Oscar (bionic cat)
Encyclopedia
Oscar is a cat
, owned by Kate Allan and Mike Nolan, who lives on the Channel Island
of Jersey
. In 2009 Oscar had both hind paws severed by a combine harvester. Since then he has undergone a pioneering operation to add prosthetic feet. The treatment has since been considered for use with humans.
while in a maize field near his home in Jersey. The legs were cut between the ankle and the foot. Oscar was later found by a passing cyclist who then brought Oscar to his owners' home. Mike Nolan, an IT manager in a bank, was at home when the woman brought Oscar; he said that at this point Oscar was covered in blood, and he was convinced the cat would have to be put down
. He and Oscar's other owner, Kate Allan, took him to their local veterinarian
Peter Haworth.
-based neuro-orthopaedic surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick
. There was a lot of communication between the Irish surgeon and the Jersey owners. After looking at x-ray
s and pictures Fitzpatrick decided Oscar would be an ideal patient partly due to his young age. Oscar was then flown to the United Kingdom mainland by air cargo although he had to stay in his box for eight hours during the journey.
's Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Gordon Blunn and colleagues. They have a honeycomb structure which enables skin to bond with the implant to prevent infection. The implants are placed into the drilled holes which then allow for a "sock" to be fitted over them.
The ITAP technology is currently being tested on humans and a prosthetic has been made for a woman injured in the July 2005 London bombings
. Fitzpatrick has said he would welcome a collaborative approach with other surgeons working on human amputations.
is a BBC
documentary following the work of Fitzpatrick which aired on BBC1 on 30 June 2010. The programme showed Oscar walking with prototype feet made for him by engineers at Salford University. Footage not shown on the programme of Oscar with a later set of better-designed feet was uploaded on to YouTube on 18 June 2010.
An update video with the vet involved showed Oscar's new feet and explained how they are designed to snap at a break point on the 'blade' rather than within the foot if he gets into difficulty.
Cat
The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...
, owned by Kate Allan and Mike Nolan, who lives on the Channel Island
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
of Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
. In 2009 Oscar had both hind paws severed by a combine harvester. Since then he has undergone a pioneering operation to add prosthetic feet. The treatment has since been considered for use with humans.
Accident
In October 2009, at the age of two and a half years, Oscar had both the paws of his hind legs severed by a combine harvesterCombine harvester
The combine harvester, or simply combine, is a machine that harvests grain crops. The name derives from the fact that it combines three separate operations, reaping, threshing, and winnowing, into a single process. Among the crops harvested with a combine are wheat, oats, rye, barley, corn ,...
while in a maize field near his home in Jersey. The legs were cut between the ankle and the foot. Oscar was later found by a passing cyclist who then brought Oscar to his owners' home. Mike Nolan, an IT manager in a bank, was at home when the woman brought Oscar; he said that at this point Oscar was covered in blood, and he was convinced the cat would have to be put down
Animal euthanasia
Animal euthanasia is the act of putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, an animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful, disease or condition. Euthanasia methods are designed to cause minimal pain and distress...
. He and Oscar's other owner, Kate Allan, took him to their local veterinarian
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
Peter Haworth.
Initial treatment
Peter Haworth, a vet at the New Era Veterinary Hospital, dressed Oscar's wounds and administered cat painkillers making him comfortable within minutes. Haworth then referred Allan and Nolan to the SurreySurrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
-based neuro-orthopaedic surgeon Noel Fitzpatrick
Noel Fitzpatrick
Noel Fitzpatick is an Irish neuro-orthopaedic veterinary surgeon and a pioneer of bionic development in animals. He currently operates a multi-million pound practice of some 65 employees, named Fitzpatrick Referrals, in Eashing, Surrey, England...
. There was a lot of communication between the Irish surgeon and the Jersey owners. After looking at x-ray
Radiography
Radiography is the use of X-rays to view a non-uniformly composed material such as the human body. By using the physical properties of the ray an image can be developed which displays areas of different density and composition....
s and pictures Fitzpatrick decided Oscar would be an ideal patient partly due to his young age. Oscar was then flown to the United Kingdom mainland by air cargo although he had to stay in his box for eight hours during the journey.
New feet
Oscar's owners did a lot of "soul-searching" before deciding to go ahead with the operation. Kate Allan later said that the cause for her uncertainty was that the kind of operation planned had never been done before. Although the operation carried out by Noel Fitzpatrick was a world first, it mimics a natural process, being similar to the way deer grow antler bones, in the manner that the implants grow through the skin. The implants were both custom-made to fit into holes drilled into Oscar's ankle bones. They are known as intraosseous transcutaneous amputation prosthetics (ITAPs) and were developed by the head of University College LondonUniversity College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
's Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Gordon Blunn and colleagues. They have a honeycomb structure which enables skin to bond with the implant to prevent infection. The implants are placed into the drilled holes which then allow for a "sock" to be fitted over them.
The ITAP technology is currently being tested on humans and a prosthetic has been made for a woman injured in the July 2005 London bombings
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
. Fitzpatrick has said he would welcome a collaborative approach with other surgeons working on human amputations.
The Bionic Vet
The Bionic VetThe Bionic Vet
The Bionic Vet is a BBC documentary television series following the work of vet Noel Fitzpatrick. The show details the Fitzpatrick's multimillion pound revolutionary vet practice in Surrey. The surgery itself contains state of the art equipment and methods including hydrotherapists, radiographers...
is a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
documentary following the work of Fitzpatrick which aired on BBC1 on 30 June 2010. The programme showed Oscar walking with prototype feet made for him by engineers at Salford University. Footage not shown on the programme of Oscar with a later set of better-designed feet was uploaded on to YouTube on 18 June 2010.
An update video with the vet involved showed Oscar's new feet and explained how they are designed to snap at a break point on the 'blade' rather than within the foot if he gets into difficulty.