A Baby Story

Asleep on Tuesday or Wednesday

Monday (I think)

Today (July 28)

Baby, as we call her, was found on Sunday, July 24, 2011, by a young black man who brought her to PetSmart, hoping to find help for her. He found her in the middle of the road, on a day when the temperature was well into the 90's. She was found to be severely dehydrated, and had a wound (like a hole)on her neck/chin. Sub-q fluids were administered to get her more hydrated, as well as oral fluids. I brought her home, where my fiance (Joseph) and I kept watch over her through the night, as her breathing was very quick and labored, and she also was not drinking on her own and ate only a little food that first night, until we were able to get her to the vet the next morning. The vet prescribed an antibiotic (the first dose given as a shot) to help with the infection in the wound on her neck, cleaned out the wound, and gave her some more sub-q to hydrate her some more. The best guess was that whatever had caused the wound (based on other small scabs found on the body, possibly a dog) had nicked her trachea, as she had air pockets under her skin where air was leaking into her chest cavity and into her subcutaneous layers, leading to a crackling feeling as one petted her, and bubbles of air under her skin. He prescribed an oral antibiotic for use beginning the next day. After the sub-q, shot, and cleaning, Baby was exhausted and could barely stand (courtesy of recent dehydration, an infection, and the stress of having her wound cleaned). I went to PetSmart right after to get some KMR, and Baby wasn't doing so well, she looked tired and was still breathing very hard (around 60 breaths per minute at the vet), and she had me scared there for a bit. After getting what I needed, I took her home and Joseph and I began trying to get her to drink some of the KMR, which she eventually took to lapping off of the end of the syringe we were feeding from. Come that evening, she began drinking milk (warm, of course) from people's hands. She didn't want it in a dish, or from the bottle. So we indulged to get liquid into her. She also began eating wet cat food, slowly but surely. We kept her on nearly 24 hour watch through Tuesday, with only short periods of time of being left alone on Tuesday evening. Tuesday night, we decided she was stable enough, eating enough, to be left alone for us to be able to sleep at a normal time. Wednesday brought Baby eating very close to what the cans of cat food say she should be for her body weight (a whopping 1 lb 7 oz according to the vet), and a much more playful kitty. Baby began acting, slowly but surely, more like a normal kitten. Play hard, eat hard, sleep hard. Her favorite spot to sleep remains on Joseph's lap as he plays computer games, followed by the heating pad we keep running in her room. With Thursday, came much more intense play (longer stretches, more running, jumping, etc.). It was also noticed that the air bubbles, which would have been pushing on her lungs somewhat, making it harder to breathe, had gone away, which basically means that the nick in her trachea must have healed, as the spot on her neck has been doing. Her skin is still crinkley, but I've heard that takes a bit to go away. Her breathing is much closer to normal, and her activity level is much higher. Her gums are much pinker than they were on Sunday/Monday. She loves to climb any and everything, a favorite being jeans to climb up onto higher surfaces. She also likes to sit on shoulders. She has also overcome her fear of that big scary kitten in the mirror which only days ago made her bow up and hiss and turn her tail into a bottle brush. Baby is doing amazingly well, and I would expect her to come away from this just fine. This baby cat found her way to a place where someone would find her (admittedly, not the safest place) and get her help.

A special thanks to Sandy S., Barbara H., and Barbara W. for giving her the boost she needed that day at PetSmart. And a special thanks to Feline Rescue and Rehome for providing for Baby's vet care, and admitting her as a FuRR cat. Hopefully in the not-so-distant future, after Baby is bigger and vetted, she will get an amazing home.

Like many rescues, FuRR can always use donations. If you want to help animals like Baby who need help and need homes, you can donate to FuRR. Visit our website at www.teamfurr.org for more information about us.