Community Corner

Three Legged Cat Bounces Back

Cat discovered in December had leg nearly rotting off body is rescued by Stafford couple.

A few days after Christmas last year, Stafford County resident Tracy Sanchez was walking her dog when she noticed a familiar stray cat meowing nearby. Something was off about the cat, however. It looked as if one of the cat's hind legs had a patch of mud. But as she got closer, Sanchez was taken aback by what she saw: bone exposed, dirty and brown, the cat's leg was nearly rotting off the result of a massively infected wound. The leg resembled a discarded chicken bone sticking from the cat.  

"It looked like his entire left leg had nearly been gnawed off," said Sanchez. "He was running on his three legs, his other leg was kind of just dangling, hitting the ground as he ran."

She quickly tied her dog around a nearby tree and tried to scoop the injured feline up to take inside. The cat, still full of energy despite its condition, panicked and jumped from Sanchez's arms, forcing her to chase after it again. After tempting it with some food, she eventually got him inside. 

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Her husband, Joshua, is allergic to cats, but is able to tolerate them in limited numbers. They already own one cat. Two cats in the house had the potential to irritate Joshua's allergies more regularly. But those concerns faded from memory once Joshua saw the condition of the cat they now call Captain Jack.

"When he saw the second one, he couldn't, his heart is big enough and he was like 'go do what you need to do, go take it to the vet,'" said Tracy. 

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The first vet refused to treat the animal, saying it was a lost cause. Animal Control officers in Stafford County said told tracy that they would most likely have to euthanize the animal if no one claimed it after five days. 

Tracy ended up taking the cat to Garrisonville Animal Hospital. The veterinarians there were astonished that the infection hadn't spread any farther than the cats leg, estimating that the infection and necrosis were at least three to four weeks along. Still, the cat had only two options; amputate the leg or euthanize the feline before the infection killed it.

Tracy quickly decided to adopt the cat and paid to have the infected leg amputated at a cost of about $1,500. 

Unfortunately for Tracy and Joshua, paying for the cat's veterinary needs has not been cheap. Earlier this week, Tracy posted a craigslist ad soliciting donations to help pay off the cat's bills. 

Since the operation Captain Jack has bounced back. He is one of the friendliest cat's you'll ever meet, taking an immediate interest in this reporter in their first encounter. He walks with an unusual gait, almost at an angle. When he arrives at his destination, he doesn't stand for too long, preferring to plop down. Tracy reports that despite his three legged status, he has learned how to get around the house with surprising speed. 

"It obviously took him a little bit to get used to his life with one leg," said Tracy. "It's pretty amazing what they can recover from."


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