Please help Azul on the road to recovery
Donation protected
I’m writing this to share about Azul’s road to recovery and ask for assistance covering her first vet visit if anyone might be so inclined or able to pitch in. Azul‘s history is a mystery. Her previous human said this kitty is 3 years old as of 7/11/2022 and needed a new home because “she doesn’t like small children who grab her off the couch,” but was not forthcoming with much needed medical history and was unwilling to provide any vet records or truthful information when asked for such as she gave contradictory responses to questions, offered little to no information and the narrative she did give doesn’t hold water. She said that 7 months ago when the kitty had a “cold” is the only time this kitty was ever taken to a vet, that she gave vaccinations herself and also bottle raised the cat. “She just never got a rabies.” She said that, “ a friend who’s a vet” is the one who diagnosed the cat with Cerebellar Hypoplasia (aka- wobble cat syndrome)because of her ataxia (aka-wobbling,) and that “she has always had loose stools.”
I’m happy to report that Azul is safe now, has received excellent veterinary care from Dr Tomlinson and staff at Fairlea animal Hospital and is home with me at the rescue ranch continuing to respond extraordinarily well to the treatment for toxoplasmosis gondii. It was obvious to me upon meeting her that she would need veterinary care while her previous human said that they “washed her because she smelled”. I recognized the smell of a drastically sick kitty, felt alarmed to see the frail, withering bony little purring sweetheart with eyes bluer than the bluest sky and knew a bath was definitely not going to be a cure.
Her previous owner’s Facebook post had said this cat had “wobble cat syndrome“ (cerebellar hypoplasia) since birth and that meant that, “she can walk but her head wobbles.” This cat could not walk!
This sweet kitty had tremendous difficulty rising to a standing position and when she tried to walk she either fell over sideways or flipped head over tail sometimes with an entire somersault and then cried out in pain upon crashing. I’ve seen severely-intoxicated-2:00am-downtown-San Antonio-tourists move with greater dexterity!
She was emaciated and ravenous, gulping down the food I offered that night, quickly and repeatedly slamming her face down into the dish, her mouth help open wide and movements akin to an angry chicken’s as she gobbled up the can of food, purring so loud the whole time. In the morning, I observed horrifying life-threatening diarrhea and evidence of both vomit and diarrhea that had occurred overnight. This kitty was in grave condition and needed medical care immediately.
Her weight upon intake at the vet was 4 pounds, 2ounces. Her white blood cell count was in the 20,000s indicating infection and Dr Tomlinson said that her neurological condition was primarily left-sided. He did not Endorse the previous owners claim of a diagnosis of CH. He said, “there’s no way this cat could have lived in this condition for three years. She would have died.”And then he said, “we have got to get this cat autonomous, stop the diarrhea, regain hydration and build strength back.“ When I took her there I was so afraid he was going to give me a toughlove speech about having to put the cat down. I wouldn’t have done it but I was so relieved when he was determined to treat her and give her every chance possible. I asked the previous “owner” what dr diagnosed CH and after ducking and dodging my questions she said, “a friend who’s a vet said she probably had CH”.
When Azul was ready to come home from the hospital four days later, Doc laughed and said I was going to think he’s crazy to think that she’s better but I assured him that had been my fear when bringing her in that he would think I was crazy to believe in her chance at recovery. He was just so delighted about her prognosis and gave me the game plan for next steps for Azul. She gained 13 ounces in the hospital and her poop was A+ ok now! She’s to be kept in quarantine in no more than 4 by 4 space with only a cat box, food, water and bedding. I set her up in a German shepherd sized wire pop-up crate with a rubber horse stall mat for the bottom, blankets, box and bowls like he said.
Dr T said, “We’ve given her everything possible to get her to safety we need to wait to see how her brain can heal itself and for God‘s work to happen.” I’m so grateful to the whole team there at Fairlea!
We are still awaiting the results of the toxo test that had to be sent off but he said even if it came back negative, at this point he would strongly believe that to be a false negative based on how she’s responding to the treatment. He said that the antibiotic she’s getting is not a broad-spectrum type, that it is a very specific antibiotic for toxoplasmosis gondii and her response to it is extremely significant. This presumably means that she could have received treatment for her condition long ago. So if she presented as if she had CH as a kitten, that would have been an opportunity for appropriate care including testing for toxo and her entire three years would have been completely different. This is also a condition that is transferable to humans and especially dangerous to fetus/embryos by way of ingestion of spores in feces.
As heartbreaking as it is to imagine how her life has been in the past, I am grateful that she is safe. She can take a few steps at a time now without tumbling over like some type of reckless gymnast. She can drink standing up, she can get to the catbox and she uses her paws to help herself eat. She rises more quickly each time I arrive to her kitty-condo and makes her way over to greet me more and more steadily everyday as she gains strength purring all the while. Yesterday, for the first time she took one more great big step maneuvering herself into my lap and taking a peaceful snooze there while I did paperwork seated on the floor just outside her door.
I’m happy to report that Azul is safe now, has received excellent veterinary care from Dr Tomlinson and staff at Fairlea animal Hospital and is home with me at the rescue ranch continuing to respond extraordinarily well to the treatment for toxoplasmosis gondii. It was obvious to me upon meeting her that she would need veterinary care while her previous human said that they “washed her because she smelled”. I recognized the smell of a drastically sick kitty, felt alarmed to see the frail, withering bony little purring sweetheart with eyes bluer than the bluest sky and knew a bath was definitely not going to be a cure.
Her previous owner’s Facebook post had said this cat had “wobble cat syndrome“ (cerebellar hypoplasia) since birth and that meant that, “she can walk but her head wobbles.” This cat could not walk!
This sweet kitty had tremendous difficulty rising to a standing position and when she tried to walk she either fell over sideways or flipped head over tail sometimes with an entire somersault and then cried out in pain upon crashing. I’ve seen severely-intoxicated-2:00am-downtown-San Antonio-tourists move with greater dexterity!
She was emaciated and ravenous, gulping down the food I offered that night, quickly and repeatedly slamming her face down into the dish, her mouth help open wide and movements akin to an angry chicken’s as she gobbled up the can of food, purring so loud the whole time. In the morning, I observed horrifying life-threatening diarrhea and evidence of both vomit and diarrhea that had occurred overnight. This kitty was in grave condition and needed medical care immediately.
Her weight upon intake at the vet was 4 pounds, 2ounces. Her white blood cell count was in the 20,000s indicating infection and Dr Tomlinson said that her neurological condition was primarily left-sided. He did not Endorse the previous owners claim of a diagnosis of CH. He said, “there’s no way this cat could have lived in this condition for three years. She would have died.”And then he said, “we have got to get this cat autonomous, stop the diarrhea, regain hydration and build strength back.“ When I took her there I was so afraid he was going to give me a toughlove speech about having to put the cat down. I wouldn’t have done it but I was so relieved when he was determined to treat her and give her every chance possible. I asked the previous “owner” what dr diagnosed CH and after ducking and dodging my questions she said, “a friend who’s a vet said she probably had CH”.
When Azul was ready to come home from the hospital four days later, Doc laughed and said I was going to think he’s crazy to think that she’s better but I assured him that had been my fear when bringing her in that he would think I was crazy to believe in her chance at recovery. He was just so delighted about her prognosis and gave me the game plan for next steps for Azul. She gained 13 ounces in the hospital and her poop was A+ ok now! She’s to be kept in quarantine in no more than 4 by 4 space with only a cat box, food, water and bedding. I set her up in a German shepherd sized wire pop-up crate with a rubber horse stall mat for the bottom, blankets, box and bowls like he said.
Dr T said, “We’ve given her everything possible to get her to safety we need to wait to see how her brain can heal itself and for God‘s work to happen.” I’m so grateful to the whole team there at Fairlea!
We are still awaiting the results of the toxo test that had to be sent off but he said even if it came back negative, at this point he would strongly believe that to be a false negative based on how she’s responding to the treatment. He said that the antibiotic she’s getting is not a broad-spectrum type, that it is a very specific antibiotic for toxoplasmosis gondii and her response to it is extremely significant. This presumably means that she could have received treatment for her condition long ago. So if she presented as if she had CH as a kitten, that would have been an opportunity for appropriate care including testing for toxo and her entire three years would have been completely different. This is also a condition that is transferable to humans and especially dangerous to fetus/embryos by way of ingestion of spores in feces.
As heartbreaking as it is to imagine how her life has been in the past, I am grateful that she is safe. She can take a few steps at a time now without tumbling over like some type of reckless gymnast. She can drink standing up, she can get to the catbox and she uses her paws to help herself eat. She rises more quickly each time I arrive to her kitty-condo and makes her way over to greet me more and more steadily everyday as she gains strength purring all the while. Yesterday, for the first time she took one more great big step maneuvering herself into my lap and taking a peaceful snooze there while I did paperwork seated on the floor just outside her door.
Organizer
Becky Bee
Organizer
Alderson, WV