Everyday is a new experience in this wacky life of mine. My love works as a Veterinarian and has a bigger heart and love for animals than most it seems. It is certainly one of the things I love about her. It explains how our family now numbers at 6 total and may now be 7. Each week I get to hear harrowing tales of animal adventures that come through her clinic. Sometimes good, sometimes bad. Unfortunately, her clinic is in Clackamas, Oregon and tends to attract some of the backwoods folk from Estacada. This could be everything from grotesquely wounded pitbulls from dogfights to severely mistreated and neglected cats. The good? There was a coyote puppy in the clinic this weekend! Not sure about his fate yet... but damn is he cute!
So, this Memorial Day weekend: Apparently a toothless woman who smelled like a rotting pair of old gym socks dropped off this little kitty with a badly broken leg. This fella, whom we’ve named Merlin, had 5 separate breaks in one small area of his leg. The woman claimed he was a stray, but his good nature led Kelly to believe otherwise. This is the kind of thing which normally spells euthanasia for a stray as there are no shortage of cats in the world. But my love, being the amazing humanitarian she is, sensed something special in this particular kitty. That extra gleam of understanding in the animal’s eyes that makes you ponder reincarnation. So she decided to take on little Merlin as her own, and perform an amputation. One of the few cool things about her working for “the corporation” is their ability to let doctors do this kind of work for free and extend a generous discount on drugs and materials. After several hours of a grueling surgery, removing his back leg from the hip joint down, little Merlin emerged on the other side with 3 legs and a new lease on life. Yay Merlin!
My part as a Vet Tech? We had to check in on Merlin over the weekend – only to discover he had ripped his I.V. out – so I had to firmly, but gently hold the scruff of his neck as she administered more drugs, fluids and re-applied an I.V. – and load him up for home transport. He has been living in our bathtub since – all hopped up on Morphine and doing quite well. That is of course – until he managed to yank one of hit staples out. This morning – I had to hold him down again – much to his displeasure – as she threw a quick suture in the missing staples spot. Good god does this cat make a terrifying shrieking noise – something that will make your hair stand on end if your not prepared for it. Not to mention – trying to avoid the occasional attempt at a bite due I’m sure to his complete state of terror and pain.
Whether or not we keep Merlin for the long haul remains to be seen. He is quite a loving little critter, probably about 2-years old, Tabby colored, and will make a fine addition to any cat-friendly home. I have a feeling my life as a "vet tech" has only just begun - but it has been so exciting and a fantastic learning process to see my love at work and witness her passion firsthand. She is very special and I'm a lucky fellow. :)
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