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Update 6:
8/12/2005
When we arrived last night, the clinic was swarmed with emergencys and other people there to visit the pets so we got put off till a little after 8 before we got to see Shayla.
When they brought her into the room where we were waiting she was panicy and jittery and in general freaking out. Which was concerning and sad. Trying to hold back as many tears as possible to remain calm and offer her comfort was a rough task. The initial shock of seeing a gaping hole in her neck was also sad, and the noises spewing and sputtering forth were even worse. She was "spitting" up blood through the hole, which was to be expected. But it was still sad none the less. Not to mention they shaved her bottom of ear to shoulder, along the frame of her head under the chin and entire neck. Poor patchwork kitty, her chest fur alone was probably as long as my index finger. They did tell us we now have to keep that area shaved so the fur does not get "sucked" into the hole. It is just a dime sized hole, you can see the fleshy inside, im not sure if they will give us some sort of "collar" to put on her that will act as a filter over it or what the deal is.
Trying to calm her, we took out one of her fleece blankets and laid it on the table making it like a big rectanglar pocket and after bout 30 minutes of initial panic she climbed in and curled up.
I hugged her close and rubbed and kissed her and mentioned a few hundred times how much I loved her and how sweet she was. She calmed down. I dont know how long it was we were in there, it was after 10pm when we left. But after some comforting and hugging she sounded like she was purring and gurgling at the same time. After awhile she started stretching her head up to headbutt and love us. And she was kneeding her paws when you pet her and even trying to lick you even though it appeared she had cotton mouth. She laid content for most of the visit with one of us hugging her while she laid inside the blanket and on the steel vet table. She would panic every now and again and try to run off the edge of the table so we thought we better not stay too long so she could get back on her IV and relax and heal in her incubator in ICU.
Over all, she appeared to be quiet happy for having such a major thing done. She was trying to be just as lovable as she would normally be. And its that lovable spirit of hers that we think will be what helps her make it through this ordeal.
The surgeon had already left by the time we arrived and the Techs who assisted had as well, the emergency night crew was on duty and so we had many unanswered questions and no one who seemed to have the answers. The one thing the surgeon did tell us is we have to buy several humidifers since she will have to build up the protective mucus around the opening like she would normally have in her nasal passage. Other concerns on our mind, We think her nose is now out of commission, didnt see it so much as twitch. Still not sure if some sort of protective collar or other device will be worth to protect the hole, since it is literally just a gaping hole in her neck. We also think she may no longer have a voice :( Upon some reading about tracheotomy's in other pets, and even some who had the tie back procedure, owners have said their pets no longer have a voice. Which is also sad to me, cause she loved to talk to you. But taking into consideration if we didnt do this surgery she would only get worse and it was already taking all of her strength just to breath, you would see her whole body bounce like one big lung for every breath. She will have to adjust her habits a little im sure just as any human would from a major surgery but were confident now she will make it through this and still be a happy little kitty.
We decided its best not to go bother her today so she doesnt get overly excited again and let her heal up in ICU. They said the earliest would be Saturday we can take her home. It all depends on her and how she is doing and handling the new means of breathing. Which is also why we thought it best not to go in and get her all wound up. They call every few hours to let us know how she is doing, so far so good, well keep our fingers crossed.
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