A heroic West Lothian cat has been honoured with an award after he managed to escape death three times following his life as a stray.
Adorable Meatball was awarded the Hugo's Hero Award by the Westport Veterinary Clinic this week after he managed to survive a host of traumatic events.
Launched in 2022, the award was set up in memory of local dog Hugo, who saved the life of his owner Brian after he fell face down into a freezing canal.
Following in Hugo's footsteps, Meatball has been praised by the clinic after having a rough start in life as an abandoned stray, only to be hit by a car just a few months later.
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Taken in by the Kershaw family, owners Clare, Daniel and their children had taken in the "handsome boy" after he continued to appear at their house for food.
Clearly mistreated by a previous owner, the family had worked with Meatball for weeks to get him to warm to them, offering him a safe new home.
Daniel said: "Gradually, we groomed him, wormed him, de-flead him and cared for him until his eyes burned bright once more. Whilst still displaying some feral traits, he became a regular in our home and our children and ourselves would treat him like a beloved family pet whenever he chose to visit us."
Managing to evade starvation thanks to the kindness of the Kershaw family, Meatball was only just getting settled in when he was tragically struck by a car.
Requiring emergency surgery, the poor cat was forced to have one of his legs amputated after his pelvis was fractured.
Daniel added: "Sadly one day, Meatball dragged himself through our cat flap using only his front paws after being hit by a car. His back legs were in a bad way and he was crying out in pain asking for our help. He had come “home” to us because he had no one else to turn to in his time of need.
"I rushed home from work and took him straight to the vets. We were told that he had a fractured pelvis and would also need one of his legs amputated immediately with a 50/50 chance of survival. Although it was very expensive, we agreed to personally fund the operation, as the only alternative was to put him to sleep and no way were we going to let that happen to Meatball.”
Recovering from the surgery, Meatball had then seen a series of complications from his accident, which meant he was unable to pass urine.
With the vets explaining that he would need to be in their constant care, the family launched a fundraising page to pay for his medical bills in order to keep him alive.
However, despite weeks on medication attached to a catheter at the clinic, there had been no improvements, with the family told he would need to be put down.
Devastated at the news, Meatball was brought home for one last night with the family when they were shocked to see he was finally able to pass urine again, a sudden twist that saw him evade death a third time.
Daniel said: “With his final vet’s appointment looming in two hours and with a very heavy heart I went to fetch the shed key, in order to dig a grave in the garden. Just as I opened the drawer, I noticed out of the corner of my eye that he had climbed onto his cat litter and then to my absolute astonishment and delight he proceeded to do the biggest pee I have ever known a cat to do!
"We couldn’t believe it, our family had experienced a roller coaster of emotions over the previous month and he had kept us in suspense until the very end. When we announced the amazing news, all of Meatballs fans on the internet went wild! The vet’s appointment to put him to sleep turned into a routine check-up and we were able to bring him home afterwards to his forever home. Meatball’s story had gotten the happy ending it truly deserved.”
Proudly presenting the cat with their new hero award, Westport Clinic added:
“Meatball is an incredible cat who has beaten all odds in survival. He has brought, and still continues to bring, so much happiness. A real symbol of hope and a wonderful example of what kindness and love can do when life can feel impossible, in the most difficult of times. A true hero."
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