Kittens For A Cure

It all started due to one of those impulsive decisions for which I'm so well known...

April 5, a client came in with a pregnant cat that had been dumped at her house. My boss saw the appointment. The cat had been in labor for over 24 hours with no kittens produced. I was doing surgery that morning and the cat was brought to me at which time I was told that regardless, there were to be no live kittens at the end of the procedure.

I'm not fond of spaying pregnant animals. I know that there are a ton of strays out there (believe me, I know! where do you think the herd came from??) but it still doesn't make me happy. In this case, I figured the babies were likely dead and decided to go ahead with her next, altering the pre-planned schedule.

I made no special precautions as I would for a C-section but anesthetized her and opened her abdomen, doing a routine spay. I set aside the large, distended uterus and closed the abdomen. As I was closing the skin, I noticed the uterus twitching and a small body emerging from the uterine body...

Now, let's be honest, I would have opened the uterus anyway 'cause I'm just wired that way but I really didn't expect to see a kitten complete with placenta begin to wiggle out while I was still finishing the surgery. I tied the last knot, got mom off the table, and got out the two babies, both of whom were alive.

So we went from no live kittens to 2 struggling newborns which we promptly began to resuscitate. The little boy responded quickly, crying and wiggling, the girl seemed to quit on me. She came within inches of the garbage pail, quite frankly, because I thought she was through but then she took another breath. After a bit of work, both kittens were pink, breathing, crying, and wiggling. Now I had to tell the owner and my boss - oops...

With a little sweet talking on my part, the owner agreed to let the babies stay with mom until they were ready to wean then bring them back to the clinic for us to place in homes. Since they have been back, I have reached the conclusion that kittens could cure the world of its misery. I would prescribe a kitten to all depressed people and those with diseases that make them feel miserable because a kitten just can't help but make you smile.

Notice I did not say puppies. They involve way too much work. Kittens just make you happy.