Vets

It feels like a month's worth of time has passed over the last 10 days since Tater Tot first fell ill. Between sleepless nights, emails to colleagues, calls and visits to Vets; we teased out a possible answer to what has been ailing our little foster kitten.

Tater has Coccidia, Tapeworm and a bad Upper Respiratory Tract Infection (and maybe pneumonia). Three days after we began treatment, Tater's temperature dropped and by day four, his temperature was within a normal range.

©2012 Maria S. Tater on the way to the Vet yesterday.

On day four of treatment, Tater began to eat on his own. By day five, Tater gained back some of the weight he lost.

We brought Tater back to the Vet for a re-check and to discuss what sort of testing we should consider doing. We have a suspicion Tater has Bartonella, which is now called Mycoplasma haemofelis ("feline infectious anemia").

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson & Maria S. Tater's Tale. Tissue Warning.

The Vet didn't feel we needed to do tests just yet, but to continue with treatment though she did agree to change Tater's antibiotic to Doxycycline which would fend off the Bartonella, if that's what he's been battling. There are no conclusive tests that will tell us more than just levels of exposure to the Coronavirus if he has FIP or if he has Bartonella.

For now she wants to stay the course and see how he does. Tater is NOT out of the woods, BUT he is also NOT close to death as he was just one week ago today. It will be a long road to recovery, if we are lucky enough to get him healthy. I know for certain that Maria and I are dedicated to his well being and that he should enjoy a happy future.

I asked the Vet if we could take FIP off the table and she said, YES based on a number of clinical factors.

I know we have a long way to go, but for now we can rejoice that Tater is with us—hopefully for a long time to come. We've learned a lot about FIP and perhaps what is NOT FIP. Nothing is certain, but in time all this will make sense.

Tater Tot's life hangs in the balance. Since I first broke the news a few days ago that Tater may have FIP, his foster mom Maria and I have been working around the clock trying to find out if this diagnosis is accurate. Because he may have FIP, we have more questions than answers. It seems every moment something changes and throws us into a tailspin of fear that this IS FIP. It really IS.

OR IS IT?

©2012 Maria S. As we found Tater, laying on the pavement, sick and flea infested a few weeks ago.

I flat out don't know. This is the first case of FIP I've ever encountered (again, IF that's what is ailing Tater). I feared Tater was going to die a few days ago, but it's Thursday and he's still with us.I just found out if he has FIP he can live for a few MONTHS like this so any hope I had of it not being the wet form of FIP is dashed again. I feel like I'm losing my mind trying to sort this all out.

©2012 Maria S. Tater this morning.

Tater had a fever as early as Sunday or possibly before that, but Maria only started to check his temperature when he showed physical signs of not feeling well. From Sunday to yesterday morning his temperature ranged from 103.4°F to 104°F. Yesterday morning his fever broke and his temp. fell to 101.5°F and today it is a normal 101°F.

So NO fever for over 24 hours. Does that mean this is not FIP?

Tater hasn't eaten for a few days. His sinuses are stuffed up. He can't smell. He walks over to his food and looks at it-so he's interested in eating, but Maria has to syringe feed him. He didn't move his bowels for two days. Today he finally started doing that again, but it's a bit soft.

We discovered that Tater has Tapeworms AND Coccidia so he was de-wormed on Tuesday. [note: we have de-wormed him twice since rescue, but our dewormer doesn't work on tapeworms or coccidia]

Tater is on clavamox since his lungs sounded crackly. I know it can cause tummy upset so we have yet another call into the Vet to find out if we should change course or give him a minute amount of Pepcid to settle his belly after his meds?

©2012 Maria S. Unable to share his space with his sister, Tater's only comfort is knowing she's nearby.

The problem is we just don't have enough information to make certain we're doing the right thing for Tater. Maria has barely slept. She moved a cot into the foster room with Tater so she can keep an eye on him and continue giving him his medications throughout the night. She can't keep doing this. I'm lucky she's off work this week. I don't know what we'll do next week when she has to return to work.

©2012 Maria S.Tater on Tuesday morning and today (right)

Tater still purrs. Maria watched him as he licked his paw, then rubbed it against his face. That he is grooming himself is another check that goes under the column of “Maybe NOT FIP?”

We MUST do more tests. Nothing is definitive, but getting more information will help us possibly rule FIP out. Tater needs a complete blood workup done and we need to sample his abdominal fluid and check serum protein levels.

Between the emergency Vet visits for Opal's kittens and the daily Vet visits and medications for Tater, then more for Choco, ChiChi, Coco and Latte, most of the funds we just raised are getting depleted quickly. We don't get much discount on blood work so it will cost at least $500.00 to do the tests (I added more to the ChipIn because I fear we may end up needing to do more.). If we don't do the tests, we can't give Tater the appropriate care he needs. It would also be heartless to ignore that it would help Maria be able to handle what may yet come to pass if she can understand better what is wrong with Tater instead of playing a frustrating guessing game.

If everyone bands together to help Tater by providing a small donation, then it would really add up to making it possible for us to get additional Vet care for this sweet little guy.

If you can help Tater, please use the ChipIn widget, below.

©2012 Maria S. Tater would thank you for your help but he needs to rest so he can get better.

Your donation is TAX-DEDUCTIBLE as my rescue, Kitten Associates is a 501©3 Non-Profit Cat Rescue.

If you'd prefer to send a check, please make it out to: Kitten Associates and please note on the check the funds should go to "Tater Tot" mail it to:

Kitten Associates
P.O. Box 354
Newtown, CT 06470-0354

Any funds not used for the care of this family will go into our General Fund.

©2012 Maria S. We just want our sweet boy back to his old self. This is Tater a few hours after we started treatment.

If you can't make a donation, you can help us by getting the word out. Every dollar helps and every Re-tweet or FB Share does, too. THANK YOU for caring about Tater Tot!

When we rescued Tater on June 15th, he’d been very frail. He was already flea covered and underweight and battling an upper respiratory infection. After a bath and good food, some eye meds, he began to perk up. A few days later, we took in his sister, Latte and the two of them stayed together in Maria’s home.

©2012 Maria S. Tater waiting to see the Vet.

Being concerned about FIP, Maria moved Latte into a separate cage. I told her to take Tater to the Vet right away. I didn’t know must about FIP, but I knew it was fatal and I knew diagnosing it isn’t clear cut, either.

Since Sunday morning, Maria and I have been working non-stop. I’m doing research, trying to understand what to do, what to test for, if there’s new research, anything we can do to save Tater’s life. We just lost two kittens! My rescue group is small. We shouldn’t be seeing so much loss, let alone FIP! I know a few others who have never seen it who have been in rescue longer than I have.

©2012 Maria S. Sunday before his Vet visit.

E-mails poured in, comments on Facebook were all supporting Tater and Maria, saying prayers, wishing us all well, sharing their stories of losing kittens to this unforgiving disease. I hated to keep loading up the bad news. I know it takes a toll on readers, but I can’t lie and pretend everything is ok. From the get-go this has been an unvarnished look a life doing cat rescue. It’s a very gut-wrenching thing to write about. I want my happy stories back. I want my miracle-rescues! I don’t know if I can take this pressure after just having lost two kittens.

I’m not going to go into a long description of what FIP is other than to say there are two mains forms of it: “Wet” and “Dry.” One is basically an immune reaction that causes an accumulation of fluid in the belly (wet), though there are more symptoms that I've listed. The other one is neurological in nature (dry). There is no cure. It’s fatal. There are whisperings of advancements in the treatment or cure of FIP, but so far the only hope is one study says they saved 20% of a small number of FIP cats who had the dry form. Steve Dale covered this story using Polyprenyl Immunostimulant. You can read more about it HERE

©2012 Maria S. Back home eating normally.

Some say that if FIP occurred in puppies this would have been cured 20 years ago. Cats have been “second class” animals for far too long.I’m glad that UCDavis is doing a major study and Vets like Dr. Dianne Addie, among others, have been working tirelessly to come up with a cure. /

So where does this leave Tater?

Tater is a sweet, lovely little boy. The Vet felt that he did have FIP but there are no clear diagnostics. Tater’s belly is full of fluid-so much so that an xray couldn’t even see his organs through the liquid. The liquid was slightly tacky-another indicator. We were going to run a titer, but after doing more reading, it was clear we didn’t have time for the results and it wouldn’t really tell us anything. We could run a test on the protein levels in the fluid and that would be a better indicator, but what is the point? Tater’s got a fever, runny eyes and fluid filled abdomen. I couldn’t get a clear answer on what ELSE it might be and I’m not sure other than heart issues, if there would be anything else it could be.

There is an urgent need to figure out what to do next and again, I don’t have many answers. I must help Maria, who has to face the difficult question of having to help Tater pass away when he gets too sick. In the meantime I want to move Heaven & Earth and find that needle in the haystack.

It doesn’t hurt to try alternative therapies as long as Tater is not suffering badly. I found out about a rescuer who is using a different method, who swears she is having success turning kittens around who have FIP. That she has one kitten in her office who is running around, doing fine.

©2012 Maria S. Tater playing less than 24 hours ago.

Yes, I know. I don’t know her but a trusted friend put me in touch with this person. I know it’s not traditional western medicine, it’s eastern medicine which is based on 4000 years of study. I can’t disregard that and I’ve had success using different treatments for upper respiratory and skin ailments. And if it doesn’t work, Tater dies. Tater is going to die, anyway, so I want to try.

The problem is getting the medicine to Maria in time. It will arrive tomorrow at some point. Tater has been to the Vet again today. I asked them to remove some fluid from his abdomen to buy us time. They only got about 1cc out of him-not nearly enough to make a difference.

After another endless number of texts, calls and e-mails, Maria opted to take Tater home. If he continues to be uncomfortable, she’ll bring him back to the vet to get a shot of Depo (steroids). It’s not ideal, but we have to keep him going until tomorrow. We have to try. If this person says she’s helped quite a few kittens with FIP maybe there is a bizarre chance. Yes, I could be deluding myself. Maybe I’m an idiot. Maybe she didn’t have cats with FIP? Maybe we don’t?

©2012 Maria S. No one can tell me why this would happen to such an amazing little guy. No one can tell me IF he truly has FIP or something else. We're doing our best, all we can think of…but it may not be enough.

The problem is NO ONE KNOWS. The stress of not knowing, of trying to make the BEST choice for Tater, has gotten to Maria and myself. We’ve both broken down, crying. We both are second-guessing our every move. We have to hurry up and accept what may come to pass. We have to make life or death choices. Death doesn’t wait. We’re trying so hard to keep him from coming in the door.

If we could get Tater to live until tomorrow, perhaps this stuff will work or we’ll have to say farewell to a very sweet little guy. I don’t know. All I know is I wish the phone would stop ringing and the questions would stop coming. I need peace in my heart. I need to get some sleep, real sleep. I hate feeling greedy, but I can barely function. After the stress of two weeks of being sick and stressed out of my mind about flying before I flew to Salt Lake for BlogPaws, then the stress of what to do with Opal’s kittens and now the troubles with Tater…it just feels like way too much, but I can’t give up for Tater’s sake. No way.

Maria just called me. She found tapeworm segments in Tater’s stool. I do not want to hope that his big belly is the result of one or more parasites. He’s been de-wormed as recently as Friday, but no de-wormer kills all worms.

Please, please, please…let this be some freakish or just “normal” parasitic infection combined with an upper respiratory infection that we can CURE!!!!!Please let Tater Tot live a full and happy life.

I don’t feel like I can breathe. It’s 1pm. I haven’t eaten anything since last night. I feel like I’m going to collapse. I’m so wrung out and tired. I don’t want to hear the sound of my phone ringing or the tone that indicates I have an incoming text message. Every time I hear my phone chime, my heart races. What am I going to find out now? How much more can I take?

I barely stepped off the plane at JFK Airport when things started to race downhill. Opal, our rather feral, far too young mama, gave birth to a kitten last Monday. Cyndie, the foster mom, found the kitten laying on the tile floor, cool, but alive. She put the kitten with Opal, hoping Opal would care for her newborns. Twenty four hours later, Opal gave birth to 3 additional kittens.

The next three days were a blur of phone calls, texts, e-mails. Opal wasn’t caring for her kittens and we weren’t even sure if she had any milk to give them if she could. Opal was more and more fractious. Cyndie had a tough time intervening, but eventually was able to start bottle feeding the neonatal kittens to ensure they were getting some sustenance.

The challenges began to pile up. Cyndie couldn’t provide round-the-clock care to such young animals. Frankly, I couldn’t have done it, either. I started a frantic search to find a nursing mama cat we could either rescue (and take any of her kittens, too), or one we could put our four kittens with. There were no mamas to be found—all already had 5 or 6 kittens. We couldn’t put 4 more with them.

©2012 Cyndie Tweedy. We need a name for this little kitten.

Cyndie called an old friend who had experience with newborns. She offered to take the kittens and give them all the care they needed. It would relieve Cyndie and give the kittens a better chance at surviving. Cyndie chose to only give her to the two most critical kittens, a boy who was born first, and a girl who was born last (Opal wouldn’t even clean off the amniotic sack on this kitten, who Cyndie initially feared was dead). The other two kittens appeared to be doing ok. Opal seemed to be feeding them, but no one was really sure since getting close to Opal meant getting clawed.

Meanwhile, two kittens were doing worse and worse. Then, on Thursday, the little boy passed away. We knew that the mortality rate for newborns is 30-40%, but it didn’t make what happened any easier. The little girl, Baby G., was not doing well, either. As if things couldn’t get worse for her, they did. The bottle feeder who was helping Cyndie had to rush to the hospital because her Mother had a bad gallbladder attack and had to have emergency surgery. Now Cyndie was alone with the ailing kitten and didn’t know what to do. She placed the kitten with Opal, who ignored her baby. When Cyndie looked at the little kitten, she realized the other two siblings were MUCH larger and clearly doing much better. A few hours passed and Opal had her leg over Baby G. Baby G. wasn’t nursing or doing much of anything. Something had to be done.

©2012 Maria S. Maria took this photo last year. This is Opal, just a kitten, before she became hateful of humans and had her kittens. It's so unfair to see this precious kitty and know her fate as it is now.

I have to take on the responsibility for ALL decisions for our foster cats and trying to do it from 1000 miles away is grueling. Not only do I emotionally support our volunteers, I have to help them make difficult choices and I have to KNOW what I’m talking about to do that…which would be fine IF I knew what I was talking about.

I took a Bottle Baby Bootcamp class at Tabby’s Place a few months ago and it dawned on me that Baby G. should be tube fed. Cyndie was massively sleep deprived and stressed out and didn’t feel this was a good option and that it could hurt the kitten. I had to try to draw from my own reserves to help her have faith that tube feeding was the best and possibly last option for Baby G. I wished I could have just taken the situation out of her hands so she could rest. We were both so tired, but in the end the buck stops with me. It was barely 6:30 AM on Friday the 29th. Not the best time to even be able to think (at least for me)

Cyndie rushed Baby G. to our Vet. They weren’t busy and could offer her supportive care until she stabilized. Over the course of the next few hours Baby G. was fed and got some fluids. She perked up and they thought she was going to improve so we made plans for them to keep her at the Vet partly so Cyndie could rest and partly so we could be sure Baby G. was stable before we brought her back to her mom.

The Vet graciously offered that one of their Vet Techs would take Baby G. home and tube feed her over the weekend. They would do it for NO COST, which truly was a blessing. I think everyone on Facebook started to feel like all their prayers and hopes were working. I did, too.

Early that evening, Cyndie called me. Baby G.’s temp started to fluctuate
wildly. Shortly thereafter Baby G. took her last breath and passed away. I was speechless. What happened? I really thought we were going to save her life. How arrogant of me to think that! Now Baby G. would join her brother, the two would be cremated together. I found it ironic that the costs for the cremation would be more than what we spent for her Vet care. They would ship the ashes to me. I already have many little tin boxes of ashes and these two babies could rest with my cats, never to be forgotten.

©2012 Cyndie Tweedy. Opal with the surviving kittens.

After many tears I hoped that perhaps we all could finally breathe? The stress gone, only our broken hearts remained. Over the past day, Opal had started to produce milk and eat a great deal of food, indicating that her milk production was strong. The two remaining kittens, a boy and girl, were twice the weight of the kittens who died. These two had a very good chance of making it. Opal, fiercely protective of her young, was in mom-mode now. We just had to keep her fed and keep an eye on the kittens, but she would do the rest for the next few weeks.

©2012 Maria S. Tater Tot on the way to the Vet.

Less than a day passed and Maria called me. She didn’t like the way Tater Tot was looking. His belly was big, his eyes runny, he seemed flat. She feared FIP. I didn’t want to accept that-who would? I asked if she de-wormed him and she said she had a few days ago when she first noticed his belly getting round.

The next 24 hours were spent in a mad dash to see if there was anything we could do to save Tater's life. Part two shares our roller coaster ride with you.

©2012 Maria S. Chased up a tree by a Pit Bull, this kitty needed help-and FAST!

In the past week Maria, our amazing foster mom in Georgia, has kept running into cats who need a helping hand. My rescue, Kitten Associates, has offered to help take on every cat she's found so far. All but one of these cats came from the SAME property. To date we've rescued 5 kittens and one adult. Though we have few resources, we're making room. Somehow it will all sort out. We can't and won't look away when a cat needs us.

©2012 Maria S. Maria-super-cat-lady to the rescue!

When Maria contacted me about a cat who was up a tree and needed rescue, I couldn't believe it. It seems this year more than any I can remember, there are cats coming out of the woodwork-and now are they raining down from above? There are so many kittens that are turning up alone on a neighbor's front steps-even my own cousin found one in her yard, lost and sick-so covered with ticks he almost died. Thankfully she was able to get him the care he needed in time and he will be going to a rescue in eastern CT today.

©2012 Maria S. & Robin A.F. Olson. You MUST listen to the voiceover on this cute video of Maria saving little Willow.

We had to act quickly. Maria, with the aid of her neighbor, whose voice over on the video below is quite amusing, managed to get the kitty down without too much trouble. Sadly, it was very clear that this kitty was sick. Flea covered, dirty, with a runny nose and tearing eyes. The cat kept gulping, a reflex from having too much mucus in her sinuses.

©2012 Maria S. It looks like Willow is telling Maria she's scared.

We couldn't know if this was someone's cat. She was very friendly so she'd known humans, but where was her family? If she had one, why did they let her get so sick? Why was she so thin?

Maria looked at the cat's abdomen. Her nipples were a bit swollen. One expressed a tiny bit of milk. As Maria was relaying this information to me we both realized this could be another “Amberly”-a found friendly stray who had kittens in the area. Finding Amberly's kittens was truly a miracle, but could we do it again?

©2012 Maria S. Getting some much needed rest.

I had Maria take the cat to the Vet. We'd sort everything out later. The Vet did the exam. The cat, who we named Willow (thanks to a suggestion by our friend Judy), just rolled over and wanted to be loved. She didn't care about being sick, she just wanted to be petted. This kitty was so darling we all fell in love with her on the spot.

The Vet didn't feel she was pregnant and if she had kittens she was mostly dried up to the point that they are probably weaned by now. Sadly, we have no idea where Willow came from, but the following day Maria did put a harness on the little cat and walked her around the area, hoping Willow would lead her to her family. None were found.

©2012 Maria S. Willow loves the Vet!

Maria also asked around the neighborhood, but no one had seen the cat before. Willow was either lost or dumped. Whatever happened to her, we'll keep her safe and hopefully in time she will recover from her illness. She's been too stuffed up to smell her food so Maria has syringe fed her for a few days. This morning she's starting to improve enough to eat some on her own. She's still rolling over to get belly rubs. Whoever had her must have been kind to her at some point.

I hope Maria doesn't find any more cats who need help. We're really full up and funds are low-even with the awesome amount of donations we just got in. We have to be careful so we'll have enough for everyone as their need arises.

Then Maria contacted me again…the little kitten she saw at the neighbor's house where we just helped 5 cats, is about nine months old now and is pregnant. Can we help her too? All I could say is; “We'll find a way…”

©2012 Maria S. Another unsprayed female, barely a kitten herself, needs our help, too.

P.S. Maria gave me the OK to show her to all of you in her PJs. She was glad she wore the ones with the kitties on them.

BREAKING NEWS!

©2012 Maria S. Lucky for him, Maria saw this poor little kitten laying in the street when she was driving home from work.

I just got these disturbing images of a VERY WEAK, sick, flea-infested, 4 week old kitten who is barely alive. He's VERY THIN and too weak to run off. Maria found him, along with his sister in the SAME YARD as where we just rescued a mama cat and 3 of her kittens a month ago. These folks have a track record of NOT caring for their cats at all. Last time two of the kittens we were going to rescue "disappeared" and were never seen again! We can't let that happen a second time so we've offered to take these two kittens before they DIE!

©2012 Maria S. This poor little guy couldn't even stand.

We MUST get some funding to help provide for immediate Vet care (which will cost more money, but we can't wait until Wednesday to get them to our low cost Vet), along with funds to provide for their future Vet care.

There are TWO kittens. I only have photos of the one right now. The other is a shy Tortie!

©2012 Maria S. How can the person who is supposed to be caring for this kitten NOT NOTICE the little guy is SICK???

If you can help us with a donation, we would appreciate it VERY MUCH!! EVERY DOLLAR HELPS!

The donation you provide to this Emergency Rescue is TAX-DEDUCTIBLE as we are a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Cat Rescue.

If you'd prefer to send a check, please make it out to: Kitten Associates and please note on the check the funds should go to "Two Kittens Fund" mail it to:

Kitten Associates
P.O. Box 354
Newtown, CT 06470-0354

Any funds not used for the care of this family will go into our General Fund.

©2012 Maria S. What did he ever do to deserve this?

If you can't make a donation, you can help us by getting the word out. Every dollar helps and every Re-tweet or FB Share does, too. THANK YOU for caring about these little babies!

After having to re-schedule three times over the past month, this morning I dragged my weary butt out of bed and took the Kittens in Black to visit the Vet. Sabrina and Black Beauty are getting spayed (as I write this) and the others are getting their Distemper Combo booster vaccination. Normally, I'd be assisting on the spay surgeries, but I admit to feeling grateful they didn't need me today. I've had the kittens since they were a week old. The idea of doing things to them that I know will make them uncomfortable and cause them pain is very difficult to accept. These procedures must be done, but can't I sit in the other room and not watch this time?

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Sabrina this morning before I took her to her spay appointment.

The kittens are growing rapidly and I need to get them all adopted soon before they lose that super cute kitten quality. The problem is I don't have time to get them adopted!

A week from today I'll be packing for my trip to Salt Lake City, Utah where I'll be a Speaker at BlogPaws. The only problem with this is: 1. I'm terrified of flying. Just thinking of it makes me want to throw up. The last time I flew this far was in 2000. 2. My computer hard drive died and I couldn't work for the past 4 days which puts me way behind schedule for getting things ready for the trip. 3. I got some freakish food poisoning a week ago and haven't been able to shake it (sorry for the almost gross pun). 4. I am so stressed out about traveling, not having enough time or money that I'm sure I'm making myself sicker and I'm not sleeping well (partially due to Jackson the cat's random early morning yowling).

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Don't you want to adopt me?

The good news is that I'm up for TWO BlogPaws Nose-to-Nose Awards and the event will be streamed live a week from Saturday! I don't know if you have to be a paid registrant to view the festivities, but once I find out I'll let you all know since it was all of YOU who got me the nominations for Best Meow Blog and Best Blog Writing!

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Dahlia wants money to buy a catnip tea. She's such a gold digger!

I'm trying to sort through applications and find good adopters. I really need an assistant. Between making calls to the adopters, the vets, doing a background check, then trying to co-ordinate home visits and having the adopters come here, get cats to the Vet and put them on Petfinder, leaves me little time for anything else. I've been trying to get volunteers, but I'm starting to wonder if I don't have a good gene for volunteer-finding. It's been over a year and I have one person I can count on to help with adoption events. I need to find time to get some volunteers..sort of ironic, now that I think about it.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Cutie Patootie wants to know where breakfast is and why it's late (answer, you're going to the Vet, don't back talk your foster mom!).

I got an update on the Kittens in Black's mama, April. She's doing very well and has gained a FEW POUNDS now that she is on her own in foster care. April's been spayed and though her foster family loves her, they're not sure they can adopt her. I hope it works out for April because this family also adopted April's daughter, Bon Bon!

©2012 Helen T. Bon Bon.

Bon Bon is doing very well and loves that she can spend time with her mother and her new friend, Wolfie (who is not too sure about Bon Bon but he's warming up to her). I'm told that Bon Bon is very confident, playful and affectionate.

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Our family in Georgia, Cami, the feral mama and her kittens Coco, ChiChi and Choco have also experienced a few changes.

Cami is feral. There was no warming up to her, though Maria tried very hard to work with Cami and to socialize her. We realized the best thing for Cami was to find her a guardian, but finding homes for feral cats can be a tall order to fill.

©2012 Maria S. Cami, off to her new forever home-where she'll get three squares and a warm cot.

Because we recently changed the Vet we use in Georgia, Maria met with a Vet named Dr. Ann. Dr. Ann did the initial exam of Cami (if you want to call watching a cat fly around a room, hissing and spitting an exam) and told Maria that she'd recently had to put one of her barn cats down and was open to the idea of taking in another one.

©2012 Maria S. We're all sad that Cami couldn't live indoors, but this is the best possible outcome for her. If she only knew how lucky she was!

It was too good to be true, so Maria and I vowed to keep quiet about it until Cami was ready to be spayed. We had her spayed last week and Dr. Ann took her to her home on Saturday. Cami didn't give Maria any trouble and Dr. Ann will keep Cami in a big crate in the barn for a few weeks so she'll get used to her new home. To have a Vet adopt one of our cats-especially one who is feral is simply outstanding! We're very grateful Dr. Ann was willing to take Cami on and now Cami will have a safe place to live and a full belly. She won't be left to fend for herself. It's a great outcome.

©2012 Maria S. The gang. Coco, Choco and ChiChi (far right).

The kittens are doing well, though ChiChi remains very small and underweight. I'm hoping she'll catch up at some point, but her siblings are almost a pound heavier than she is and that does worry me. Maria tells me they all play and eat well. She de-wormed them (right, Maria?!) and otherwise they seem to be thriving.

©2012 Maria S. Our little (and first!) flame point, Coco.

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Jackson Galaxy-the cat continues to yowl late at night or early in the morning, but each day it's less and less. He's attacked most of my cats at least once. I rarely ever see things heat up so I don't know who started it or why it's happening. My cats give him a lot of space, but I also see them sitting a foot away from him looking out the same window or sleeping not far apart. I see Jackson wanting to play, but some toys scare him. He loves to chase after a stuffed carrot cat toy or the laser pointer, but he doesn't like feathers or strings waved in his face.

©2012 Maria S. Goofy Choco.

Jackson slept on the foot of the bed the other night, which was a very surprising sight. A few of my cats didn't come to bed that night, which wasn't very surprising. I realize they have to work out who gets what space and that takes time. Day to day things are better. Jackson's rough coat is getting silky. His feline acne is going away. He loves to give head butts and kisses and even let me pick him up for a few seconds, but he weighs almost 15 pounds so he's not so easy to lift him anyway.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Jackson enjoying the view of the woods.

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And finally, King. King is doing well. We ordered his Leggings for Life to cover his back legs. King's back legs end an inch short and he has no back paws. We want to cover his back legs so the ends of the legs, which end in a callus, don't get scraped or bruised. Personally, I hope these things come in cool colors!

©2012 Maria S. Belly rub, please!

King has been living with Maria's other cats and gets along great with all of them-even the dog! (you can read King's back story HERE and HERE) I still can't believe this handsome boy came from living outdoors on his own at a palette factory!

I'm hoping that King's forever home is out there and will find him soon. King's been waiting for six months, but until the time for him to go to his family, at least he's safe and happy and getting a requisite number of belly rubs each day.

I brought Jackson home three weeks ago, on the heels of Bobette, our former foster, being adopted (and who's doing marvelously well with her new mama, JaneA Kelley of Paws & Effect).

Jackson wasn't interested in being confined to “his room” from the get go. He was ready to meet everyone and get himself settled. After just two days to decompress, I followed his lead and let him out of his room. He'd already been vetted, tested, in a home-not a shelter. I thought it would be all right to give it a chance.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. My sad foster kitty, Jackson Galaxy, a few days after he arrived.

I had the Feliway diffuser plugged in and all the cats had already been on Spirit Essences for a few weeks. I expected hissing and difficulty and was ready to calmly move Jackson back to his room if problems arose.

But they didn't…at least not right away.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Jackson LOVES raw food.

Jackson began to vocalize, a lot. His powerful meow carried throughout the house. Some of my cats reacted to it, but mostly they just ignored it. After Bobette and her attacks on any cat who came close to her I think they were ready for anything but Jackson just walked around with his tail up in the air, yowling. He didn't bother with any of the cats. A few tried to give him a quick sniff when he passed by, but he gave them a look which told them to back off.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Ever elegant, Jaks points his paw as he has his morning bath.

I took some time to get to know Jackson. He's a tall cat with a big “Biscuit Head” from being neutered late in life. He weighs almost 14 pounds, but he's lean. He's quick to purr or “burble” when I pet him. He loves to give head butts, but he's not big on being held and so far he's not a lap cat. In some ways he's a bit like a dog-he likes to follow me around the house. He likes to be near the action, but I could tell he was looking for a place to call his own within my home. With 8 resident cats that was not an easy thing to do.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Mr. Handsome settling in on the cat tree.

I tried to find a balance between allowing Jackson his freedom to roam around and to give my own cats some peace and quiet. I knew that having a new cat in the house would cause problems and it did. Nicky unleashed a torrent of urine all over the house. Even though he had no contact with Jackson, it didn't matter. He was distressed and displeased. Again I had to search for balance while my cats worked out what to make of this stranger in white.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. High four.

Each night I “tucked” Jackson into his room, but after an hour or two he'd start to yowl and bang on the door to get out. I tried to tough it out. If he made a fuss and I got up, I'd be training him to make a fuss so I would get up. Instead, I didn't sleep.

I didn't get much sleep for two weeks.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Feeling blue.

Then I started to wonder if Jackson was sick or that something happened to him in his last home. He didn't care to be touched on his side and would warn me to stop with a nip to my hand. At rest, the rise and fall of his chest looked odd, not smooth and fluid but hitched. Jacks eyes were a bit runny-one stuck closed on and off for a day. He was still eating well, but seemed down. I knew I'd have to run him to see Dr. Larry. My guess-list of what was bothering Jackson was growing. Did he have HCM? Upper Respiratory? Allergy? Heart or lungworms? He's from the south. It's possible.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Kiss-face.

And then the fights began. I didn't see them, but I heard them. One by one, Jackson was asserting himself with my cats, letting them know he was the boss. Each confrontation lasted a few seconds, but it was enough to change the hierarchy of the cats for good.

None of the cats were injured, but there were plenty of clumps of fur on the rugs-none of it was Jackson's. This surprised me because I'd heard that Jackson was picked on, which was why he was surrendered. Perhaps he'd had enough from being picked on before or the family wasn't up front with what really happened. My cats gave him a wide berth, but as each day passes I see him sitting calmly in close proximity to one or more of the cats and the fighting stopped almost as soon as it began.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Life is so tough here in foster care. Don't let me keep you up, Jacks.

It wasn't easy for Jackson to find his place, but he carved something out for himself (and I helped by making some extra comfy spots he could use that the other cats hadn't claimed). He no longer gets shut away at night and his vocalizing is dramatically reduced. He met with Dr. Larry yesterday and they couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. Jackson wasn't the easiest patient and he expressed his anal glands onto Dr. Larry as his way of sharing his displeasure with having his temperature taken.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. Burrito-boy.

Jackson's coat feels a lot better and his feline acne is almost gone. He actually enjoys it when I clean his chin. When I'm done cleaning him off, I lean down and he gives me a few head butts, purring loudly. Jackson's had some rough days. There are times when I reach out to pet him that he shrinks back in fear and runs off. I think someone must have hit him, which makes me sad and more protective of him than ever. When I think about all the care that goes into raising kittens so they never react like that to being petted, I wonder what sort of hellish life this cat may have had.

©2012 Robin A.F. Olson. This big guy just wants some love.

Who could treat this big lug with anything other than loving kindness? If I have my way, he'll never be in harm's way again. Now I just have to find him the perfect forever home-one that will truly last.

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If you're interested in adopting Jackson, visit Kitten Associates Adopt Page and fill out a Pre Adoption Application. Also, please read our Adoption Policies regarding diet, declawing and more. Jackson's forever family should live within or in one of the states surrounding Connecticut-United States of America. For the right adopter, we're open to discussing an adoption that's further out of state, but use your good judgement regarding appropriate distance. As an extra treat, Mr. Jackson Galaxy has graciously offered a 15 minute consult to the person or family who adopts this marvelous kitty.

We're also still looking for a great home for King. We've had NO applications for him and he's been with us for six months. King LOVES people, cats and dogs. He just needs to live with carpeting so he can get around. King was born without his hind paws, but is quite mobile and playful. He just can't “do” hardwood floors.

Last month I wrote Save Your Cat's Life with a Question, about how to work WITH your Vet, not just listen to what is told to you and follow orders accordingly. You have to do the research, push back, ASK QUESTIONS. YOU know your cat better than anyone else and it's up to YOU to take ownership of what's ailing your cat and make certain you understand both what your Vet is telling you and agree with any treatments or medications being handed out. It's easy to just let the Vet dictate, then find out later they were either way off base, want to use “off-label” medications on your cat, or don't tell you about the potential side effects.

I got a lot of comments about that post and one email I got from reader, Juli, really made me take notice. With her permission, I am able to share it with you.

Juli wrote (I edited very slightly):

“Hey Robin,

I am a Rescuer, so I have a lot of experience with sick, under the weather and cats that hide that there is something wrong. Well, to try to make 5 long stories shorter, I 'll probably omit a lot of info (easier to tell the stories than type). #1~Greyson was 15 yrs old, the vet said to prepare myself (he was my favorite), he wouldnt last another month. He said he had cancer. He lived to be 17 1/2!!

#2~ Orange was a male who was diagnosed with FIV after he was tested 2 years before that (neg-that is another story). When he was about 4, he stopped eating (he ate and pooped every hour !!). I knew immediately something was wrong. He spent 4 nights in hospital, the last night he had ripped his IV out of his vein but not out of his arm so he had like 300 mls floating freely in his arm. It was very painful and no one was at the clinic overnight. When I came in at 9am to see him and try to coax him to eat, I saw his arm and he had urine all over him. I told them to clean him up, get my meds and I will take him home. They had 3 different vets come in separately to try to talk me out of taking him home and putting him to sleep right now. Well, needless to say, antibiotics and pain meds was the answer. He got better and was his usual self…for another 2 yrs !

#3~ Barkley was 19 yrs old and spit up blood. I rushed him to the vet who said he was too old for surgery so no matter what was wrong (teeth or tumor), he'd have to be put to sleep now. I refused and asked for antibiotics in case it was a tooth problem. They looked at me like I was crazy and gave it to me since I wasn't going to be spending any money on a surgery. Barkley got better and lived another 11 months !

©2010 Robin A.F. Olson. Princess FiFi. One of our rescues who was deathly ill from an upper respiratory infection. Princess is happy and healthy today and living in North Carolina.

#4~Cube, who was 14 yrs old in 2009, was drooling so I took him to the vet. They told me he needed $1200.00 surgery to save his life. I didn't have $1200.00 right then so I asked for antibiotics and pain meds and took him home. It is 2012 and Cube is sleeping on the bed upstairs.

And #5~Quills was rescued May 30, 1997 at 3 months old, in the pouring rain, snot closing both nostrils, eyes crusted shut and crying at the top of his little lungs, in the middle of a grassy field. We rushed him to the Vet. He had lifelong upper respiratory infections. Nothing ever took it away. He got antibiotics and prednisone for life (on & off). Every time he'd go to the vet, they'd take X-rays and always say "no he doesn't have asthma" I'd say; “Even though he has all the symptoms?”.

Long story short, vet gave him 2 puffs of inhaler, his breathing rate went from 60 to 30 breaths a minute !! They couldn't argue about it anymore, that was proof he had asthma! All this time, 15 years of wrong meds, stuffed up nose and hard breathing for 15 yrs. 2 years before he was finally diagnosed correctly, I had rushed him in to ER at like 4am. They tried to talk me into putting him to sleep right then and tried to make me feel guilty that I wasn't doing what they said to do. Quills lived 4 years after this incident. His best years were once he had his own inhaler and could breathe like everyone else. I hate when I hear about when a vet tells people theres no other hope and they are suffering…”

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As with anything medical related, whether it be human or animal health, USE COMMON SENSE. I'm NOT telling you that Vets are stupid or always wrong. I have a great relationship and regard for the Vets I work with.

I'm telling you to take a breath when the Vets says; “there is no hope.” Ask questions. Be your cat's advocate and you'll never look back with regret over the choices you make regarding her health.

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As this post was about to go live, I got a note from Juli. Her cat, Cory, who was spayed when she was 10 months old (because she was a PREGNANT stray at just 6 months of age), has been diagnosed with mammary gland cancer. This type of cancer can occur when cats are spayed after six months of age. The cancer can metastasizes into the lungs and is always fatal. Cory is just 10 years old and the cancer is in her a mammary gland and under one of her legs. My deepest wishes for peace and love go out to Juli & Cory during this very sad time.

Note: I felt the message in this post from 2011 was worth sharing again, along with some revisions and updates. I've included helpful reference information at the end of this article you'll want to take note of and hopefully, share.

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Motherhood is a sacred institution, but not if you're a cat. Motherhood can mean an end, instead of a beginning. This year, with a warm winter behind us, cats around the country bred in record numbers. “Kitten Season” which usually starts in April, began earlier. More pregnant cats have been surrendered to shelters. More are struggling to survive on the streets. More will die.

©2010 Maria Sandoval. Tansy with daughter, Pattycake. Patty and her brother, Moonpie were adopted by a big family who spare no expense on their care. They are so lucky. Update: Tansy is not doing as well. Her adopter is facing allegations of animal hoarding and Tansy has been in a North Carolina shelter, as part of a seizure of the animals in the home, waiting for a judgment since September of 2011. 2013 Update: After 2 years in a cage, Tansy, renamed Mabel is living with me, safe and sound at last!

Motherhood is the worst thing I could wish on a cat that isn't a purebred show cat (and I won't get into what I think of THAT right now). Most shelters aren't equipped to deal with pregnant cats, especially because their offspring can so easily and quickly get sick, then spread that virus through the shelter since most don't have a quarantine room. They treat newborns like hot potatoes-MUST get them OUT of the shelter and into foster homes BEFORE it's too late! Many of my previous foster cats are a very good example of that. They were born in a shelter and by the time they were 3 weeks old, they were so sick, their care cost thousands of dollars and the end result is a lifetime of waxing and waning illness. To make matter worse, if we hadn't gotten them out the day we did, they all would have been euthanized.

©2009 Henry Co. Care & Control. Cupid with “Santa's Team.” Cupid, the creamsicle-colored mama, gained 5 pounds after rescue. She almost died she was so thin from nursing her kittens. She is adopted and with a family who loves her dearly. Her best buddy is her Nanny, yes she has a Nanny and she's pals with the family dog. If you look closely, the creamy fur-blob at her feet, is my boy, Blitzen.

There's no bouquet of flowers or box of mouse-shaped treats for a mama cat within the concrete walls of animal control and the people that work there have their hands tied. I KNOW they want those cats (and dogs) out, but the numbers are rising so fast—especially this time of year, how can they keep up? Where's the town budget to add a quarantine room for newborns? Who would happily see their Property Tax go up to make this happen? Where are the guards at the doors that tell people with pregnant cats they shouldn't even step foot inside a shelter!

©2010 Henry Co. Care & Control. Our own Mazie with Chester, Polly and Cara. All were very sick for months after they got out of a shelter and all are in forever homes and doing well.

I go back to square one-we all know this: the mamas don't get to BE mama's if they're spayed. There's simply NO excuse not to spay your cat. There are low cost Spay and Neuter clinics all over the country. Many Humane Societies and Municipal Shelters will offer low cost vouchers. You're doing your cat (or dog) a HUGE disservice leaving it intact. Not only is the cat apt to get mammary cancer and tumors in the uterus and ovaries, but spaying avoids birth complications. Your cat will greatly reduce its chances of getting FIV+ or Feline Leukemia. But most importantly, you're preventing MORE cats from being born into a world that cannot handle them-there are TOO MANY CATS and NOT ENOUGH HOMES.

Cats are still being euthanized in the MILLIONS. When do we put our collective foot down and say NO MORE to this insanity? When do we stop making excuses as to why it's ok for our cat to have just one litter or look the other way when our neighbor doesn't get their cat spayed or their male cat, neutered?

©2009 Robin A.F. Olson. Rose, Poppy and Daisy.

We've got to stop this nonsense. We've got to make sure our neighbors stop this nonsense and take care of their cats, females AND males. We have to tell our neighbor why they MUST do the right thing and make sure it gets done and not just wag a finger at them, help them. Offer to pay for their spay. Offer to drive the cat to the clinic and pick it up afterwards. Do whatever it takes. Just ONE LESS MAMA means potentially hundreds of less cats! It takes more than a village, but even if it's just a handful of people who do this, it's a great start.

Maybe someday, not in my lifetime, but someday, we won't have cat overpopulation and allowing cats to have kittens will be thoughtfully controlled. Until then, we need to truly revere Motherhood and respect it and respect the fact that some times NOT being a Mother is the smartest and most appropriate thing we can do.

©2009 Robin A.F. Olson. “Last Chance”-Angel with her son, Spyder.

Today, I sit here feeling sick. I already know there are thousands of Mama cats who have already given birth now that spring is here. Personally, my little rescue group can't even take ONE family in unless we get some foster homes. As for the other rescues, they are full up, overloaded, scrambling to help as many as they can, but with thirteen new mamas at ONE shelter in Georgia and half a dozen at another, WHERE are these cats going to go?

©2008 Robin A.F. Olson. CallaLily and her babies. Callie is doing great in her new home.

I can tell you. They are not going anywhere. They won't even live to see Mother's Day.

Is this the legacy we want to leave, as a society?

Where we're overjoyed if a woman is “expecting,” but if a cat, or dog becomes pregnant, odds are, if those animals aren't in a safe and loving home that will care for them, they'll be given up to a shelter and soon, we'll kill them.

©2009 Robin A.F. Olson. “Huggy Mama”, Dash & Snuggles. All got adopted TOGETHER! Yes, all three!

Let's make it a better world for our cats and show them how much we really DO respect and care for them by making certain they're ALL spayed and neutered.

No more Mothers, please.

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If you'd like to find a Low Cost Spay/Neuter Clinic here are some resources. There are MANY MORE OUT THERE. Odds are, check with the biggest Humane Society in your area and they will also either have a program, or know where you can find one. A few minutes of research online will save you hundreds of dollars AND you'll be doing the right thing for your cat.

ASPCA & PetSmart Charities® Database for locations in the USA

North Shore Animal League's SpayUSA

Live in Georgia? Try Spay Georgia.

Here in CT: Nutmeg Clinic is terrific.