A cat used up four of their nine lives recently when they fell from the third floor of a tower block, and lived to tell the tale.

The young female cat, called Molly, lived as a house cat on the third floor of a tower block in the Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and had access to a balcony that had netting across to prevent her from escaping. Molly had not been neutered and was in season, which could have been why she was so desperate to get out to find a male. She managed to break through the protection on her owner’s balcony and fell from the building.

Sadly Molly fell from such a high height, as the first floor in the tower block does not start till at least the second level, that she was in a terrible state by the time she was found.

A member of the public, who lives in the tower block, spotted Molly when she was coming into the building with her son. She discovered Molly huddled in a corner by the entrance, looking extremely scared and solemn, with blood coming out of her nose.

The resident did not know Molly or her owners, so fortunately acted quickly and brought Molly into The Mayhew, where our vet team could tend to her. Our team could see straight away that little Molly was clearly in a lot of pain, and could tell that some kind of impact had been inflected as she was so huddled up.

After investigation, our vet team found that poor Molly was in an awful condition; she was unsteady on her hind legs, couldn’t stand on her front left leg and had blood crusted around her nostrils and in her mouth.

Our team gave Molly X-rays and an ultrasound, and discovered that this little cat was mainly suffering from a broken front leg and a fractured pelvis. Molly was put on pain relief, her limbs were bandaged and she was given plenty of love, care and rest to help her get better.

Whilst Molly was recovering, our Animal Welfare Officers got to work to find her owners, by putting up posters in the area near to the tower block where she was found. In the end, it was actually the lady who originally found Molly who managed to track down her owners.

After talking to people in her tower block, the lady found that Molly belonged to someone who also lived in the building. Molly’s owner was an elderly lady who had sadly been hospitalised and had arranged for someone to visit during the day to check up on Molly, feed her and keep her company.

The owner had originally put up the netting and protection to prevent this incident from happening, but somehow she had managed to break through.

Our Animal Welfare Manager, Zoe Edwards, said: “Poor Molly went through an awful ordeal and must have been in a lot of pain after falling from such a great height.”

“We suspect that Molly managed to break through the netting on her balcony because she was in season. When a female cat is in season they are restless and hormonal, and their instincts will make them do everything they can to find a male – which might have been what made Molly so desperate to break through.”

The owner had owned cats all her life and always got them neutered, but had been wrongly advised that she had to wait for Molly to be at least six months before getting her neutered.

Zoe, said: “A female cat can actually get pregnant from as young as 4 months of age, when they are still technically kittens themselves. Unfortunately it’s this common misconception that you need to wait for cats to be older before neutering, which adds to the number of cats who end up on the streets or at our shelter.”

Indoor cats still need to be neutered, as it not only helps with behavioural issues, but accidents can happen, especially when the cat is so desperate to escape, like Molly.

Once the owner had come back from hospital, our Animal Welfare Officers went round to give her an update on Molly. The lady was mortified when she found out what had happened to her pet.

In this particular case, we covered all of the veterinary costs for Molly as her owner was in a crisis situation. At The Mayhew we offer help and support to pet owners who are ill, vulnerable and facing a personal crisis in their life.

The owner was desperate to get her cat back so our Animal Welfare Officers did everything they could to reunite the pair. After recovering at our vet clinic for eight weeks, our Animal Welfare Officers sent Molly back to her owner to continue her recovery. Our team gave the owner lots of advice and free equipment, so Molly could continue her cage rest at her house and recover properly.

Our Animal Welfare Officers continued to check up on Molly to make sure she was getting better and that the owner was getting the support she needed.

Molly’s owner was incredibly grateful for the help and support from our Animal Welfare Officers and Vet Team – and she even made a kind donation as a thank you.

Thankfully Molly is a tough little cat and managed to pull through, making a full recovery. She is now healthy and happy and has gone back to her beloved owner and her home. Our vet team also neutered Molly before she returned, and the owner’s friend has helped her to properly seal off the balcony, so Molly cannot escape again.

We are touched to find out that the lady who found Molly formed a friendship with the owner, and went round to see her and the adventure-seeking moggy often. What a wonderful ending to Molly’s perilous predicament.

Our Animal Welfare Officers rescue and help hundreds of animals in need every year. Find out about their work here and please consider a donation to help them help even more animals, like Molly.

We offer low cost neutering at our community vet clinic; find out more about our services and book an appointment here.
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