Mook's Story
Mook the Wonder Cat
“Mook is a twelve-year-old cat who was brought into Grove Lodge having come face-to-face with an aggressive dog. He was not in a good way and was suffering from shock, along with massive trauma which had occurred when he was picked up and shaken by his back leg. We worked quickly to stabilise Mook to make him as comfortable as possible, but it was obvious that it would be a long road to recovery - if Mook would make it at all. After long discussions with Mook's owner, two days later we took Mook to surgery to amputate his badly damaged and infected leg. We also had to fit him with a feeding tube as well as a catheter in his bladder.
Mook made a steady recovery, gradually becoming more mobile and feeding himself. Unfortunately, due to the amount of damage and infection in Mook's leg, we had to perform further surgery to remove more damaged and infected tissue. Since then, Mook has been doing much better and is adapting to life on three legs.Throughout all his treatment Mook was incredibly brave and for this reason has been nominated for a Braveheart Award.” - Andrew Ketteridge
Profile
"I had Mook as a small kitten after I left University in 1997 and he has travelled with me wherever I have been ever since. Mook has always been very friendly, but also a very independent cat and has made many friends in each neighbourhood we have lived. He has even been known to stop traffic by rolling around in the middle of the road looking for strokes! In August this year, Mook was seriously injured in a dog attack, deliberately instigated by a group of teenagers in the street outside our house. He received nasty bite wounds to his back legs, as well as damage to his internal organs and was in severe shock when we found him.We took him straight to Grove Lodge in Brighton, where he received immediate attention and then, later that evening, we took him to Worthing where he received intensive care for a period.
Mook
After four days of intensive care, he was still very poorly and suffering the effects of infection from the bites.We had to take the decision to remove one of his back legs as it was so severely damaged and it was clear he would not survive otherwise. It was by no means guaranteed that he would recover even with the leg removed, but we wanted to give him every chance of survival and went ahead with the operation. After two weeks in hospital Mook was well enough to come home, where he received pretty much round the clock nursing from us. He was still fighting infection and in fact had to be re-admitted to Grove Lodge when after a week he managed to chew his infected wound open. He was re-stitched and sent home with an even bigger buster collar, which he wasn't very impressed with.
It's now two and a half months since the attack and mook is back to his old self. He has learned to hop around happily on his three remaining legs and is enjoying all the extra cuddles and treats that he receives for being such a brave soldier.
At the beginning of this journey when I picked up Mook's mauled body and saw the look in his eyes as I carried him back to the house, I really didn't know if he would make it.That he has surprised everyone has proven beyond any doubt that he has a fighting spirit and a will to live that is hard to beat. However, without all the amazing care and attention he received from the staff at Grove Lodge, we know he would not be with us now and for that we will always be grateful."
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