Our Community

Our one-year anniversary passed a couple of weeks ago but we couldn’t possibly wrap-up the celebrations without Colin! Colin was the very first patient we treated at the hospital. He visited Simone, our Dentistry Diplomate, for investigation in to his swollen gums and fractured tooth. A year later since his procedures, we spoke with Colin’s carers to see how he was getting on…

“Colin is a super playful cat with some pretty incredible ninja-like skills. He really likes to play with anything and everything on the floor. In our house, if we drop something on the floor we have to expect Colin will want to play with it.  We still believe he may actually be half dog as he enjoys his own version of fetch. He also meows when he hears someone at the front door. When I get home from work he hears my car on the drive and seems to be waiting at the door for me to stroke his tummy. But when he sleeps, he needs his space. He isn’t one of those cats who will sleep in a box or tucked into a small space, he full on spreads out; he starts as a little cat loaf and ends up as a cat draft excluder (see picture below).

Colin’s draft excluder-style sleeping position.

When Colin came to The Ralph he was only 1 year old. So he was relatively young, and since he had his operations on his tooth he has continued to grow into the cat of the house. Whereas before he was almost certainly scared of his own shadow… and anything that made a noise. So we didn’t see him when hoovering, using the hairdryer or even an electric toothbrush. But now he’s only scared of the hoover, although he will occasionally try a little surprise pounce attack onto it if he is under the dining room table.

Our vet advised us we would need to bring Colin to The Ralph, and she is the person we trust the most when it comes to Colin’s health. When we found out he was the first patient to be seen at The Ralph, I knew we’d get amazing treatment because everyone there knew who he was and was excited to have him there. I have the utmost confidence this is still the case with the animals that come in now. It was so nice to see all the staff at reception excited to see Colin, and the same was true of our second visit a couple of weeks later.  The team were also super understanding of the fact I didn’t live in Marlow and so travelling from London would take time. The team allowed me some leeway on the collection time to ensure I could get Colin without rushing.

Colin at home a year since his treatment.

The biggest reflection my wife and I have had in the last year with Colin is, we do not know what we would do without him.  For us, the visits to the vets and also the costs of the treatments make us so grateful we got the best insurance we could afford. We both know we’d have paid any amount of money to make sure Colin was in good health but it is so comforting to know The Ralph and our insurers just sorted it out for us without us having to worry about paperwork.” – Colin’s carers

Thank you for reading playful Colin’s story. Stay tuned for more stories and news from the hospital.

Take care,

Team Ralph