“Meow, meow,” you hear a sweet but strange sound coming from the side of the road. Unsure of what you’re about to embark on, you follow the heart-wrenching screams.
“Unfortunate little thing,” you mumble when you approach the source and uncover that the sounds are coming from a kitten unable to move.
Millions and millions of outdoor, stray, and feral cats are injured during road traffic collisions every year. Cats are known to possess a drive, an innate desire, to roam around the great outdoors, sniff around every nook and cranny of the neighborhood, and explore the busy, busy streets.
Contrary to what many might believe to be the truth, cats aren’t aware of the danger that comes with getting too close to cars, crossing roads, and napping in the middle of an intersection.
Because of that, cats that spend most of their time roaming the streets are at a higher risk of getting hit by a car and sustaining near-fatal and fatal injuries. Unfortunately, there’s not much we can do to help them other than react swiftly when we encounter such a situation.
Whether you assess the situation right away or contact a vet to ensure you’re doing the right thing, that’s on you.
We do suggest contacting the vet practice beforehand to provide them with enough time to prepare for whatever care the cat might need. That way, they’re also able to give you a few pointers, too.
More often than not, you should be able to safely scoop the cat off the ground, cover her with a blanket or something similar to keep her warm and comfortable, and take her to the vet practice.
However, you might need to check whether her wounds are too deep or her bones are broken before you pick her up – you might do more damage than good on the chance that she’s too hurt to survive the trip. Before you do anything, we suggest contacting the vet and asking for advice.
Cats can survive getting hit by a car, but your swift reaction plays a huge part, too. Summer, the protagonist of the story we’re bringing you today, survived getting hit by a car and proceeded to charm everyone at the vet practice with her adorable purrsonality.
Jessica Thompson, a foster volunteer at Northwest Animal Companions, took to Instagram to share the news about her newest foster kitten Summer. Summer was hit by a car and she sustained serious injuries that needed treatment, medication, and care.
Jessica was more than happy to take on that responsibility because she was obsessed with Summer’s determination. According to her, Summer didn’t allow her very, very serious injuries to break down her spirit and ruin her mood.
Summer was the sweetest, most affectionate, and most appreciative kitten ever and Jessica wanted to see her get better, grow bigger and stronger, and recover.
Summer was eight weeks old when she got hit by a car. How she survived was nothing short of a miracle. She didn’t go unscathed, though – she suffered damage to her brachial plexus, a group of nerves responsible for controlling the muscles of the shoulder, elbow, wrist, and paw.
She couldn’t use her left arm whatsoever, and Jessica hinted at the possibility that she was going to have to get that arm amputated. She lost the tip of her tail, too, and she was going to need surgery to remove the part that was completely crushed.
With such serious ramifications, you’d think Summer would be down and depressed. While she was going through the worst experience of her life, she was far from what you’d expect her to be.
She was happy and healthy (for the most part) and she was excited about life. She was friendly and playful and she wasn’t going to allow anything to stop her from living her best life. Jessica took to Instagram to share an update about Summer’s surgeries a few days afterward.
Summer took the amputations like a true champ and continued putting a smile on Jessica’s face from the moment she woke up. She was on heavy medication, but she was doing great. She was eating, potty training, and hitting her milestones.
She was running around Jessica’s apartment on three legs like she wasn’t affected by the amputation whatsoever. She was a true fighter.
When Summer underwent the two surgeries, Jessica made sure to spay her before she started accepting adoption applications. She wasn’t sure whether there was going to be a problem with that considering that Summer did require a little more attention and affection due to her state.
She was wrong, though, because Summer managed to snatch everyone’s hearts on Instagram. Jessica made quite a few posts about her shenanigans on her Instagram page, @theswiftiekittens, and attracted attention from people who wanted to adopt the precious purr machine.
Summer was adopted by a lovely family who wanted nothing more but to spoil her rotten. We’re sending you lots of love, Summer, and we’re hoping you’re happy and healthy for years to come!
