Last week, Rufus had a fall. No one knows where from, but a fall it was.

I received the call early on Sunday morning from his worried owners, asking if I would go to their house because their cat had returned home bleeding from the mouth and nose, in a state of panic, and there was no way they could get him into his cat box.

Rufus is a large, seven-year-old, black and white, neutered, male cat. Not the cuddly type – more of an aloof, at arm’s length type of cat. He had returned home extremely distressed, spluttering blood everywhere and would not be consoled.

His owners concluded he had been in a fight. Apparently, this was not unusual for him, but they thought this time he had fared rather more badly than his opponent. With the help of a towel wrapped around his body to keep his claws firmly in check, I managed to examine the source of the bleed. It was clear from his injuries that Rufus had suffered a fall.

Cats have a heightened sense of balance. They feel perfectly at ease walking along very high and narrow ledges. Age, weight, agility, mobility – all these factors contribute to cats’ ability to survive the odd mishap.

While most cats survive a fall, some do not make it, due to severe internal chest injuries

However, it is not unknown for even the most thrill-seeking cat to occasionally lose its balance and fall. Rufus is big, but not plump, cat with several years of experience roaming the treacherous heights of the multi-level apartment complex where he lives.

We will never know why and where he fell from. It could be that he had a spat with a rival tomcat and was pushed off, or some passing prey was just that much out of reach, or he had simply dozed off while basking in the morning sun and fell off his perch.

Cats’ sense of balance gives them the incredible ability of righting themselves mid-fall so that they land on all fours. This is known as the cat-righting reflex and is already well-developed in kittens as young as two months.

When cats fall, this reflex springs into action: first the head straightens itself out, based on information from the eyes and inner ears, the limbs realign themselves and, at the same time, the spine arches in preparation for the impact. If the height is long enough, it will even give the cat time to relax its muscles to create that perfect landing.

After a fall, there are some typical injuries. It is the face that receives the first impact, with trauma to the nose and upper lip, followed by a sudden compression to the skull, in particular to the roof of the mouth, known as the palate, which can separate at its natural seam.

This separation can sometimes be wide enough that the cat needs immediate surgery, as the resulting opening between the oral and nasal cavity would make it impossible for the cat to eat without problems.

When the trauma is more severe, the upper jaw, or maxilla, can suffer a fracture. An even worse scenario occurs when the cat’s elbows are not able to cushion the fall, resulting in bone fractures close to these joints. And, while most cats survive a fall, some do not make it, for example, due to severe internal chest injuries.

Well, Rufus was lucky. His breathing was regular, his chest was clear, he had no broken bones, his maxilla was bruised but not broken and the palate was barely separated: all injuries that medical treatment and monitoring, a few weeks off the heights and a lot of tender loving care by his owners should take care of.

I wonder, however, whether Rufus will let me get so close when he is fully recovered.

thisweekwiththevet@gmail.com

Dr Martin Debattista is a veterinary surgeon.