Pacquito has a loving home after his long road to recovery following multiple jaw fractures. “He’s doing great and he’s very happy here,” said Lauren, his new mom. “I heard Pacquito was at a municipal shelter before he came to North Shore Animal League America and then I was told what had happened to him and that made me want to take him home even more—knowing he had been through a lot.”
Lauren spotted Pacquito in the cat room of the Adoption Center on Animal League America’s Port Washington, N.Y. campus. Since he was FIV+ he needed to find a home without other cats. “He let me hold him right away and licked my hand when I first met him at Animal League America. I knew he was the one right then and there. I loved him right away,” she said.
Pacquito has settled right into his new home. Lauren bought him a mouse toy that he loves and plays with all the time. He enjoys lying on the couch and is always interested in what’s going on outside the windows. He just loves people and will immediately go over to her friends and family and sit with them. Her dad is one of Pacquito’s favorite people.
“He has the sweetest personality. Pacquito cuddles with me and looks for me every morning. The best decision I ever made was taking him home.”
“The wire from the surgery was removed. The screws are not penetrating through the jaw and into the mouth, so the plate can stay in place,” said Dr. Mark Verdino, Animal League America Senior Vice President and Chief of Veterinary Staff. “There is a mild misalignment of his mouth secondary to his healed fractures, but it’s not causing any discomfort and we don’t anticipate any issues with this.”
Pacquito has become quite a staff favorite as he loves to purr and he’s just so people friendly. This young cat is now available for adoption and looking for a loving, responsible home and a family. Pacquito is FIV+ so it would be best that he is the only cat in the household or he could have a dog friend to keep him company.
If you are interested in giving Pacquito a loving home where he can spend his life as a pampered pet — after his very tough beginning — please e-mail Dorit Shani, Feline Enrichment Manager, at [email protected].
Pacquito’s coat was dirty and disheveled. He’d been surviving for a year on the streets with a little help from the kind people in his Brooklyn neighborhood who were providing him with food. But now he was suffering — a victim of an unknown trauma.
He was brought to the Animal Care Centers (ACC) where veterinarians examined him, as Pacquito purred through the pain. X-rays revealed not one, but two, jaw fractures. The surgical realignment was going to be complicated so they called North Shore Animal League America to ask for assistance. Within minutes, the Rescue Team left to pick up Pacquito and bring him to our Pet Health Centers.
During his initial examination, Dr. Gerard Laheney, Staff Veterinarian, confirmed the ACC’s diagnosis of a broken jaw, prescribed pain medication, and discovered a low-grade heart murmur. “We are going to proceed with the jaw surgery and use a special anesthetic we have for cardiac patients. Time is of the essence with this case,” he said. “We want to get the jaw fracture fixed prior to it setting itself and leaving him with a misaligned jaw.”
Surgery on Pacquito’s first fracture was repaired easily by placing a wire around the jaw. The second fracture was at the back of the jaw near where the bone curves to go up to the skull, and proved to be much more challenging.
“The second fracture was in pieces and very difficult to re-align and stabilize,” comments Dr. Mark Verdino, Senior Vice President, Chief of Veterinary Staff at Animal League America’s Pet Health Centers, who performed the surgery. “We were able to get a small plate and screws across the fracture and it should heal. However, even with the jaw now stabilized, it is slightly off kilter.” The veterinarians do not feel that this will affect his overall quality of life.
Today, Pacquito is recovering well and has begun eating soft, wet food on his own. He will need many more weeks of recovery before the veterinarians can order another set of x-rays to see how the fractures are healing.
Pacquito has a long way to go on his journey. But even though his jaw was broken, his spirit never waned. With a donation to our Rescue Fund, your support can make all the difference for animals like Pacquito who have been struggling and living on the edge.