Maybe the Third Times is the Charm

Rupert became a part of SNUGGLE Pet Rescue on April 22. He and his siblings were already strays, destined for a life on the street. When someone spotted him and saw there was something wrong with his right eye, they knew they had to intervene and get him some help.

That is what we have been doing for nearly 3 months.

After it was determined there was nothing that could be done to fix Rupert's ruptured eye and restore his sight in it, we began to accept that removing it was what had to be done. The date of Rupert's first surgery was June 17. The procedure took longer than expected and there was excessive bleeding. Foreign debris was removed from the eye socket confirming something must have poked him in the eye. The now one-eyed cat came through his surgery fine and began to recover. He experienced some swelling which was expected so warm compresses were used to help relieve it. Thankfully, his foster care provider is a vet tech, so Rupert was in qualified hands.

Rupert's first checkup was a good one but not long after that his eye socket, which was sutured shut, began to ooze. When it continued, it was decided Rupert needed to be put under so it could be determined what was going on. This time more debris was located. So once again the area was thoroughly flushed and cleaned then stitched shut. The incision required daily cleaning which Rupert was not liking at all. It became a battle and there were changes starting to happen to his behavior. He became withdrawn and that was concerning. Before the surgery he had been a playful, outgoing kitten.

This past weekend Rupert's condition worsened, necessitating a third surgery yesterday with a different veterinarian. One thing that seemed to be contributing to Rupert not healing like he should of was that he appears to be allergic to disposable sutures. So, they were not used yesterday. However, much to the vet's surprise more debris was found. This time they sent it to a lab to determine what it is.

Rupert left the vet with a stronger antibiotics and pain medicine last night. Hopefully, he is on the road to a full recovery this time, because he has been through quite the ordeal. We're pleased that he appears a lot more relaxed now and to prove this he was laying upside down in his bed after he got home looking pretty content. We expect we'll see the playful Rupert again soon.