(first time poster here, so hello to everyone!)

I came home from work on Thursday to find my cat limping. We went to
the vet on Saturday and she appears to have injured her cruciate
ligament on her left rear leg. The doctor recommended surgery and it is
scheduled for Friday. Has anyone else been in this situation?

Ethel is a large (19 lb), overweight, almost 8 year old, spayed DSH
female. The charge for the surgery is ~US$900. I called my former vet
and they said they charge at least ~US$1500. Does this sound
reasonable? I'm in the Chicagoland area, so prices are generally higher
around here.

I'm mostly concerned about her recovery period. Most of the information
that I have found online is canine-specific with only a brief mention
of the injury in cats. I'd like to hear anyone's first-hand experience
with this surgery. I'm pretty sure she's going to be an angry cat for a
while afterwards.

I'm going to keep her confined to our guest bedroom (my husband will
sleep in there with her at night to keep her company) after the
surgery. This will be to keep her from injuring herself more since our
townhouse is all stairs, as well as keeping her and my toddler
seperated. She certainly doesn't need him causing her more stress right
now. Any other suggestions on how to make the recovery as comfortable
as possible for her?

Thanks,
Manda (and furbabies Ethel and Brodie)