Please tell me this cat will be fine...

[lph]

I hit a cat this morning I was driving up our hill, very slowly, because we lost a cat here ourselves 2 years ago, and suddenly a cat comes running down the sidewalk on the opposite side, veers across the road and DIVES in front of the car. I slam on the brakes and hear a kind of shuddering sound, no bump. The cat runs away down the hill, and then I notice that it's been chased by another cat who has stopped and is just watching. I found no blood, but a little fluff of under-fur, which could have been from the cats fighting in advance.

I've been around ringing doorbells (including one a s s h o l e who said "good riddance! they **** all over the place here!" and laughed ) and managed to find the owner.

The cat is at the vets. His leg was swollen, and he was breathing raspily.

Please tell me that the raspy breath is from pain, and that a broken leg kan be mended... I try to tell myself that I probably saved that cat's life, no other driver would have been driving so slowly or reacted that fast, but I still feel terrible about causing this cat and his owners so much pain.

[Catrin]

I am so sorry to read this, I know how this must feel to you. It doesn't sound like you had any choice in the matter, though that doesn't help you feel any better. You did what you could do, and sadly, a lot of people would not have gone to the effort you did to find the pet's owner and to make sure that he got help. Sending calming thoughts your way, and to the cat and his owners.

[badger]

oh no!! that's one of my nightmares, hitting an animal. But thank you so much for caring enough to ring doorbells to find the owner, not many people will do that.

When I first met my cat, he was all in patches with staples everywhere. He was hit by a car and while he had no broken bones or internal injuries, he had neurological trauma. He couldn't see or walk. He came in "moribund" with barely a pulse, he was as good as dead. That was 10 years ago, he walks with a slight limp and probably has some brain damage that makes him all agitated and mean, but he pulled through.

The crazy thing is, he was hit again a couple of years later, but the only reason why I knew was he had a patch of fur missing and his claws were all shredded and short (from bracing himself on the ground). He's probably on his 9th life already.

The kitty will probably be good, but even at the worst case scenario, at least he's at the hospital where help can be given rather than hiding under a house all wounded and hurt.

[lph]

Thanks ladies. For the record, I didn't go knocking doors (but wish I had) this morning, but I did search all the closest gardens where the cat disappeared, waking up a poor lady in the meantime. When I couldn't find an injured cat anywhere I hung up a note and went to work, and went door-knocking this afternoon. The cat had come home with injuries and got taken to the vets.

The searches I've done all claim that broken bones in cats heal relatively easily, so I'm hoping this is the case. The skin was not broken I'm sure, or the owners would have said so. But I am worried about damage to internal organs. I'm hoping that if the cat survived the day, the chances are that any internal injuries aren't that severe.

I gave the owner my email address and asked her to please keep me updated. *Crossing my fingers* I know this is minor in the grand scheme of things, but still I'm a bit worked up about this...

badger, you have quite a fighter there! That's inspiring.

[alimey]

If it helps, we had a kitty who apparently ran into a car's wheel. She was knocked out cold (we thought dead) - but she came round on my dad's knee on the way to the vet. the vet was worried she was brain-damaged as she had a bad squint - but we reassured him that she was Tonkinese & always had that squint. Then he thought she was in pain as she meiouwed all the time - again, we said that was what she always did. We took her home (after no work done) & she is now nearly 20. Also we had another cat (her son) who was hit twice. The first time he broke his pelvis & the vet said it didn't look good, but we kept him quiet & he learned to walk (again no work done). The second time he walzed up the drive all wet down one side - a driver stopped & said they had hit him. Apparently no side effects (mind you - I didn't see if the car was dented). Seriously, although we have had several kitties killed on the road - we have also had several get away scott free. They really have amazing healing powers. I hope if one of my cats is unfortunate enough to get hit, that it's someone caring like you. It always makes me feel very sad when I see a dead cat by the side of the road & think that it might belong to a little child . . .

[lph]

Thank you, alimey, I really appreciate that. We lost our cat that way, and my then 10yr-old son was absolutely devastated. So I know all too well what it feels like. We were so lucky back then in that someone saw the accident, and mentioned it to the girls next door who purely by chance (I had helped one of them with a pair of skates in the street a few weeks before) knew who we were and that we had a cat with that colouring.

[jelee1311]

I'm sorry it sounds like you are an animal lover and a responsible person. You have done more than a lot of people would have. Cats are amazingly resiliant, I had one that got hit twice and lived to a ripe old age. Please don't beat yourself up I'm sure the owner appreciates all you've done.

[badger]

another thought:

when cats are dying, they seem to know and tend to hide in places they can't be found. If this cat went home, perhaps he didn't feel like he was dying?

I'm sure if he had internal injuries and they were bad, you would have heard something by now. I have a feeling he'll pull through!

I forgot, but my parents also had a cat that was hit by a car. My mother found this poor little stray cat in a ditch, struggling to move but his hind end wasn't working. I believe he may have had his pelvis fractured, and he was in the hospital for quite a while. He never walked normally, but he lived for about 10 years after that, and my parents just adored him.

[jelee1311]

I'm sorry it sounds like you are an animal lover and a responsible person. You have done more than a lot of people would have. Cats are amazingly resiliant, I had one that got hit twice and lived to a ripe old age. Please don't beat yourself up I'm sure the owner appreciates all you've done.

[redrhodie]

(((lph))) That must have been awful. I hope the kitty will be okay. Crossing my fingers, too.

[malkin]

I hope it turns out to be one of the earlier of that cat's nine lives.

[Koronin]

I hope the kitty will be alright. Growing up I remember two cats we had that were hit by a car. One was taken to the vet with some pretty bad injuries, but survived and was just fine. The other one unfortunately didn't make it. We found her in our yard just a few feet from the patio in the morning. Hopefully this one will be just fine.

[smilingcat]

It will be bit trying for the owner to keep the cat quiet with a broken leg. I had to readjust the splint on a broken front leg every day on a three week old kitten. He did recover and the final X-ray showed that the bone did mend, not exactly the way we wanted. He and one of his brother were adopted out together and are happy at their new home. One foot is ever so slightly crooked but he seems to do just fine!!

The broken leg will heal.

The first 24 to 48 hour is crucial if you think the cat has any internal injuries. But as someone said, if the cat returned home, he will most likely recover.

I do sympathize with your deep concern for the cat. I too would be devastated. And you did everything you could far more than most people. We are all very grateful for what you have done, to help locate the owner and trying to find the cat. Lets focus on the positive and wish him a speedy recovery.

peace,

[lph]

I am sorry to say that poor Oliver didn't make it. I got an email from the owner telling me that he was too badly injured. They thanked me for letting them know, though.

These things happen, but it sucks anyway.

[Selkie]

LPH - I'm sorry to hear this happened to you and that Oliver didn't make it. You're right: these things happen and it must have been Oliver's time (bad luck, fate, something put him in your path). Doesn't sound like you could have done anything to avoid the accident.

You are a good person and a class act, doing everything possible to help the cat and its owner. Unfortunately, a lot of people would have kept on going and not have given it a second thought.