THINGS GOT A BIT HAIRY BUT... I’M FELINE OK NOW
IT could have been a catastrophe, but Manace the moggy has somehow survived a 45-minute cold-water cycle in a washing machine. Owner Jacqui Wood feared the worst when she dragged Manace out, but revived him with a hair dryer.
FOR 18 years he’s been the cat who got the cream, but yesterday Manace the moggy became the cat who got the clean.
The feckless feline was left in a spin after sneaking into a front loader washing machine and going through a 45-minute cold water cycle.
Owner Jacqui Wood of Currumbin Valley said she had initially checked the empty washing machine before popping a load of towels in.
“I didn’t have any powder and went to get some from the pantry,” she said, adding she then placed the powder in and closed the door without rechecking the load.
“It was a brain-fart I suppose ... I always check the dryer and washing machine before I put something in. He didn’t make a sound.”
Forty-five minutes later, Ms Wood returned to find Manace unconscious on top of the towels.
“I pulled him out and put the hair dryer on him because he was cold,” she said.
“When I put it on him, he opened his eyes so I knew he was alive. I threw him in the car and rushed him to the vet.
“He gave me a hell of a fright.”
The tough kitty also gave a fright to veterinary staff, who battled for four hours to save him.
Tallebudgera Veterinary Clinic practice manager Sue Evans said Manace was a “miracle kitty.”
“He was in severe shock and hypothermic,” she said.
“They had to treat him as urgent and give an immediate medical response.
“It was difficult to get a vein even, he had no blood pressure. Everybody was in tears when he came in.
“It was touch and go for a while, but he came out fighting.”
Ms Evans said the practice tended to see odd things happen over and over again, but had never come across a cat surviving a full cycle in a washing machine.
She said while the incident was traumatic for everyone involved, Manace was now “the cleanest kitty in town.”
Ms Evans said the incident served as a reminder to cat owners to always check washing machines and dryers before setting a cycle.
Ms Wood said she was indebted to the veterinary team who managed to save her pet.
She said Manace was at the clinic from 11am in the morning until 7pm at night when they allowed him to go home.
“They checked his lungs were still okay,” she said, adding he also received a pain patch.
“He has a lot of muscle damage. How he didn’t have any broken bones I don’t know.
“Towels aren’t light when they’re wet and he would have been smashed around.
“He’s a possum fighter and rat killer, a farm cat you see.”
Manace is still recovering and will head back to the vet on Friday for another check-up.