On a Personal Note → A Pussycat Tale
This Musing is a result of an Email exchange with a dear friend who recently lost her long time feline companion. Since she has had encounters with my beloved kitty GG, she trusts my judgment in matters of picking out a kitten from the local Humane Society.
XXXX XXXXXXX,
Hi Jennifer,
I fell in love all over again with the kitten at East
Hollywood Shelter on Sherman Way. It was put in a
cage with about 12 other kittens. They share a litter
box and water, etc.
I spoke with a woman who told me that you can’t detect
feline leukemia until the cats are older, a couple
months old.
I’m nervous about it, but what’s the worse case
scenario? That he has been exposed (or not) and that
he may or may not be affected by it later?
How old was the cat you got from there when it was
diagnosed? How did they treat it? I thought it was
incurable.
How concerned should I be that he’s running around a
cage with so many others?
I bet you’re out gigging tonight. Hope it’s fun.
Love,
XXXX
Hi xxxx,
Actually, I’m home. This is my last full day off for a long time.
If the kitten is in a cage with other kittens it could be infected. Or not.
If you love the kitten, rescue him/her!
My experience with my sick kitten from the Sherman Way pound happened back in the early 90’s.
I was on the road most of the time, my ex was home alone with only our lone kitty for company. Our lone kitty was alone most of the time too, he was becoming sullen and lethargic. He needed a playmate.
I am partial to Maine Coon cats, and would’ve bought one from a breeder but I flinched at the cost. I decided to rescue a kitten from the Animal Shelter.
The first kitten I wanted was still with her mother. She was a little furball, probably had a touch of Maine Coon from her ancestors. Unfortunately there was a possibility that she was carrying feline leukemia. I couldn’t take her home right away, she was quarantined along with her mother and the whole litter. When I returned to pick her up I learned that they euthanized all of them. I was crestfallen, but steeled up my resolve as they steered me to the kittens in the community cage.
I picked my tortoiseshell calico out of the holding tank where yours probably is now. She was mostly chocolate brown but she had one pink paw. She was so gregarious, self assured, and loveable! She was always talking and singing, we named her Ella. We had her for a few days and the symptoms began.
I took her to the vet, they gave her a 20% chance of surviving. I absolutely adored that kitten. We spent $900 in vet and emergency vet bills. Since we already had another cat I quarantined her in my upstairs bathroom and spent a week on the floor nursing her back to life. (I used to own a condo).
She was so weak, I had to force-feed her and clean her bottom. She was too weak to clean herself. I sang to her and petted her all day and night. She started to get stronger and then I had to jump on a plane and fly to New York to play with Mel Torme’ at Carnegie Hall.
When I got back home she had weakened again. I spent another week of nurse duty on the floor in my bathroom watching the OJ Simpson slow speed chase and surrounding nonsense on my portable TV.
Ella recovered and to my knowledge my ex still has her. It was worth every penny and every minute, she’s one of the best cats I’ve ever known. I really miss her.
Don’t know if this helps, but all kittens are at risk to some degree. The rewards far outweigh the risk.
xo,
Jennifer
