He took them into Pre-op and told Radar to the cat in the coat on the table.
Radar unfolded the coat and the tortie looked up at the three of them but made no move to escape. She seemed quite weak.
"Traumatic amputation of the toes of its left back foot," Hawkeye observed, "Some tearing of the skin and muscle of the same leg and rear torso."
"I wonder what got her," BJ mused.
"I don't know but it had big teeth and claws." Hawkeye answered.
"Can you save her?" Asked Radar.
"I think so, if the blood loss isn't too severe."
"Good," Radar knew Hawkeye couldn't work miracles, he'd seem him lose more than one patient but he knew how hard Hawkeye worked for anyone he had on his table. Hawkeye was the doctor Radar would want to work on him and Hawkeye was the one he wanted working on anyone else he thought deserved saving. Radar definitely thought of the little tortie as an anyone.
BJ and Hawkeye scrubbed and began preparing the cat for surgery, debating the anesthetic.
It occurred to them that the inhaled anesthetic they normally used may not work on a feline, not the least reason being the lack of a cat-sized face mask.
She growled deep in her chest when BJ tried to compare the mask to her muzzle and swiped at him with slow but surprising accuracy. BJ swore and Hawkeye handed him a clean towel to wipe his bleeding hand on.
"I'm sorry, sir, but she's scared." Radar spoke up. He wore a lab coat and was standing at he table stroking her behind her ears and on her neck, murmuring to her.
"Let's sedate her, for everyone's protection," Hawkeye put in. "Do everything to make this as painless as possible."
"Shoulda thought of that before," BJ told him.
"Sir, you're not mad, are you? She didn't mean it, honest," Radar said quickly.
"No I'm not mad. Nasty claws she has. They're probably one of the reasons she's alive."
Radar nodded proudly. Hawkeye suppressed a smile.
Hawkeye sedated her and after some debate and a little experimentation the cat was finally under and Hawkeye began the operation.
He cleaned the wound, and actually had to take a bit more of the foot so there was a clean edge to work with. He closed it, put some stitches in a couple of the more serious gashes and finally bound it neatly and declared himself finished.
"Now what?" Radar asked.
"Well, she needs post-operative care. There's one problem though." Said Hawkeye.
"Can't have a cat in Post-op." BJ supplied.
"Exactly."
"Then what are you going to do with her?" Radar asked worriedly. The cat lay on clean towels, still safely unconscious and Radar was petting her absently.
"You could take care of her."
"I know, and I want to but I don't know how to take care of –" He gestured to the bandages, "- all that."
BJ looked at Hawkeye and this time he was the one who sighed. "He's right. An amputation requires professional care. I guess that settles it."
"What?" Asked Hawkeye and Radar together.
"She's moving in with us."
***
"I'll come and feed and clean up after her every few hours," Radar assured them as they walked across the compound, a crate in Radar's arms containing the cat and enough towels to dry and elephant.
"Okay Radar."
"I promise she'll be good."
"Okay Radar."
"And –" Radar was cut off by a shout from Frank Burns, who had just jumped to his feet from his cot in the tent he shared with BJ and Hawkeye.
"What is that?" He demanded.
"Our houseguest, Frank. Now shut up so you don't disturb her." Hawkeye said with much mock cheerfulness.
"That's a cat!"
"Where?!" BJ and Hawkeye asked quickly.
"It is against regulations to keep a pet in a tent."
"Tent? I thought this was the Ritz-Carlton." Hawkeye spoke up again.
"Relax, Frank," BJ said. "This is an investment in the future. Give this baby a week to cat-nap off the anesthetic and get back on her feet and she'll be making the rats' lives very unpleasant." He smiled jovially. "Remember, they're good at making our lives unpleasant."
"Right, one's making mine unpleasant right now." Hawkeye said.
"Why you –" But something clicked in his embarrassingly small brain and Frank grew thoughtful.
Just yesterday he had found a rat peering at him from inside his boot. If the hairball in the crate could indeed… "All right, it can stay. But keep it quite and out of my space unless it's catching a rat. Understood?"
BJ smiled. Hawkeye looked at him and wondered how he could look so genuinely aw-shucks-it's-your-call-sir when they both knew Frank had Swiss cheese for intelligence. Hawkeye made a mental note to himself to complement BJ's acting ability.
They settled the cat in the space between BJ and Hawkeye's bunks and tucked her in comfortable. "I'll be back to change her towels after mess, okay?" Radar said.
"Sure."
I'm working as quickly as I can on this one, and still have it be good. Thank you all for the nice reviews and I hope it continues to please. I have several torties and I am basing this cat on one of mine, Docie. She's a spitfire and...well, you'll see. :-)