Onyx, after surgery

I found Onyx one night by the back door to the garage mewing softly. I called to him, since we keep them in the garage at night, and I was ready to shut the large garage door. But Onyx didn't come...he just stayed there mewing.

I walked up to him and saw a small scuff on one of his hind legs. I figured he had caught himself on something (he had done it before) and took him inside to spray some medicine on it that I had gotten from the vet the last time. When I set him down, he put all his weight on the scuffed leg. I figured that could not be good, and thought he may have broken a bone or dislocated his hip. I called the vet to leave a message that I would be bringing him in first thing in the morning. I put him in bed with me, and he slept soundly through the night.

At the vet's (Woodside Veterinary Hospital) an x-ray was taken to verify what they also suspected, a broken leg. Sure enough, his femur was broken in half...and it was not a clean break. His leg had no visible injuries on the outside. How he broke it was perplexing.

The doctor explained what the surgeon would have to do, and then revealed the cost. I cried. It would be so much money, but I refused to put my baby to sleep. He was just laying there, not complaining at all...otherwise perfectly healthy. I gave the go ahead to do surgery, and left Onyx in their care.


I went to pick him up a couple days later, and the doctor said he was doing great. He had to have a metal rod inserted and have wire wrapped around the bone to hold it in place. Then he was stapled shut. He was sent home with some antibiotics and instructions not to be allowed to jump up or down on anything for a month. I joked that he did this so he could spend some time inside now that the weather was turning colder.

For the first few days, I kept him in our half bath on a towel. He was content and warm, and slept most of the time. Soon, however, he had no interest in food or water. I went to check on him and found he had tried to get into the trash can. His behavior had changed. I called the vet right away and took him in first thing the next morning.


Turns out he was in so much pain, he had refused to eat or drink and was just looking for a place that felt more secure. Cats livers are not very good at handling pain killers, they end up over working the kidneys, and so pain killers are not made for cats. However, a cat can be put on a canine pain killer in smaller doses and for short periods of time. This is what was done for Onyx. He was sent home with six small doses, one a day for the next three days, and then one on Mon., Wed., and Fri. I also lined our large cat carrier with a soft sheet and put him inside so he would feel safe.