Post by Carly Marie on Dec 24, 2013 1:29:14 GMT -5
Hey everyone. I have tons of stories from my experience rescuing. I work at a no kill rescue called Feline Finish Line Rescue, were located in Catasaqua PA, and I was feeling inspired tonight and decided to share this story with you guys. It is very personal to me and I hope you enjoy.
First let me start out by explaining a little bit. We do not have an actual 'shelter', we are a group of foster homes, but we work with a local petco and there we keep a few of our cats in the habitats there for a few days at a time.
So lets go back to September 24, 2013. My neighbors decided to adopt a cat from us, so as we usually do, we met them at the petco for them to fill out the paperwork and be on their way. Tonight it was just me and Chuck, the owner of the rescues boyfriend. Things were quiet and at the moment we were just waiting for my neighbors to fill everything out before sending them on their way. I noticed out of the corner of my eye two women walk in with something wrapped in a towel being carried as if it were an infant, but it was obvious it wasnt. I couldnt see what it was. They walked to the register and I watched them, trying to see if I could get a glimpse of what she was holding, and the cashier pointed to me, saying something while doing it. The two women walked over to us and began asking advice on a kitten that was just found. The woman holding the kitten was an EMT, and when they got back after the weekend, the mechanic found this little girl laying in the middle of the floor not moving, and cold to the touch. They tried to feed her some wet food but she was too weak. Her eyes were covered in a thick layer of pus, they tried to put a warm wet compress on them but it didnt do much.
The woman brought her to an emergency vet who agreed to look over the kitten for free, but would not treat her unless she agreed to be financially responsible for the kitten. Seeing as it was already 8 at night and she barley had money to support herself, she decided to try her best to keep the kitten alive through the night before getting it to a shelter the next morning. Well, it just so happened that we were all in the right place at the right time. I asked to see the kitten, and what I saw had me shaking. The poor little thing barley looked alive. Her eyes were closed and she wasnt moving the slightest bit. She was cold to the touch but not stiff, and she was definetely breathing. I saw a little bug surface from her ear and burrow back into her cheek, it later turned out to be a flea. I took one look at her and without thinking said "Ill take her." I was absloutley NOT prepared. This was my first kitten whom I had to bottle feed, first truly sick cat, first cat with fleas, and I had other animals in the house. But after seeing her, (I have a picture I will post) I knew I had to try my best. Chuck and I called Catherine, the owner of the shelter and asked for advice. Knowing I was not prepared, I decided to spend the night at Catherines where she had everything I would need. First we grabbed some formula and tried to feed her, though she wouldnt take. We stopped at my house which was only 5 min away from the petco to switch her to a warmer towel. She started to wake up a bit and on the ride to Catherines was moving around a bit and even meowing a little. We got there, gave her fluids and got to work. Then, a miracle happened. At 8pm she was on deaths doorstep. I honestly think if we were even 10 minutes late, she would have passed. By 11pm, she was up trying to walk around and eating. That night I got up every 3 hours to bottle feed her, burp her and wipe her butt. And yes, you have to burp kittens.
We kept her in a cage throughout the night with a warm pad under a bed, and a big blanket over top of her, along with that we covered the cage with a blanket so all heat would stay in. The next morning she was doing wonderful. We gave her a bath to try and rid of the fleas. I brought her the back door made of glass, and we sat in the sun together while she dried off. Later that day I carried her around everywhere in her towel, and she napped in my hoodie pocket while I helped Catherine clean. I went home later that day, but not alone. I chose to foster her, I HAD to have her with me to make sure she was okay. So we headed home and the every 3-4 hour routine continued.
She was the sweetest, so energetic and afraid of NOTHING. This little 3 week old kitten actually hissed and swatted at my dog, a corgi. No, she didnt run. She stood up, looked at him and swatted him. When I would open the cage for her to come out, she would run and jump out on her own. Heres another amazing thing that happened; the third day I had her home she was running around my room, she went straight to the dry cat food bowl and started eating it. I was amazed.
Her rescuer and I kept in contact, and I ended up keeping the kitten who I named Lily. Her rescuer comes to visit a few times a month. Today, she is still tiny, but healthy. her and my other cat get along perfectly.I sometimes go through my pictures of her the first few days we had her and it makes me want to cry, seeing how far she has come. Just a few weeks ago her whiskers that were once wraggly and breaking off, grew in straight and pretty, and her coat became super soft and not wiery. Im not sure how many pictures I can post, I have a bunch and will post them below.
First let me start out by explaining a little bit. We do not have an actual 'shelter', we are a group of foster homes, but we work with a local petco and there we keep a few of our cats in the habitats there for a few days at a time.
So lets go back to September 24, 2013. My neighbors decided to adopt a cat from us, so as we usually do, we met them at the petco for them to fill out the paperwork and be on their way. Tonight it was just me and Chuck, the owner of the rescues boyfriend. Things were quiet and at the moment we were just waiting for my neighbors to fill everything out before sending them on their way. I noticed out of the corner of my eye two women walk in with something wrapped in a towel being carried as if it were an infant, but it was obvious it wasnt. I couldnt see what it was. They walked to the register and I watched them, trying to see if I could get a glimpse of what she was holding, and the cashier pointed to me, saying something while doing it. The two women walked over to us and began asking advice on a kitten that was just found. The woman holding the kitten was an EMT, and when they got back after the weekend, the mechanic found this little girl laying in the middle of the floor not moving, and cold to the touch. They tried to feed her some wet food but she was too weak. Her eyes were covered in a thick layer of pus, they tried to put a warm wet compress on them but it didnt do much.
The woman brought her to an emergency vet who agreed to look over the kitten for free, but would not treat her unless she agreed to be financially responsible for the kitten. Seeing as it was already 8 at night and she barley had money to support herself, she decided to try her best to keep the kitten alive through the night before getting it to a shelter the next morning. Well, it just so happened that we were all in the right place at the right time. I asked to see the kitten, and what I saw had me shaking. The poor little thing barley looked alive. Her eyes were closed and she wasnt moving the slightest bit. She was cold to the touch but not stiff, and she was definetely breathing. I saw a little bug surface from her ear and burrow back into her cheek, it later turned out to be a flea. I took one look at her and without thinking said "Ill take her." I was absloutley NOT prepared. This was my first kitten whom I had to bottle feed, first truly sick cat, first cat with fleas, and I had other animals in the house. But after seeing her, (I have a picture I will post) I knew I had to try my best. Chuck and I called Catherine, the owner of the shelter and asked for advice. Knowing I was not prepared, I decided to spend the night at Catherines where she had everything I would need. First we grabbed some formula and tried to feed her, though she wouldnt take. We stopped at my house which was only 5 min away from the petco to switch her to a warmer towel. She started to wake up a bit and on the ride to Catherines was moving around a bit and even meowing a little. We got there, gave her fluids and got to work. Then, a miracle happened. At 8pm she was on deaths doorstep. I honestly think if we were even 10 minutes late, she would have passed. By 11pm, she was up trying to walk around and eating. That night I got up every 3 hours to bottle feed her, burp her and wipe her butt. And yes, you have to burp kittens.
We kept her in a cage throughout the night with a warm pad under a bed, and a big blanket over top of her, along with that we covered the cage with a blanket so all heat would stay in. The next morning she was doing wonderful. We gave her a bath to try and rid of the fleas. I brought her the back door made of glass, and we sat in the sun together while she dried off. Later that day I carried her around everywhere in her towel, and she napped in my hoodie pocket while I helped Catherine clean. I went home later that day, but not alone. I chose to foster her, I HAD to have her with me to make sure she was okay. So we headed home and the every 3-4 hour routine continued.
She was the sweetest, so energetic and afraid of NOTHING. This little 3 week old kitten actually hissed and swatted at my dog, a corgi. No, she didnt run. She stood up, looked at him and swatted him. When I would open the cage for her to come out, she would run and jump out on her own. Heres another amazing thing that happened; the third day I had her home she was running around my room, she went straight to the dry cat food bowl and started eating it. I was amazed.
Her rescuer and I kept in contact, and I ended up keeping the kitten who I named Lily. Her rescuer comes to visit a few times a month. Today, she is still tiny, but healthy. her and my other cat get along perfectly.I sometimes go through my pictures of her the first few days we had her and it makes me want to cry, seeing how far she has come. Just a few weeks ago her whiskers that were once wraggly and breaking off, grew in straight and pretty, and her coat became super soft and not wiery. Im not sure how many pictures I can post, I have a bunch and will post them below.
