PDSA vets saved Billy’s life after a suspected road traffic accident

PDSA vets saved Billy, an eight-year old cat, after he had serious damage to his pelvis in a suspected road traffic accident.

When Billy came home and was struggling to get through the cat flap, his owner, Tracey Mansell (52) from Wolverhampton, knew something wasn’t right.

Tracey said: “He was having difficulty getting in and when he finally pulled himself through the cat flap, I could tell there was something wrong; he was dragging his back legs and crying out in pain. I didn’t know what had happened, but I knew he needed to see a vet as soon as possible, so I called my local PDSA Pet Hospital, and they asked to see him immediately.”

Tracey arrived with Billy at Oldbury PDSA Pet Hospital, where he was seen by the out-of-hours team. He was stabilised with pain relief and fluids overnight.

PDSA vet Ian Fleming said: “The following day, we placed Billy under a general anaesthetic to carry out X-rays to understand the full extent of his injuries, and we discovered that he had a fractured pelvis. We were also able to stitch up a nasty wound on his back leg. 

“Billy’s injuries were consistent with a road traffic accident. He needed pain relief and around-the-clock care, so he was hospitalised for another three nights. He also initially struggled to pee properly due to the severity of his injuries, so we couldn’t send him home until we were confident that he could pass urine comfortably.”

Tracey said: “When the vets called to say Billy could pee and he was able to come home to recover, I breathed a huge sigh of relief. His injuries were so horrific that he was screaming in pain; I honestly thought he wouldn’t make it.”

Thankfully, Billy was able to go home to his loving family to heal with strict cage rest for three weeks and pain relief until PDSA vets could X-ray him again to assess his injuries.

Tracey continued: “The PDSA vets were marvellous. I’m over the moon with everything they have done for Billy; I couldn’t be happier to have him home, back where he belongs. 

“Without the PDSA’s amazing care, we would have lost Billy. I’m on disability benefits as I’m unable to work, so there is no way I could have afforded thousands of pounds for Billy’s life-saving treatment. I’m incredibly grateful for everything they have done for him.

“Billy’s slowly getting back to his usual cheeky self. He’s started kicking his litter, digging to try and get out of the crate and tapping his paw. He’s eager to wander around, but he’s not ready yet; he needs more time to rest and recover. Hopefully, it won’t be long before we can let him out of the crate to play with his brothers and sisters again.”

We need your help so we can treat more pets like Billy

PDSA is the UK’s leading veterinary charity. Every year, we treat over 388,000 pets. Without us, emergency cases like Billy's would go untreated and many pets could lose their lives or be separated from families who love them.

Your generous support means that we can keep treating pets with the vital care they so desperately need to pull through injury and illness. Every £1 donated will help us make sure sick and injured pets, like Billy, get the emergency treatment they desperately need.

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