Greetings, FeLVie Fans,

We must start with some sad news this month: we’ve lost our amazing Durin. Our sweetest boy had been growing quieter for some time, but no one could be ready for this goodbye.

Blood work recently revealed that Durin was struggling with both anemia and worsening renal values. Our tenacious, tenderhearted vet team did everything in their power to treat Durin’s delicate issues, and our staff rallied around him with constant affection.

But the day came when he could not maintain his body temperature, and there was nothing more we could do to keep him comfortable. Durin gently left this earth surrounded by people who adored him. Be assured that our staff delivered your kisses as they wept their goodbyes.

Durin’s legacy will live on at Tabby’s Place. He touched so many hearts, from the children who would compete to read to him during Paws to Read, to the many volunteers and staff who loved him so. You can read a special tribute to our boy on the Tabby’s Place blog.

It hasn’t all been gloomy over the past month in our FeLVie suites, though: Fortune Cookie has been adopted! We can’t claim that we’re surprised by this; he’s an adorable orange tabby kitten. But all FeLV adoptions are great adoptions, so we’re delighted.

Ready for more wonderful news? Puff has made a triumphant return to her suite! If you’ll recall, just a handful of weeks ago, we did not know if she was going to pull through her illness. But her blood work was much improved as of last month, and she is so much better that we were able to return her to her usual living arrangement. We are re-checking her blood work every two weeks, and so far she’s holding steady. A twenty-one fur mouse salute was fired in Puff’s honor.

Sammy was moved from her suite to join the FeLV boys in the suite next door. There are some strong personalities in her new quarters, but Sammy has not been intimidated in the least, and she’s settled in beautifully. Also new in that suite is Malawi, a pretty calico girl. Malawi is more reserved than the others in that suite (Charles, Oram, and Tucker, in addition to Sammy); she generally keeps to herself, but she loves human attention.

Speaking of Oram and Tucker, last time I was in, I saw Tucker lazing in a cat bed on top of the cubbyholes. I observed Oram looking meaningfully at Tucker once or twice, so I distracted Oram by going into the solarium and holding the human-size door open for him. We talked for a couple of minutes while I paid attention to him, and he settled down on a shelf. I left his suite. Not ten minutes later, as I was passing by, I looked in and saw Oram doing his utmost to try to get a clearly uninterested Tucker to play with him. Sigh!

Speaking of Charles, he is once again off his ear medications, as his last infection responded nicely to those. We are hoping he’ll be trouble-free for a while now, at least; goodness knows he’s earned a break.

We learned a lot more about Trifecta over the last month. He was sedated for a dental exam so we could take some X-rays of his legs. As is the case with most of our cats, we knew little about Trifecta’s history when he arrived, although there were some vague notes about a previous leg injury. He also arrived with an old X-ray film, but we weren’t sure it was his because there was no name on it!

Well, we did the X-rays, and our vet team was shocked by what they found. At some point in the past, Trifecta’s left leg was broken at the femur right above the knee; that break never healed properly. He had also sustained a broken toe on his left hind foot at some point, he had a healed dislocation of his right hock (the cat equivalent of an ankle), and he has a BB pellet in his back (the only saving grace here is that the pellet is in the muscle, not the spine).

Despite all of this, he can get around just fine, and he likes nothing better than climbing into a human lap. There isn’t anything for us to do about the leg or the pellet now; both are old injuries, and Trifecta is a senior with three conditions that suppress his immune system. But what a survivor! We are doing everything we can to make sure he is as comfortable as possible.

Trifecta also had his insulin dose adjusted over the past month. He had several occurrences of vomiting after eating and his blood glucose levels were not where they should have been. We lowered his insulin dose, and he has responded well to that.

There is no news on Sylvia this month. Like Malawi, Sylvia is reserved, though she does enjoy human company and cat treats, not necessarily in that order. And Hoopla Green? Well, Hoopla had a less-than-optimal afternoon when I was in a couple of weeks ago. She wanted to relax in her usual place, the towel-covered heated mat in her solarium.

But the solarium needed a thorough cleaning—that’s when everything is moved out and a disinfecting solution is sprayed around, then rinsed off. Naturally, the solution we use won’t harm cats, but at the same time, we can’t have cats in the area that’s being cleaned. It’s fair to say that Hoopla Green is not amenable to being picked up and moved indoors, so the volunteers had to create a line of barricades to gently guide her into the suite to which the solarium is attached. Miss Hoopla was obviously not amused, but once the solarium was cleaned and had dried off, she popped right back into her usual spot. I wish we could get her to understand that we mean her no harm, but I know that will be a very gradual process.

If you haven’t dozed off by now, please allow me to thank you for caring for our FeLVie crew. We’re trying hard to show people that FeLV+ felines can and do live good lives and that they deserve the same chance at a forever home as any of our other residents. You make it possible for us to care for these very special cats.

Your correspondent,
Stephanie