Hope

After I posted the story of the stray kitten I rescued, readers have asked me what my decision was. I didn't write about it because I wanted readers to think about what they would have decided if they were in my shoes. 

I can actually see why many people would have passed the kitten by, some not noticing its injuries, others thinking they could not help and yet others would have thought that it is too much trouble and smelly handling a stray. It's not surprising as even vets felt that there are too many strays around and putting another injured one down isn't a bad choice. We make our judgements and decisions based on our life experiences and our values. Sometimes we get hardened by the sheer number of suffering animals we see.

I took the kitten to a third vet at the suggestion of my friend. This vet was more positive and said that the kitten's hind leg would heal. Its front left paw had already dried and dropped off  and the other paw was also partially torn off. Without any hesitation, I made arrangements to leave the kitten there for treatment. As its condition is rather serious, I felt it would get the best care with the vet. Since then, I have visited the kitten almost daily except for the days I was away attending a course. My daughter waited patiently with me for our kitten's turn as the change of wound dressing was slotted toward the end of the day.

As the bone of its hind leg was exposed, it would take some time for the wound tissue to granulate. Tissue granulation is a process by which fibrous tissue rich with blood capillaries replaces blood clots formed at the site of a healing wound. Through this process, healthy and normal skin is able to replace skin that was damaged. The tissue that forms over a wound during this process is called granulation tissue. 

After the first week, the vet noted that a few more bones were dislocated and moving. He suggested a surgical procedure to insert metal stents to keep the bones from moving. Otherwise, healing would be very slow or granulation may not happen. It underwent an operation a week ago. Please send love and healing to this little stray kitten. It has undergone so much in its young life. 

This picture was taken when I first brought it back