Elvis is Back & He Looks Great

Elvis woke up about 3:30am and wasn't happy that his nighttime snack was not at the feeding station. We had a long discussion about his hunger until about 5am when I gave up and came downstairs for coffee. I dropped him off around 9:30am and headed out to take care of some errands and then back here to work. When I hadn't heard anything at 1:30 I couldn't stand it any longer and called to check on him. He was still in surgery (don't know when they got started) and wrapped up around 2pm

There were several options for the procedure and I wasn't sure what she was going to do - she wanted to see it first because she had only seen the photos. After consulting with Dr. Pittinger (lead vet/owner of clinic) they agreed that she should open the hematoma, flush it out, look around for any cysts (there wasn't one) and leave the wound open to continue draining. (Lovely!)

She said the tissue was very inflamed and wouldn't have resolved, without intervention, for a long time. I hate that I waited so long. Even without the fluid build-up, the ear is very thick and spongy - guess it's from all the inflamation.

The other procedure involves them "quilting" the ear ... literally placing sutures all through the hematoma to close off the cavity. It's pretty invasive and painful and requires a drain tube, etc. The quilt stitches go through the cartilage and do create scar tissue that can increase the "crinkle effect" on a cat's ear, because they are so thin.

So, this easier process seems OK to me. The issue is that they have no idea if this will scar and crinkle or heal beautifully from the edges of the cavity towards the center, which would be ideal. There is a 50% chance that the hematoma will recur and there's a chance that he will have to go back in and have it quilted.

We're in a holding pattern, but the good news is that he is home and looks good (ear still tipping). It's also good news that he is not bothering the ear - of course, he is "living better through pharmaceuticals" at the moment. I'm leaving the big blue collar off for now, but will use it tonight when I'm not able to watch him.

The opening is small and the whole hematoma area has to be gently squeezed several times a day to drain the fluid and to promote healing from the edges. Need for the opening to heal last or we could be right back over there with an abscess. He seems to enjoy having the ear rubbed, but you've got to have a sterile gauze pad close at hand. Even though this could be a little messy, I'm happy he doesn't have a drain tube taped to his head!

Welcome Home Elvis ... where have you been?



They left the fur on the back side of the ear (yeah!) and only shaved the inside. The black circle is where the wound is open and cauterized around the edges to seal them off and slow bleeding. It looks strange, but will also help the opening to stay open until the rest of the cavity heals shut.



We have pain meds every 8 hours which will last until Wednesday and - get this - I'm supposed to shoot it under his tongue for maximum absorption. HA! We compromised on just inside the cheek, which will be a challenge anyway. I just hope it doesn't end up on the kitchen floor.



He had a snack and looks so tired he can barely keep his head up, but he's sort of restless from the drugs and stress. He keeps walking around and getting in and out of his car kennel. THIS is your brain on drugs!