'It was torture for both of us,' Regina woman has to drive cat to Saskatoon for emergency vet care
CBC
A Regina woman whose cat needed emergency medical care had to drive all the way to Saskatoon, because her local 24-hour clinic was closed due to veterinary shortages across then country.
Joelle Hydaman said her cat Chanel went from being perfectly healthy to the complete opposite within seconds on the evening of May 16.
"There was no lead up," Hydaman said. "I went downstairs I found her rolling around in pain and crying.… She was completely paralyzed in her back legs and in excruciating pain."
Hydaman began calling vet clinics across the city. Most were already closed and directed her to 24 HR Animal Care Centre, Regina's only 24 hour veterinary clinic, but she found it was also closed.
Since Oct. 3, 2022, 24 HR Animal Care Centre has had a notice on its website stating there would be service disruptions due to staff shortages.
"It was a split second thing that happened that required emergency care and they weren't there," said Hydaman
After many more phone calls, she found that the best option for care was in Saskatoon.
"It was very hard to believe that my closest option was two and a half hours away, but I got in the car and I started driving because I wanted to at least be on the road. I didn't want to sit around and wait any longer," said Hydaman.
"[Chanel] was crying out the entire time and it was torture. It was torture for both of us."
After they arrived at the University of Saskatchewan's Veterinary Medical Centre, Chanel was diagnosed with thrombosis — a blood clot had blocked a main artery, restricting blood flow to her back legs and leaving her paralyzed. Hydaman was also told that Chanel had begun to go into heart failure, most likely because of the long drive.
"I had a pretty good understanding that this wasn't going to end well for her," she said.
The vets told Hydaman they could try surgery, but there was a good chance Chanel would relapse and may not have had the same quality of life.
Hydaman opted for euthanasia to end Chanel's suffering.
"When they brought her in and gave me a chance to kind of say goodbye, she was purring," said Hydaman.