It sounds like a hoax. But vets at the RSPCA animal hospital in Wacol rescued the tomcat – now nicknamed ‘Tipsy’ – from near death with the alcoholic drink, which is the common antidote for the poison.
Tests showed the lucky feline had renal failure with the vets believing he had less than an hour to live when he was found at Lowood in Brisbane.
“It just so happened that one of our nurses had a bottle of vodka laying around, so we were able to administer it just in time,” vet Sarah Kanther told ABC News.
The vodka acts as an antidote because the same enzyme in the cat’s body that metabolised the antifreeze also metabolised the alcohol – allowing the antifreeze time to pass in a less toxic form.
Tipsy is now expected to make a full recovery, but as he was not microchipped, the RSPCA is now looking for his owners otherwise he’ll be put up for adoption.
At least they’ll know he still has eight lives left.
