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Midnight’s Story

*Warning: Graphic photos included in this article*

Midnight was tragically caught in a house fire in the summer of 2020 and suffered severe burns to her face and body. She was rescued by the fire brigade, who took Midnight to a local veterinary practice for emergency treatment.

Midnight at the local veterinary practice after the fire.

Once Midnight’s condition had stabilised, the RSPCA team in East Berkshire were contacted to support with her ongoing care and wellbeing. It was a real community effort to treat Midnight’s burns, with three local practices and the RSPCA East Berkshire pulling together. Thanks to their dedication and hard work, Midnight made remarkable progress, but there were growing concerns about her right eye which appeared red and hazy. 

Midnight was seen by our Ophthalmology team, who assessed her carefully. Midnight was unable to fully close all her four eyelids because of the severity of the burns. The skin on her forehead had scarred very badly, pulling the eyelid skin upwards and making it immobile. Just like human eyes, when the eyelids cannot close the surface of the eye becomes dry and susceptible to damage. The damage to the eyelid skin was severe on both sides but slightly worse on the right side.  

Midnight needed surgery to release some of the scar tissue and improve the eyelid function. Burn injuries cause the skin to contract and it is best to wait until the healing process has finished before performing surgery. So, the surgery was scheduled two months later. During that time, Midnight’s eyes were protected with lubricant eye creams. 

Midnight after the first surgery on her left eye.

Midnight underwent three surgeries over the course of two months; the first surgery was on her right eye, the second was on her left eye, and the third was to make some minor adjustments. Skin grafts were used to restore Midnight’s eyelids so they could close fully. 

At the time of writing, five months after her last surgery, Midnight is doing amazingly well. Her eyelids have healed well, and she is able to blink again. Midnight no longer needs any eye lubricants.

Midnight roaming her new garden.

At Midnight’s last check-up Heidi, Head of Ophthalmology, commented “I am overall very pleased with Midnight’s progress – she has certainly been through a lot! She has gained weight, has an improved coat condition, and seemed generally more settled and comfortable”. And to top it all off Midnight has found a forever home with Lauren, who is the veterinary nurse from the local practice who cared for her in the very beginning – pure bliss! 

2 replies to “Midnight’s Story”

  1. Sandra Hancock says:

    Well done to all of you. It proved what can be done with time patients and most of all, LOVE and the right treatments

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