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Oregon, United States
loves: you win if you guessed "pets" and "museums". Also books, art history, travel, British punk, Korean kimchi, bindis, martinis, and other things TBD. I will always make it very clear if a post is sponsored in any way. Drop me a line at thepetmuseum AT gmail.com !

Monday, June 27, 2011

cats: a medical application (?)

The King's County Proceedings cites a case in which a feline was felt by feelin' when nothing else could be felt: Lewis Webb, of Georgia, has had both motor and sensor paralysis of legs and feet for many years. The members are dead to all feeling, with the exception of that of the contact of feline. He can drive a knife into his foot without sensation (What the - ? Curator), but the slightest touch of a cat, even if he (Mr. Webb, not the cat) has stockings on, and is blindfolded, is instantly felt. The contact sends prickly sensations all through the foot. Here is comfort for old maids, and an excuse for their pets: there are chords, in the human foot, at least, which only a cat can touch.

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From Michigan Medical News (John Jolliffe Mulheron, ed.), vol. 1 (Detroit, Michigan: J.J. Mulheron, 1878), p. 262. Pretty nice wry sense of humor at play here, but I wonder if similar cases have ever been recorded.

2 comments:

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

Well, if my cat would just stop walking on my face while I am trying to sleep...I'd be happy, hahameow!

parlance said...

Okay - who got him to test the knife thing on his foot????

I watched a show on tv last night about the amazing things we don't know about the human body and brain.

This seems as if it would have fitted in the show.