SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – A California cat named Vanilla Bean with a congenital heart defect got a rare chance at another life.
A team of doctors who usually treat humans came together with a veterinarian to operate on the 1-year-old Burmese cat. Blood was pooling in Vanilla Bean’s heart, causing a chamber to grow larger. The defect is also found in children.
The Sacramento Bee reports that a technique to correct the problem in a cat had reportedly been done only once before, by UC Davis Veterinarian Josh Stern — the same vet who operated on Vanilla Bean.
Stern teamed up with cardiologists from the UC Davis Medical Center and successfully put catheters and balloons inside Vanilla Bean’s heart.
The vet expects the cat to make a complete recovery.