Corky is a cat who was born with bilateral arthrogryposis, meaning his rear legs were twisted around backwards. He was scheduled to be euthanized in Fargo, North Dakota, when Amber Schaffer and Carol Stefonek of Cats Cradle Shelter stepped in.
They took him immediately to get radiographs to see what they were dealing with and realized they needed to operate right away. They called around to a “couple different vets and they didn’t want to touch him,” said Ventzke. They took him to the Casselton Veterinary Service where Dr. Dan Burchill agreed to operate on the 8-month-old kitten.
Unaware of his condition, Corky was a “happy, healthy, engaging, fun cat who dragged his back legs around,” said Burchill.
After considering all options, like amputating him and putting him in a wheel chair, Burchill determined he would be able to surgically fix his legs.
A rare disease in cats, the condition was more common in cattle, said Burchill. After practicing for 17 years, he had performed the surgery before on dogs, but never cats.
“Dr.Burchill is our hero…he customized the surgery for Corky,” said Ventzke.
The surgery was complicated, but successful. Corky is now learning to walk with daily physical therapy. Link -via Arbroath, where you can see videos of Corky.
(Image credit: Cats Cradle Shelter)