One summer, when I had come home from college, my buddy Kevin borrowed his sister’s car and drove out to see me. We had a great day hanging out, talking shop, and going for chow. It was a perfectly awesome day. About an hour after Kevin left that night, there was a knock at our front door. I opened it to find a visibly shaken and distraught Kevin, flanked by two burly State Troopers. In his sister’s car, less than three miles from our house, Kevin hit a deer, thereby ending our perfect day. 

For months, I have been relaying to you, enthusiastic Max Maniax, how wonderfully Max is doing. First, he stopped self-mutilating. Then, he ended the Battle Royales and lived happily with his formerly sworn enemies. Even when his roommates changed, Max shocked us all with his “eh, whatever” attitude. We were even more surprised when he showed signs of love toward his feline companions (as you can see in this photo of Max enjoying his suite window with Hooper). In fact, love is the best description of Max’s existence — love of cats, people, and life. For Max, life wasn’t  just good; it was perfect. 

Just as a deer blindsided Kevin and ruined perfection, a deer of sorts has come into Adoption Room #2 and has undone all of Max’s progress. That deer is a new roommate, appropriately named Bambi. Now, to be clear, Bambi is a real sweetheart, but Max absolutely hates her.

Max’s hatred has manifested itself in truly unfortunate ways. He now keeps himself almost exclusively on the window ledge and he is starting to attack-eat things. He started rumbling with Captain , and gets anxious with visitors. Hooper and Captain share Max’s assessment of Bambi, making for an uncomfortable environment. Unfortunately, a fix as simple as moving Bambi out isn’t possible because she needs the special diet only available in Adoption Room #2. Therefore, until a permanent solution can be found, the veterinary staff has increased Max’s medication dosage. 

As the leaves change color and fall, I thank you for your continued generosity. Although it’s been a rough month in Adoption Room #2, I’m grateful for Max’s months of joy, thanks in large part to you. I am confident that happy days will be back soon. In the meantime,  I thank you for all you do. Have a great month!

Breaking news: the dread sweetheart Bambi has been adopted! I’ll be sure to fill you in on how Max reacts to her going, but his initial response has been positive. Keep your fingers crossed!