Thursday, June 25, 2009

My Sweet Cassie




I simply had to post this warning to all you animal lovers out there that have a precious pet you cherish.

Sweet Cassie loves to hang out with me in my art studio. Unfortunately I must keep my eye on her constantly as she loves to get in the various supplies that I have. She loves "INchies" and frequently takes off with them when I am working on them for a swap. She also loves ribbons, yarns and threads and will frequently grab them and start chewing.

I have always been able to get them from her but a couple of days ago I couldn't. She grabbed a pink ribbon approximately 14-16 inches long and ran with it. Hubby and I chased her all through the house but before we could catch her, she ate it.

Needless to say it caused her to get ill. She was vomiting on Wednesday morning so my husband took her to the vet. They ran tests and gave her barium to xray her but she kept vomiting it up. The vet determined she had a blockage. He asked if we were sure she ate the ribbon. My husband assured him that he was positive she did. The vet explained that the ribbon could cut her small intestines and surgery should be performed right away.

He did the surgery and sure enough she had the ribbon lodged in her intestines. Without prompt surgery she could have died.

Please, PLEASE do not let your pet in your studio! There are so many dangerous items that they may find and want to use a toys. As much as I love Cassie's company I know now that the studio MUST be off limits. Dangers are everywhere!

If we not known for sure that she had eaten the ribbon we would have lost our precious kitty. I am so grateful that we knew and that when my husband got up yesterday after I had left for the office he realized she was ill. I guess she came to him, lay down in front of him and meowed. He said he just knew she was saying "Please help me!" He immediately took her to the vet.

I am so happy that he did not hesitate. How lucky we are! The medical report is she is doing fine but is still at the vet and will be for a few days.

I will keep you posted.

15 comments:

Deborah in Port Townsend said...

So glad to hear that Cassie is on the road to recovery...and that you have a husband who is so fluent in "cat" !
Best wishes to you all!

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry to hear that Cassie and you both had to go through that. Hope she has a speedy recovery!!
Jennifer (artUnravelled attendee) :)

Anonymous said...

It's a good thing that you were able to talk to the vet about exactly what had happened. Warm wishes to Cassie for a quick recovery from her surgery!

Jilly said...

Thank you so much for the tip/info! I never would have dreamed that something as seemingly innocent as a ribbon could be so deadly. I'm so glad you were generous to share your experience.

Jilly (I read it on the Art&Soul message board)

Sylvia Anderson said...

I have a kitty who is much like yours, and loves to chew on my supplies. She has even been known to take off with a project in the works and stash it away in her hiding place. I always keep a close watch, but you can never be too careful! What a wonderful hubby you have to have caught that she was ill and reacting so quickly! I hope her recovery is quick and that she is back to her old self again soon. :)

Jan Harris Smith said...

My cat just did this same thing but was fortunate enough to be able to throw it up before it entered his intestines. The ribbon piece was just six inchies long but it took quite a bit of effort on his part to get it all back out again. It's sad that something they love to play with so much can be so deadly. I hope your kitty recovers quickly!!!

Doreen G said...

Gosh Marylin that is so scary--I am so glad that she will be ok.
Our pets are too precious for things like this to happen to them.

cindyolson said...

I'm so glad Cassie is ok. My dog did the same thing only with a piece of fabric approx 5" x 10". I came home and found some "throw up" on the floor and when I was cleaning it up I realized it was a piece of fabric. Oh my gosh, these darn dogs. I am a nurse so I immediately thought of a blockage, thank goodness he got rid of it by himself. Best Wishes to Cassie!

Anonymous said...

Sweet Marylin: We had a little kitten that chewed everything in sight, but we didn't realize she had eaten a piece of embroidery thread, and by the time the vets performed her surgery, it was too late. I am so glad that you saw what happened immediately, and Earl took her right away. God love her....wishing Cassie a speedy recovery. Our love to you all. Patty and Bill

Michele R. Unger said...

I am so sorry your kitty has had surgery for eating a ribbon. My cat loves rubber bands and I have to be VERY vigilant to keep them away from him.

I wish Cassie a speedy recovery and thank you for the timely warning.

Kim said...

I have to comment even though we have never met. I will forever more be very careful with my supplies and my kitties. I was afraid to come here and read, I am glad to know Cassie will be okay- I was almost in tears! Thank you for the warning to protect our most cherished friends- best wishes for a road to good health for Cassie and a little cat hug to her too!

Maija said...

OMG Marylin! I'm so glad Kitty will be ok! We had an aweful scare with Scout a few weeks ago. If we also had not acted right away, we would have lost our darling puppy!
So glad she's ok!
oxoxox

MB Shaw said...

Oh my gosh, how horrid. I am so grateful you caught her and were able to seek quick medical attention. I really needed to hear your story because I just got a new kitty who is about a year old and he is so much more playful than my elderly cats. Thanks for this info.

Anonymous said...

Marylin--so relieved to read that this story has a happy ending!
Lorie in Phoenix

Unknown said...

Oh geeze! I had a cat that ate the silver tinsel off of the Christmas tree! Not good! She lived and so we never used tinselon our tree again! You'd think we would have learned but one Easter that same cat ate the plastic grass from the Easter baskets! Not good! I think I have the house "cat proofed" now!

Then! Here's a post about what happened to both of our current cats!

http://beccirenfro.blogspot.com/2008/02/i-knew-something-was-wrong-when-i-was.html

By the way I think I'm going to be going to Art Fest 2010!

Becci