UNSTITCHED TILLY

Made the appointment to remove the sutures. The surgeon who performed the operation wasn’t working that day. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to schedule Tilly with my favorite veterinarian, Paul. He’s a big guy, 6ft 2 or so, but gentle with cats. One time he complimented me on Zozo being such a good cat and I responded, “Well, you must say that to lots of pet people.” He said no but it was more significant because the veterinarian technician shook her head and silently mouthed the words “No he doesn’t.”

The stitches were not evenly spaced, as a human surgeon would do. I suppose it is because fur will eventually hide the scar. I know a new vet, just out of college, assisted with the surgery so perhaps she was the one to close up the wound. The owner of the business did the follow-up checkup thirteen days after surgery. He was pleased with her progress on Saturday, January 11th.

Apparently Tilly has developed a reputation. As I took her back into the procedure room the four vet techs all exclaimed, “Tilly, our favorite patient.” Her incision is healing so the vet techs removed the prickly stitches. Tilly wiggled but never growled, hissed, scratched or bit them. She just looked very unhappy. She had to get an x-ray to make certain that her internal organs were in their proper place. All looked well, her lungs were filled with air, heart, stomach and spleen in their proper place, and the diaphragm had the proper curve. He was nice and just charged me the base cost for the x-ray.

He removed her soft Elizabethan collar and she was quite happy. As I spoke with him, I held her in my arms and she was calm and curious to look around. She had lived there for two days so it was a familiar, though chaotic, setting. He deemed the hernia to be congenital since she had not been in an accident and he could tell that I never kicked the cat. Its appalling when human adults harm each other; its inconceivable that people would harm a weaker being, such as a child or animal.

I brought her home and she was happy to be free of the collar. I washed it off. Tilly focused on grooming for several hours and drank lots of water. Unfortunately, she irritated the wound and reopened a small scab. She was unhappy that the collar was reinstalled. I was happy that I don’t have to worry about her tearing open the gash. The doctor gave the okay for her to run up and down stairs but she still needs to avoid high jumps. Thus, she will get free reign of the first floor and still sleep in the bathroom for a few more weeks. Zozo will join Tilly during waking hours but sleep in the basement at night, which has lots of places to jump.

Sadly, there was a cost to the medical progress exam $233.22 which brings the grand total to $2,756.05! Wowza, she is nearly worth her weight in gold or some other precious substance! I love her dearly but am frightened about paying this horrendous bill. I would greatly appreciate any contribution that you would care to make at www.gofundme.com/Ima-B-Musing

PS Part I of this non-fiction was published on Dec 29, 2013.

Heal Tilly!
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