Surgeons At Putney Animal Hospital Save Zoey

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Tiny kitten beats odds to survive horrific dog bite injuries and find new home


What a difference a whole load of love plus expertise can make

Zoey, the eight-month-old ginger kitten, came into the care of RSPCA Putney Animal Hospital in London in March after she was sadly bitten by a dog in her previous home.

She had fractures to her bottom jaw and her cheekbone as well as a bleeding eye and, as she was so young at just 12-weeks-old and the injuries so severe, the staff at the hospital didn’t know if she would make it.

It took weeks of surgery and rehabilitation, including a wire which was put in place to hold her jaw together, to get her back on her paws.

After her treatment at the hospital, she was then transferred to RSPCA Southall but poor Zoey wasn’t out of the woods yet. She had to wait for the wire in her jaw to be removed once her face had healed properly.

The kitten survivor, who was originally named Boudicca after a Roman warrior princess, was then rehomed from RSPCA Southall Cattery in April to Taig and Angila Drummond and their children Ava, 10 and Jaden, 13.

Taig, who lives in Ashford in Middlesex with his family and their cats, said: “Literally as soon as we saw Zoey, we just fell in love with her straight away. After everything she has been through, I thought she would be timid and frail but she’s the opposite. She’s very independent and completely fearless - she chases around our other cat and he’s probably about three times the size of her.

“She is a great testament to the work of the RSPCA. She was completely wrecked when she came in. It’s unbelievable the damage she had and you wouldn’t know looking at her now, you wouldn’t think anything had happened to her.”

Taig also rehomed his five-year-old cat Ronnie from RSPCA Southall previously and adopted Zoey as a friend for him, as well as for him and his family. He added: “She’s well and truly settled in now. My daughter loves her and although she chases Ronnie, they will play together and groom each other sometimes so I think they are starting to get along.”


Watch Zoey's journey

Joanne Elmes, RSPCA Putney hospital administrator, explained that Zoey showed resilience from the start. Just three weeks after coming into the hospital, she was already running around the ward as though determined to make up for the playtime she had missed out on.

“This poor kitten was close to death and in a bad way when she came into the care of the hospital. She had fractures in her bottom jaw and her cheekbone as well as a bleeding eye. She was placed in an intensive care unit cage to recover. Pretty much all of her head, face and neck were affected so she must have been in a lot of pain. After a lot of care, she finally pulled through and thankfully didn’t show any signs of long-term damage.

“We were so worried she wouldn’t make it but then all of a sudden she started to get better and she was determined to run around the ward and just be a normal kitten. It truly is amazing. She is such a special little survivor.”

To help the RSPCA continue rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animals in desperate need of care please visit their website.

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August 16, 2019