[FEEL-GOOD-FRIDAY] Post-fire care spices Pepper up
AN eight-week-old kitten - saved from a burning house on the North Coast by firemen last week - may be down one of his nine lives but he's in with a fighting chance, following the intervention of caring paramedics.
Pepper the kitten was rescued after he had been closed inside a bedroom, and showed signs of distress following excessive smoke inhalation. Luckily, Netcare 911 paramedics, Shaun Paul, Kelsey Shone, Isaac Pillay and Colin Krishnalall were in attendance at the scene, and noticing the state of the soot-covered kitten, came to his aid.
“Pepper was very lethargic and finding it difficult to walk. His eyes were rolling into the back of his head and he had clearly inhaled a lot of smoke. We gave him some oxygen and ensured he stayed warm in order to stabilise him,” says Shaun Paul, operations manager of the Netcare 911 base at Netcare Alberlito Hospital.
Some members of the team took little Pepper to the local vet in Upper Tongaat, who said that he would need intensive physiotherapy on his legs over the next few weeks and would probably never fully recover.
However, the diagnosis did not deter volunteer Netcare 911 paramedic Kelsey Shone, who has been giving Pepper regular physiotherapy on his legs over the past few days. As a result, Pepper is already improving. Kelsey has committed to caring for the lucky feline until his owners are ready to look after him again.
“It’s amazing that Pepper survived the fire, because the house was totally destroyed,” noted Paul. “He is friendly and full of life, in spite of his traumatic experience. The vet is happy with his progress and is impressed with Kelsey’s dedication to the little kitten.”
