Help Mimosa with vets fees after being shot by an air gun

Hi all, thanks for taking the time to look at Mim's story. Briefly, on 14/08/24 she came home bleeding and dragging her right leg after having been shot. We didn't know that at the time and took her to the emergency vets. The airgun pellet had lodged near her spine and the vets recommended referral to a specialist centre in Bristol.

The emergency vets bill was £1800.81 and the cost for the specialist care in Langdon's Bristol is £5565.82

She is insured for up to £4000. We thought that would cover most eventualities. We didn't factor getting shot into most eventualities!

See photos below for insurance and invoice details to date.

Further info

Hi, my name is Rachel and Mimosa belongs to my 3 children. 2 are students and the youngest is in 6th form college.

Mim came to live with us at Easter time this year. She is now about a year old. She came from a rescue, where she had been for a few months, after having been living outside since she was born.

When she came to us she was extremely timid and lacking in confidence and we were told that she may never want to go outside due to the trauma experienced as a feral kitten.

She is fond of head bumps and tickles and seeks attention every time someone enters the room. She reaches out and bats the dog as he walks by.

Surprisingly, she started to go outside, even venturing over the wall into the neighbouring gardens. She was never far as if you called her she would appear in seconds.

We saw this as a great achievement for her and she's been a really happy little cat (definitely little as she was the runt of the litter).

On Wednesday 14th August Mim came back into the garden and was dragging her right back leg and covered in blood.

Once we traced the source of the blood it looked like a puncture wound on her right side. We speculated what had happened as it must have been a fierce fight but bundled her up and took her to the emergency vets.

Initially they thought it was a puncture wound from a fight. They assessed the movement in her back legs and it was non existent in the right and weak in the left. Until she was X rayed we wouldn't know the extent of the damage.

At midnight the vet called to say that it wasn't what we had thought.

She hadn't been in a fight but had been shot by an air gun!

The next day specialist advice was sought and the decision made to go to Bristol for a review with the neurologist.

On Friday 16th August we collected her from the local vets and headed to Langford's in Bristol where she was assessed. Overall it felt more positive than it might have been.

We saw the x rays and could see the pellet alongside the spine. The neurologist recommended a CT scan and removal of the pellet. It was felt that the movement in her legs was likely to return if the pellet was removed and her body left to heal.

The vet from Langford's called after the CT scan to let us know that some of the pellet fragmented and although not changing the plan it will make the operation technically more difficult and hence increase the price due to additional experts needed.

The operation went well. The fragmented part of the pellet was pressing on a nerve root which the vet said would have been extremely painful. At the time of writing, 17/08/24, she remains in Bristol and we are hopeful she will be home in the next 24-48 hours.

We are unsure at present if she will need follow up appointments and other therapies such as physiotherapy.

Any money raised will go directly to Mim's vets fees and if there were to be a surplus I would donate it to Forgotten Felines Cat Rescue https://www.facebook.com/ForgottenFelinesinneed . This is where we adopted Mim. Take a look, they do fantastic work.

If you feel able to make a donation, however small, we would be forever grateful.

Update 19/08/2024

She came home last night and is residing in a pen that we made. She needs to stay in there for 4 weeks, she is quite content at the moment. She remains on gabapentin, metacam and antibiotics that she takes easily as they're disguised in food!