A young kitten who came to a cat rescue after a serious leg injury is walking again thanks to all-out efforts to keep his leg.
Little Maxwell the kitten was the 330th cat Feline Care Cat Rescue and Rehoming Centre in East Harling, Norfolk UK admitted in 2014, arriving on the final day of the year, New Years Eve.
He had a badly broken foreleg and after initial x-rays with the animal charity’s vets, they realized the fracture was so bad that the only way to save his leg would be with the skills of Fitzpatrick Referrals in Surrey. As his secondary option was amputation Feline Care Cat Rescue decided they’d have to take the plunge and risk the major surgery he needed to keep him on all four paws, despite the hefty cost of about £3,700.
A month after his surgery, Little Maxwell is enjoying that hoped-for life on all four paws after his shattered leg was saved by the skill of Channel Four TV’s ‘Supervet’ Noel Fitzpatrick, best known in the US for giving Oscar the Bionic Cat his prosthetic legs, in a groundbreaking operation a few years back.
Feline Care Cat Rescue turned to their friends in an appeal to help raise the money to pay to help Maxwell keep his leg. After a couple thousands pounds had been raised, a single donor, Christine Harris, gave the final £1,700 needed to reach the target to cover all Maxwell’s bills, in memory of her father Aubrey Swinburne.
Molly Farrar manager at Feline Care, said: “We knew it would be expensive, but we simply couldn’t bring ourselves to amputate the leg of such a young cat when we knew there was a realistic chance of saving it.”
The young kitten was admitted to the rescue centre after he suffered an accidental injury when his owner pulled him out from playing behind an oven.
Ms Farrar said: “We are so grateful to Noel and his team for what they did.
“It took two surgeons three hours to operate, and Maxwell now has eight screws and a metal plate holding his humerus in place. The leg was weight-bearing within 24 hours; he’s a lovely little chap and he’s amazed us with his miraculous recovery.”
Within days, the sixteen-week-old kitten was able to place weight on his leg as he tucked into to his dinner (see photo below). Maxwell has a new home with kittens his own age lined up for him to go to when he is fully recovered.
Feline Care Cat Rescue put up a Maxwell’s leg fund! at mydonate page to accept online donations and keep track of the total, between online and offline donations. They’ve raised £3820.50, an amount comfortably over the £3700.00 goal for Maxwell’s surgery. Funds over the needed amount will go to help other cats. The charity’s vet bills routinely reach around £3,000 per month.
A recent update at Feline Care Cat Rescue’s Facebook page said Little Maxwell is doing great in his healing and is getting tired of cage rest.
What amazing people to help this beautiful kitten ! They are all heroes !