Greetings, Olive Fanciers!

Olive has had an up-and-down month, but for the present, at least, things are trending toward the positive. The staff had noted that she seemed to be in more pain in her rear legs during expression (if you recall, her rear legs are the stiff ones), and because of this she was getting quite aggressive.

Our little girl has to be expressed several times daily; there’s nothing we can do to change that. But we can give her something to help with nerve pain and the probable resulting anxiety, and that’s what we’ve done. She’s now being given gabapentin to help with both issues. Since Olive has been happy to take her lactulose in a squeeze-up treat, we tried that with the gabapentin, too, and it’s been working nicely. It’s early days, but so far the gabapentin seems to be helping.

Our girl continues with her mission to be the first to greet visitors; it’s almost as though she considers it her job. If she sees people even approaching the front door, she’ll usually begin scooting over in that direction. Lately, she’s allowed most folks a couple of brief strokes on top of the head before she snaps at them. While we could wish she’d be more receptive for a longer time to human attention, that’s just the way she’s wired, and of course, we love her no matter what.

And that brings me to the love you have shown our black-and-white girl. There are not many shelters, even now, that would be able to keep and care for a cat like Olive, let alone multiple cats with medical issues. This is your doing; your support makes this possible. “Thank you” seems entirely inadequate, but it’s all I have.

So, thank you, again and again. Have a wonderful holiday season, and I wish you all a happy, healthy 2024.

Your correspondent,
Stephanie