this point in time we knew that he would make it for sure. He was a fighter, and thus we named him Shenshi which roughly means a warrior.
Shenshi was out of danger but his rehabilitation was a big challenge for us. His bowel movement was still out of his control due to the trauma. And he hadn’t gained full mobility of his back legs yet. Every where he sat or dragged himself, he left a trail of poop and pee behind him. One of us always had to be attending to keep him clean.
2 weeks into recovery after that, Shenshi was finally able to walk and poop on his own. And a month into rehab Shenshi had started climbing stairs, climbing on bed to sneak and sleep with us. The happiest moment for us was when he started running around and playing with his newly made brothers and sisters.
He still limps a little bit and doesn’t have full mobility like a healthy cat. But, that doesn’t stop him from climbing the curtains, or jumping on the top of the fridge or sneaking into rooms he is not allowed to be in. We had planned that we would put him for adoption after he gets well, but never could. He is about to be a year old now and he is healthy, active and as demanding as ever.
Shenshi came to me a blessing and as a lesson. I personally learnt the difference between “rescuing” and rescuing. Anybody can click pictures, make stories on how they did something for someone but it takes real commitment to actually invest into helping someone and nursing them back to their complete self. He taught me it is always wise to question and take second opinions (without offending anyone that is) and the most important thing I learned from Shenshi is no matter what you go through, you can fight on and leave it all in the past and move on. And even though you have a limp, you still can keep running and chasing.
