Boris is a farm cat, but no ordinary farm cat. Firstly, he’s a much adored, affectionate member of his owners’ family, and secondly, he has staged a remarkable recovery from a near fatal mystery incident that led to him losing an eye and being fed through a tube for a week.

Boris’ owners inherited the 5-year-old black moggy with the beef farm that they had taken on a year ago, but he quickly became a much-loved member of the team. So, his owners wanted to do all they could when he was found almost lifeless in a sorry state one morning. He was rushed to the vets for an emergency appointment, almost unrecognisable from the handsome tom he was known to be, due to significant wounds and damage to his head.

Because of the extent of his injuries, swelling and bleeding, it was initially thought that Boris had collided head on with a car. Boris was bleeding from several wounds around his mouth and his head had swollen up resembling a football, whilst his eyes were very bloody and damaged. The first priority was to stabilise him and get him as comfortable as possible with strong pain relief. Then, step by step, the severity of his damage needed to be assessed very carefully, with X-rays and a gentle hands-on examination.

It seemed as though Boris couldn’t see and he could barely breathe due to the swelling around his nose. There was no suggestion of significant damage or fractures elsewhere on his body, but it was too dangerous and high risk to anaesthetise him in order to check his jaw and skull fully in the first 48 hours. Instead, he was hospitalised continuing pain killers, alongside antibiotics, and was intensively assessed for any deterioration.

Two days on from the initial trauma, some of the swelling around his eyes had improved, but he showed no interest in eating and due to the damage around his mouth it wasn’t clear whether it was physically possible for him to. With great care, Boris was anaesthetised successfully allowing the veterinary team to assess his head thoroughly. Surprisingly, an X-ray showed no jaw or skull fractures but there were several wounds around his mouth that needed to be cleaned up. It seemed like both of his eyes were not working correctly and that his right eye was so badly damaged it would need to be removed at a later stage. His claws were not scuffed which did not suggest a car accident, and he had several puncture wounds around his chin that were reminiscent of an animal attack.

Whilst under the anaesthetic and after being cleaned up, it was decided to place a feeding tube for Boris so he could receive nutrition. The swelling around his mouth was still so great that he would probably not feel comfortable to eat for a while yet. A tube was surgically inserted into his oesophagus – the food tube that leads from the mouth to the stomach – and stitched and dressed in place around his neck.

Over the next few days, the swelling around his head receded impressively, he could receive medication as well as food into this tube and this was helping to build up his strength. Once Boris was stable and his owners were happy and confident enough, he was allowed home to be fed through his tube following instruction from the hospital nurse. Boris’ owners took to this task brilliantly, and after a week at home he returned to the practice, much improved, for a check-up. To everyone’s delight he had started eating well and his feeding tube could be removed by the consulting nurse. However, he was still blind and it was evident that his right eye was damaged beyond repair, meaning it would need to be surgically removed.

Boris would need to adapt to be an indoor cat but his owners felt this could be possible, and everyone at the practice agreed as he was no ordinary farm cat – being happy to be kennelled in the cattery for his long period of hospitalisation and showing remarkable affection and acceptance of fuss throughout the traumatic process. The next week, Boris’ eye operation took place and the surgery was a success. He had some post surgical swelling that again transformed his face, but nothing like his initial injuries. After his final surgery and visit to the practice, Boris could put the whole ordeal behind him. It was a mystery how he had got into such a mess, but he was now fully on the mend as a happy, indoor farm cat.