31 inches

My girlfriend and I finally got a chance to see Pippy this afternoon - post-surgery. We've called the office a half-a-dozen times since he went into surgery yesterday, so I'm sure they're getting sick of us by now.

It was good to finally see our Pippy, but a shock nonetheless. He appeared disoriented, understandably upset, and very worn out. He was looking very pathetic with a blue bandage wrapped around his left paw to hold the IV needle (which he didn't like one bit), and with his tail tucked between his legs.



The vet said he hasn't moved much, and hasn't been very vocal since the surgery - all of which is understandable considering it has been just over 24 hours.

And the reason for the surgery? A thread.... a lousy cotton thread that Pippy tried to eat.

Apparently this is common in cats. What can happen - and happened to Pippin - is a thread will get wrapped around the base of the tongue, and at the same time move into the digestive track - throat, stomach and intestines. If long enough, the intestines will pull on the thread as a natural digestive reflex, but the tongue will pull back holding it in place... Our vet said that if this was overlooked long enough, then the thread would have begun to act like a saw to the intestines, and cause serious, permanent damage. Fortunately, he believes that we did recognize the problem fast enough before this was the case with Pippin.

They had to make one long, 6-8" incision into his abdomen, and 4 incisions in his intestines to completely remove the thread.




And here's the culprit: a 31" long piece of black thread. (the nickel used as a size reference)

Ladies and gentlemen, this has to be the most expensive piece of thread on the face of the earth.... seriously.

While it was hard seeing Pippy this way, we're remaining positive about his recovery. They will be feeding him tonight to see if he will begin to eat, which is the next big hurdle to overcome.

Before we left, Pippy snuggled up to us and butted his head against our hands, begging for a pet.

But there's no need to beg for us! :)

Needless to say, we're looking forward to having him back home soon!

- The Male and Female Captors