12/05/2025
This forever home Friday is brought to you by Dr. Elwood and Sassy!
“Alright everyone, it’s story time!
Back in July, a tiny, but mighty kitten came in to the clinic from the county shelter. She was only about 3 weeks old and had splayed back legs, a condition called Swimmer’s syndrome, that kittens can develop when they are young from being on slippery surfaces where they cannot get appropriate traction. I knew from the moment I met her, she had the fight and will to be just as mobile as any other kitten and we took her in to the rescue and I brought her home to start physical therapy with her. We named her Sassy ❤️
Fast forward a few weeks, her legs were improving significantly and she was able to run, jump, and play like a regular kitten, but she was having issues when it came time to wean off the bottle. She was not wanting the bottle anymore but also would not eat solid foods so I began tube feeding her. Tube feeding can be a life saving measure, but is not without risk, even in the most experience hands so it is not something I ever choose to do lightly. Well, despite taking appropriate measures to prevent her from chewing the tube, with a quick motion and bite down during a tube feeding session, Sassy swallowed 5-6 inches of the feeding tube. Due to the size of the tube, the only option was emergent surgery in this tiny 6 week old kitten. I was beside myself, but thankfully one of my colleagues took her to surgery and successfully removed the tube. Just to spite us, after waking up from surgery, she decided it might be best to eat on her own so she began eating again without any fuss. However, her story does not stop there.
I started to notice that she was vomiting relatively frequently right after eating. Initially I thought it was because she was eating too quickly since it seemed to improve with a slow feeder mat. However, in September, while I was out of town, she stayed with a foster and good friend of mine who noted her vomiting multiple times per day when I was gone. When I came back, I was very concerned and we started to investigate further. I quickly realized, she was regurgitating rather than vomiting, which to some may not feel like a big difference, but in veterinary medicine, it certainly is, so I decided to do a barium swallow study on her at the clinic.
The study confirmed my suspicions, Megaesophagus. Megaesophagus is a condition that is extremely rare in cats and more often seen in dogs. It can be a congenital defect in which the nerves in the esophagus do not function appropriately and food will just sit in the esophagus rather than moving down in to the stomach. Animals with this condition, need to be fed sitting upright while eating a liquid diet only and must remain upright for a period of time after eating. This was not the diagnosis I hoped to find for Sassy, after all that she had already been through, but with modifications to her diet, eating arrangements, and some medications, she is finally growing after being quite stunted.
The reality of a megaesophagus diagnosis is that Sassy will require lifelong management that not many people are able or willing to provide. In hindsight, her megaesophagus is likely why she had trouble when it was time to wean. Thankfully, Sassy has found her forver home, right with her foster mom.
During all of her ups and downs, Sassy has been so strong and never wanted anything but love and a lap to sit on. She is on my lap immediately when I sit down and sleeps under the covers with me every night. Her special chair recently arrived and we have a good medication and eating routine down.
So this was a very long winded one, but welcome to the Elwood family, Sassy. I have adored you from the moment I met you and I know I was denying the inevitable for a while, but I cannot imagine you with any other family.”
