Jeduu and his twin Jedi were born after their homeless, hungry and mangy stray mother showed up at Aimi and her husband’s home.
Unaware at the time that this stray was pregnant, the couple accepted the kittens all the same when they were born. Due to the distinct markings on their forehead, Aimi’s husband declared the two ginger-coloured kittens ‘Jeddi-related’ and gave them appropriate Star Wars-derived names.
“Jedi was healthy and strong and a great tumbling bundle of fur; he and Jeduu wrestled often and were rather entertaining to watch when they weren’t breaking things, toppling jars and scattering sheets of paper all over the place,” Aimi says.
However, this picture of bliss was shattered when she noticed some changes in Jedi when he was about two years old.
“He became morose and refused food. I then noticed that he was straining at the litter box. After many trips to the vet, Jedi unfortunately died of kidney failure,” Aimi says.
Jeduu however grew up healthy and strong as he ate heartily – at least until he too had a brush with death.
“One morning about eight years ago, I notice he had difficulty breathing. He also looked distressed and in discomfort. His abdomen had sunken like he had suddenly gone slim,” Aime says, adding that she rushed him to a nearby government vet.
A thorough examination revealed that Jeduu had likely been hit by a car and had ruptured his diaphragm.
“Her diagnosis was ‘traumatic diaphragmatic hernia’. That rupture in the diaphragm had caused the organs in his abdomen – intestines, liver, stomach – to be pushed into his chest cavity, pressing on his lungs and causing difficulty in breathing,” Aimi says.
She was advised to rush Jeduu to the veterinary hospital in UPM, Serdang as they had the right expertise and facilities to operate on him immediately.
But there was another option. A colleague’s wife, who was a veterinarian recommended a clinic in Petaling Jaya that could do the complicated surgery.
According to Aimi, the surgery would entail temporarily stopping Jeduu’s lung function so the errant organs could be repositioned and the diaphragm repaired.
“What about the breathing? Well, while the good doctor is doing her job of relocating and stitching, the lungs had to be manually hand-pumped to maintain air circulation,” Aimi explains, adding that despite the high surgery costs, she was desperate to save Jeduu.
Jeduu was hospitalised until he was stable. “But what a great relief it was for me to see him healthy and with his podgy abdomen again after a week.”
Aimi says, “Jeduu is the biggest and heaviest cat in my motley brood. He’s around 10 kgs. He’s not a fussy cat and eats almost everything I give him.
He has also found a new soulmate – an unrelated older sister named Ning Ning, a derivative for Kuning, the Malay word for yellow.
“When he comes home from his walkabouts, they sit together and groom each other. They love each other and often share a chair for cat naps,” Aimi says.
“He is such a gentleman, ambling along, waiting patiently for his food, and only meowing softly and politely when he’s hungry.
“He makes me feel good that I chose to save him despite how much his surgery cost,” says Aimi.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PET: FMT Lifestyle readers are invited to send in pictures (landscape format) and a short video (if any) of their furry, scaly or feathery friends to [email protected]. Don’t forget to include details like your pet’s name, age, breed and a short story about them.