Anthony McSherry, from Liverpool, rushed beloved two-year-old pet Splodge to his local vets after he collapsed at home.
Splodge was quickly referred to Linnaeus-owned Northwest Veterinary Specialists (NWVS) in Sutton Weaver, Cheshire, for further investigations.
The added anxiety for Anthony was that Splodge is his 20-year-old daughter Molly’s cat – and she was sitting an exam at home, so was completely unaware of the scare surrounding her precious pet.
Anthony said: “It was such a shock and I honestly thought Splodge was going to die. He couldn’t walk, his eyes were glazed and he kept having seizures.
“Luckily, Molly was upstairs and didn’t witness anything, so I decided to try to keep it secret from her until I knew more about what was happening.
“I knew if I told her she wouldn’t have gone through with the exam and would have just wanted to be with Splodge.”
Splodge was placed under the care of NWVS’ head of neurology, Luca Motta, who quickly got to work to start treatment.
Luca, an RCVS-recognised specialist and European diplomate in veterinary neurology, said: “On neurological examination Splodge showed severe neurological deficits.
“He was unable to walk, his vision seemed reduced and his head was moving from side to side while he was attempting to move.
“His eyes were also flickering although the good news was that, on presentation, Splodge did not show whole body tremors or seizures.
“We carried out an MRI of the brain which yielded normal results. Blood and urine were collected for a toxicology screening and these revealed Splodge was positive for Chloralose, which is a poison used to kill rodents.
“Splodge was treated with an antiepileptic drug and intravenous fluid therapy and he soon started showing a progressive improvement, which meant we could discharge him 48 hours after presentation. He soon returned to his normal self and is enjoying his life again without need for long-term medications.”
Anthony added: “We are so thankful that Splodge has made such a fine recovery. We were also relieved that Molly could continue with her exam, and we’re very proud of her for passing.
“Splodge is fine now and is back to being a lovely, beautiful cat. We are so grateful to Northwest Veterinary Specialists for saving him.”