Thomas Cat Update
It was exactly one month ago today that Thomas Cat was attacked by a neighbour's dog - a pitbull/rotweiller that was running around loose. He came running up onto our deck, saw Thomas sleeping in the sun while I was reading and having my coffee, and went right for him. Thomas tried to escape into the house - the dog dragged him into my kitchen and down the hall by his back end and continued to attack him.
Originally I had thought all the blood was from the dog - but after having a Vet check Thomas out a couple of days later, we discovered a 2cm open wound, which was the source of it. A neighbour lady who heard everything caught the dog and leashed it to her truck, and called Animal Control, who picked up the dog very quickly.
You can read about Thomas Here
I'm happy to say that after 2 rounds of antibiotics and the awesome care of our "Visiting Veterinarian", Thomas Cat is healing very well - and more quickly than we had hoped.
While his physical wounds are healing well, Thomas Cat has lost a lot of confidence in himself. He needs lots of reassurance - from me, because I'm his "mom", and often has nightmares and wakes me up for some TLC. He is afraid of loud noises, and if he hears anything in the night that sounds 'different' to him, he becomes hyper-alert and needs to be even closer to me and safety. The fact that he was abandoned by his original family compounds the trauma he has been feeling since his attack.
Other than that, Thomas is eating well and has no issues with using his litter box - however, I do believe he's reverted to his cat babyhood - he's such a big suck! And that's okay, I can handle that part ... it's the middle of the night anxiety that's difficult to see.
And, although I requested that the owner pay the Vet bill - and have filed with Small Claims, the dog's owner is ignoring it and not doing the right thing. The Claims process is slow and frustrating, but I'm doing the best I can. At least I managed to pay the Vet bill myself; and know that Thomas will be okay eventually. Like me, he's a survivor!