By Adam Dutton
A fortunate cat has used up certainly one of her 9 lives after walking round with an airgun pellet lodged in her head for 2 years.
Simon Melvin, from Rochester, was horrified to see blood pouring from his pet Sypha’s head and rushed her to the vet in 2022.
Sypha’s harm was dismissed as a scratch and vets stitched her face up earlier than sending the three-year-old moggy home.
In the months which adopted, Simon seen her well being was deteriorating and had developed a cough, began drooling, and had much less power.
He then took her to Warren House Veterinary Group, who carried out X-rays and a CT scan. They noticed an airgun pellet lodged in her cranium simply millimetres from her mind.
Sypha was referred to Southfields Veterinary Specialists in Basildon the place she underwent surgical procedure to have the pellet eliminated.
The lovable feline stayed within the animal hospital earlier than returning home the place she has made a outstanding restoration.
The 30-year-old stated: “When the vets at Warren House told me someone had shot her I was mortified, especially as I instantly knew when it had happened.
“I remembered her coming home with a wound on her nose almost two years previously, which my local vet and myself thought was just a scratch.
“So, it was really upsetting to think that horrible thing had been stuck in her head for nearly two years.
“I felt rather silly for not figuring it out at the time, though I imagine I’d have gone straight out looking for the cowardly wretch had I done so.”
Simon says Sypha’s well being had been getting worse till a CT scan lastly recognized the stunning reason behind her issues.
He added: “Sypha had suffered from an ongoing cough and a marked reduction in her energy while she was playing or following me around outside.
“Normally, she would have darted about like a maniac and run ahead, but suddenly she started to lag behind and meow as though something was causing her discomfort.
“There were several visits to our local vet and several attempts at treating her but the cough would come back every time so we were eventually referred for specialist care.
“I never expected such terrible news, though. I was fairly hopeful it was something minor but when the specialist called me in to look at the images I got a sinking feeling when I saw that white spot in her head.”
Vet Carlos Rubinos, a specialist in small animal surgical procedure, oversaw her case.
“Sypha had been showing increased respiratory noise and occasional episodes of drooling for two years,” he defined.
“Our investigations, including a CT scan, discovered a pellet lodged in her nasopharynx – a small spot between Sypha’s brain and the nasal cavity.
“Pellet gun injuries are unfortunately common in cats, which should raise social concern about this very worrying issue, but Sypha’s case was far from common.
“A metal pellet lodged in the nasopharynx of a cat has never been reported before and we needed to devise a way to safely remove it.
“It was an intricate surgery where we split Sypha’s palate to access and remove the pellet and then reconstructed her palate, the first time this surgical approach is reported for management of this issue.”
Incredibly, Sypha was allowed home the day after surgical procedure and has gone on to finish a outstanding restoration.
Simon added: “I think it’s safe to say it was one of the most stressful things I have experienced.
“My biggest worry was the operation being unsuccessful, as I really wanted to see Sypha back to her usual self.
“She’s now back to her old self, fully recovered and doing fantastically. It’s like nothing had ever happened.
“She’s back to running around like a maniac again which is really great to see. It’s amazing that it hasn’t deterred her at all from going out and about.”
