It is a sad but unfortunately common scenario. A perfectly sweet cat is allowed to roam a neighborhood because “it stays right around the house” and the next thing you know the cat is being rushed to a veterinary hospital because of a human inflicted injury. Often times this involves a vehicle related injury (or death) but there are some cases of intentional abuse or injury. This was the case with Chloe Dawg, a sweet siamese mix 4 year old spay female cat. She was the victim of intentional injury by gunshot to her face/jaw by an unknown “assailant” on February 23, 2009.
Chloe’s early life if unclear. She was spayed and microchipped at the Neuter Commuter in February 2007. After that point, we don’t know when, she became a homeless cat and her name was known only to her. Her original owners could not be located. A loving couple began feeding her and she soon called their house her home. Unfortunately due to “non-cat friendly” dogs in their home, she could not become an indoor cat. It didn’t mean they showed their compassion for her any less and did find times that she could come into the house for short periods and lounge on the furniture and in their laps..
Then on February 24th the story took a sad turn of events. “Dawg”, as she had been christened by her new friends, came into the house with an obvious injury to the left side of her face. She was bleeding and drooling and could not close her mouth. Her tongue was hanging from the side of her mouth. Although her friends didn’t have a lot of money, they took her to Brick City Cat Hospital and it was discovered that her severe facial injuries were caused by a small caliber gunshot which shattered her left lower jaw. She was extremely fortunate that the path of the bullet did not do any extensive injury in her throat or other parts of her head. Unfortunately her friends were not prepared for large veterinary bills or for a “handicapped cat” Enter Sheltering Hands Injured Animal fund and volunteers.
The next (and current chapter) of “Chloe Dawg’s” story became her medical treatment, including 3 surgeries, and her rehabilitation. She was fed for 2 months through a feeding tube and then the next 2 1/2 months got her meals by syringe feedings. She quickly learned to get on the counter and tilt her head to the proper angle to swallow her food and manipulate her tongue to move the food around. Luckily with a lot of perseverance she has now learned to eat dry food from a shallow dish although she still makes a big mess of her can food. She also needs help with her grooming because it is difficult for her tongue to do a good job anymore. She couldn’t be a more cooperative patient. Many humans could learn from her positive attitude and determination despite her obvious handicap.
Chloe Dawg remains in a Sheltering Hands life residence foster home where she is now safe from harm and enjoys daily human kindness.
If you would like to help with her medical expenses you can make a donation to Sheltering Hands for use in the injured animal fund. The fund helps many homeless cats get the medical attention that will make a difference in whether they live or die.
