We are on our 11th sit at a lovely Vila in Spain. Last night one of the cats returned with a puncture wound and air leaking from his lung. It was obvious he had been shot. Unfortunately the down side of outdoor/indoor cats.
We rushed Ginger to a local vet who confirmed through X-rays that he had been hit with an air rifle.
A long and stressful night went by but with good news in the morning. Ginger was mending well and should be able to come home in a few days.
Our hosts were obviously mortified and helpful. The vets fantastic.
Hi @Oztravels
Well done for your quick actions. Unfortunately this doesn’t surprise me. There are people in parts of Europe that class cats as vermin like rats. I had to speak to an upstairs neighbour on a sit last month in Ibiza as their kids were throwing stones at the 2 cats peacefully sitting in the HO’s garden below.
Hope Ginger makes a full recovery.
But anyway, I guess there are greater risks for free-roaming cats, that HOs are well aware of.
And then, also dogs on the leash risk being crime victims. Now in Malmö, a 75-year old woman was arrested for placing out balls of dog food with sharp objects inside. This had been going on for several years, unclear if it is the same person.
@Oztravels Gosh that sounds like such a stressful situation for you and the owners. Thank you for doing everything that you did and I am so glad that Ginger was in such good hands and everything turned out okay!
If you feel that you need any more support please feel free to reach out to Membership Services or DM me. Take care of yourselves as it must have been quite a shock
What a very stressful experience for you @Oztravels and poor Ginger. So glad Ginger will be okay and owners must be indeed relieved and grateful for your quick response and care of their cat.
I’m sure many of us would be interested to know how you got on re payment of the vet in this emergency. Did the owners have an account set up or were in contact with vet to organise payment details?
@Oztravels I’m happy Ginger was able to make it all the way home after being shot where you were able to get her to the vet for treatment. This makes me nervous about my next sit where the cat is free roaming indoor/outdoor and have been known to stay gone for a day or so here and there. I hope you are doing well I know this must have been a very frightening situation for you as well.
@oztravels
Poor Ginger!
She was so lucky to have had you as her sitter!
I personally don’t understand why people still have outdoor cats. There are too many dangers for them in the outdoor world between natural and human predators and traffic. But thank goodness you were there to get her to the Vet in time to do the life saving interventions needed.
I commend you!
Poor baby! And poor you. What a nightmare! I only can say: Karma is a b… (can’t post the word here)! May the person who did this to Ginger get what he or she deserves. Hope Ginger is making a full recovery.
Regarding indoor/outdoor cats: there are lots of dangers lurking around. On one of our first sits one cat went missing one night. We went and looked everywhere and it was an awful feeling. The next morning I heard meowing in the garden, and there she was with a big ugly bite wound at her tail. She must have gotten into a fight with another cat. Apparently she was known in the neighborhood for being a tough lady. We brought her to the vet and he even able to save her tail and she made a full recovery. What I want to say is: there is danger everywhere. Freedom comes at a price! But it is freedom…!
Terrifying.
