Dao before his amputation surgery
Let me introduce our cat, Dao Dao, meaning Mr Bean in Cantonese. He is adopted by us after I spotted him on an advert online, we were lucky to have him in the last 7 years (and now).
Our journey begins around 3 months ago in London, when Dao started limping on his hind right leg. I ignored it because our other cat, Mui had a bit of limping problem and it went away after 3 months, she was checked out by the vet and was cleared. Dao had a bit of cat fights and had ear infection and I was not happy to take him back to the vet again so soon. Unfortunately, my grandfather passed away and I was required in the funeral overseas, and my husband insisted bringing him to the vet to make sure he was ok.
At the initial diagnosis, the vet thought he might broke his bone because he can feel there is something in his leg. He suspected probably it was half-way healing and hence it was inflamed. We scheduled for an X-Ray appointment the next morning. X-ray showed he had a tumour and amputation was needed. I was not there because I was at the funeral, and based on a friend’s recommendation, and the hope to save his leg, we managed an appointment with Fitzpatrick referrals. (I’ll talk about Fitzpatrick in a separate post)
We were told to save him, we need to amputate his leg. To make it worse, it was so high up into the leg, and it went into the pelvis as well. We did not have an option for a limb saving surgery that the referral is world-famous for. It was not the easiest decision to make, given that I was 13 hours flight away on the phone listening in the diagnosis, and my grandfather burial the next day. In the end, we made the decision to go ahead with the surgery, but my husband wanted me to be there, so the surgery is scheduled 10 days later. We were told this type of cancer will not spread that quickly, and at least I have some time with Dao before we welcome a tripawds home.
As I am writing this, the rehabilitation journey was long, because we had a few complications. This is just the first post about Dao and his new life as tripawds
Welcome to the club nobody wants to join! But now that you and Dao Dao are here let me say you have come to the right place. You will find so much useful information here and even more support. We have lots of other tri-kitties in our community and I am sure some of them will comment soon 🙂
Looking forward to hearing more about Dao Dao’s journey!
xoxo,
Martha, Codie Rae, and the Oaktown Pack
DAO!! That face!!!! That beautiful magnificent face!!! And those soul piercing eyes!! You are absolutely stunning!!
And your story is riveting!! You have created quite a cliffhanger for us. I look forward to your update! Hurry!!
I know yiur Grandfather is very proud of you. Know that he is your Guardian and Dao’s Guardian……you are safe.
Sending hugs and smooches to Dao’s mug!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle too!
Hello Dao Dao and family. My cat Mona had her front leg amputated June 2014 due to a fibrosarcoma from a vaccine injection. Both her leg and scapula were removed in order to get wide margins. My vet and I believe the amputation saved Mona’s life. I marvel at how well Mona has adapted and I’ve developed a great respect for her feisty attitude and ingenuity.
I’m looking forward to learning more about Dao Dao.
Kerren
You are one badass Tripawd, Mr. Bean! Wow I am just awestruck by your handsomeness.
Thank you for joining us during a very tough time in your life. I’m really sorry about your Grandpa and hope that all of you are feeling strong and better now that the funeral and amputation surgery for Dao are behind you. I’ll bet your Grandpa is keeping a good eye out to make sure Dao has a long, happy life ahead.
I’m really looking forward to hearing more about your experience both with surgery and Fitzpatrick, the rock star vet. Sorry you’ve had complications. But let us know how we can help OK? We are here for you.
Everyone’s hangin’ on for more updates so post soon. xoxo
Welcome to the family. Dao is very handsome. My condolences to you and your family for the loss of your grandfather. I’m glad at least an amputation could give you more time with Dao. I hope the rest of the recovery goes smoothly!