Two tiny underweight kittens have been saved from potential blindness and probable death thanks to a group of cat-loving volunteers in Plymouth.
Grey-and-white Hope and her brother black-and-white Chance were taken in by volunteers from Cats Protection Plymouth & Rame Branch when their owner realised they needed specialist care.
The seven-week-olds weighed just 295grams and 165grams respectively, whereas healthy kittens their age should weigh around 750g. Severe cat flu caused painful eye ulcers which were preventing them from opening their eyes.
The kittens arrived with their mum, Callie, but she was barely more than a kitten herself at no more than a year old and was unable to care for them both.
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As Hope was in a worse condition than Chance, she was moved to a specialist volunteer fosterer to give both kittens and Callie the best opportunity to thrive.
Although Chance was still with Callie, mum was not producing enough good quality milk to help him thrive and both kittens therefore needed round-the-clock care, medication and regular feeds from the branch’s fosterers.
Sarah Medlin, welfare cat team leader for the branch, said:
“Hope and Chance were really struggling with low weight and their terrible cat flu symptoms when they arrived. Even their little mouths were ulcerated making it difficult for them to eat – the brilliant team at Woodlands Veterinary Centre in Ivybridge got them started on antibiotics and eye ointment right way and really went above and beyond for the kittens.
“Our initial priority was increasing their weight to give them the best chance of survival and starting the medication to fight their infections. However, neither of them were out of the woods as one of Hope’s eyes was very swollen and painful and had to be removed as soon as she was big enough to withstand the operation.
Chance looks like he may have entropion, a painful condition where the eyelashes irritate the surface of the eyeball, so he may need an operation too. There’s still a long road to recovery for the little pair but they are so determined.”
Emily Wilks, head vet at Woodlands Veterinary Centre, added:
“Hope’s painful eye was successfully removed under general anaesthetic.
“As she weighed only 470grams, she required very close monitoring throughout the procedure and was then hospitalised post-operatively for intensive care from our nursing team. She is making good progress following the surgery and is steadily gaining weight. These kittens have really captured the hearts of the staff at the practice and we wish them a speedy recovery!”
The costs of the kittens’ veterinary care, medication, surgery, follow-up appointments and after-care are likely to reach over £2500 and the volunteer-run branch has therefore set up a JustGiving appeal for anyone who would like to help cover the cost: www.justgiving.com/page/plymouth-cp-chanceofhope
To find out more about the newly expanded Plymouth & Rame Branch of Cats Protection which covers postcodes PL1 to 11, PL13 and PL19 to PL21 visit
www.cats.org.uk/plymouth or call 0345 371 2753.
