An inquisitive eighteen-month-old cat was rescued by PDSA vets after ingesting a pile of hair bands and requiring emergency surgery.
When Irwin went off his food, owner Charlene Edwards first noticed a change in him. She got concerned after attempting to change his diet and enticing him with sweet goodies to no effect. Things worsened when Irwin began to lose weight and became lazy.
After growing increasingly concerned about the sudden changes, Charlene took the cheeky moggie to his vet for a private appointment. Irwin was prescribed medication to aid his recovery and was sent home with Charlene to keep an eye on him. Unfortunately, Irwin’s condition worsened, and he eventually stopped drinking. After Charlene attempted to inject water into his mouth, he began vomiting hairbands, much to her amazement.
“We realized Irwin required immediate attention.” When Charlene contacted the team at her local PDSA Pet Hospital in Gillingham of Irwin’s condition, they suggested her to bring him in right away for an emergency visit.
“X-rays revealed that there were several hairbands in Irwin’s stomach, and we were concerned that they were causing an obstruction to his guts,” explained PDSA Vet Rebecca Lewis. Because this is a potentially fatal illness, he required immediate surgery to remove them.
“The hairbands were successfully removed after an intensive operation, and Irwin was retained in the hospital to be closely monitored during his rehabilitation.”
Irwin, on the other hand, was not yet out of the woods. Irwin had acquired a liver problem that cats are prone to if they suddenly stop eating, despite the fact that he was healing well following his surgery. His life was once again in jeopardy, and he required immediate medical attention and nursing care.
Irwin was admitted to PDSA and kept there for nearly a week, with a feeding tube put to ensure he got the nutrients he needed. Fortunately, he began to stabilize thanks to the Pet Hospital team’s dedication and care.
“From now on, we’re going to keep any hairbands and anything else he could swallow safely out of reach.” Irwin’s family was heartbroken to find him in such bad shape, but thanks to PDSA, he’s made a full recovery.”
