A BASILDON animal hospital has saved the life of a much-loved cat after carrying out a pioneering and “extremely rare” pacemaker operation.

Alfie, a 12-year-old cat, has had complex surgery at Southfields Veterinary Specialists in Basildon to save its life.

It is the first time the leading referral centre has carried out the procedure on a cat and one of only a handful of such operations performance across the UK each year.

READ MORE >> What's next for Eastgate Shopping Centre? - Residents have their say on plans

Southfields Veterinary Specialists said that while fitting pacemakers in dogs is relatively common, cats present unique challenges as the electrical lead of the lifesaving devices are usually not placed through a vein but must be surgically implanted while the patient is kept alive using an external pacemaker.

Alfie’s grateful owners, John, and Anita Pearson from Southend said: “We were obviously worried as it was a complex procedure but were very relieved, we could give him a second chance thanks to the experts at Southfields. 

“He is now back to being the Alfie we knew, exploring, being very cuddly and purring a lot.”

Alfie was initially referred to Southfields with a suspicion he was having seizures and seen as an emergency out-of-hours case, attended by neurology and internal medicine teams.

Esteban Gonzàlez Gasch, head of soft tissue and orthopaedic surgery, and Jon Wray, clinician in cardiology and internal medicine specialist, both led the successful surgery.

Mr Wray said: “Alfie began collapsing a week before referral, initially getting wobbly and falling to the floor before picking himself up.

“These got worse, culminating in 15 collapsing episodes in one day.

“His uncommon condition, called third degree atrioventricular block, was particularly severe and meant his heart was not able to beat properly for periods of time, leading to little or no blood being pumped to his brain and making him collapse.

“This meant Alfie required a pacemaker as a matter of urgency in order to save his life, as his severe condition could not be treated by medication.

“This is an unusual surgery to perform and the first time this procedure has been carried out at Southfields.

“I am delighted we were able to provide expedient, life-saving treatment for his rare condition with combined expertise of a multidisciplinary team, regardless that he became ill out of hours.

“The operation went well, and Alfie has since returned to Southfields to re-check his pacemaker and he has made an excellent recovery.”