Animal rescue seeks help for cat born with no hips: ‘Not seen a case quite like it’

A UK animal rescue has crowdsourced over $6,000 to pay for vet bills for a kitten born with no hips — a condition so unusual that vets have “not seen a case quite like it.”

Severn Valley Rescue, a nonprofit animal rescue in Shropshire, England has raised thousands of dollars to fund surgery for “Phoebe,” a 7-month-old kitten born without hip joints.

The little black cat “was born with an extremely rare condition where she is missing her hip joints and her legs joints are hyperextended — making it appear as though her back legs are on the wrong way round!” the rescue’s founder Amanda Ball wrote.

“Phoebe” was handed over to the animal rescue when her owner could not afford to take her to the vet to receive much-needed treatment, according to a GoFundMe.

The rescue said it would cost at least £3,000 ($3,821.46) for X-rays, CT scans and an orthopedic consult, though additional funding will likely be needed once they begin operating.

“We are hoping to raise enough money to get the surgical team at Southwater Vets in Telford to x-ray, scan and operate and hopefully get this beautiful little creature back on all four feet again,” Ball wrote.

The happy little cat “purrs all the time,” the nonprofit wrote on Facebook Monday.

“You stroke her — she purrs. You pick her up — she purrs, you smile at her — she purrs…. she’s a noisy little engine of fuzz. We just adore her.”

Despite her unusual condition, “Phoebe” is in no pain, the animal rescue wrote on social media.

“We want to stress — she is not in any pain, so putting her to sleep is not something we will consider. We do however want to improve her quality of life if we can,” the rescue wrote on the fundraiser.

While the team at Southwater Vets, who are providing “Phoebe” treatment, said they had not seen a case like this, they are working hard to find a solution.

“The amazing team at Southwater Vets have not seen a case quite like it, but they are determined to find a solution and they are working incredibly hard to find a way forward,” Ball wrote.

As of Tuesday morning, the fundraiser had raised £5,010 ($6,382.24) of £5,000 goal.

The team hopes to get “Phoebe” moving along “full speed ahead.”