Dear Friends of the FeLV Fund,

On Saturday, October 7th, we celebrated two milestones for Tabby’s Place and the cats: the official Grand Opening of Quinn’s Corner and the 20th Anniversary of Tabby’s Place!

This was certainly a day of celebration for everyone, but for FeLV+ cats, it marked a new era of hope and sanctuary for the very kitties that you love and support each month.

While we did not permit visiting in the FeLV+ suites during the event, several of our residents got to “stroll” through the outdoor event areas. Arthur, Oram, Charles, and Durin represented for the Felvies. Each of these boys were personally escorted through the crowds by our event day volunteers within the safety of our strollers.

In further celebratory news, two more FeLV+ kitties found their forever homes this month. Dylan, a young FeLV+ kitty who came to us from another rescue, was adopted right out of the holding rooms. Few of us even got to know him, before he charmed his new family. And little Lovebug, whose name says it all, went to her forever home just a few weeks after moving into Suite H with Sammy and Hoopla Green. All this joy would not be possible without you, so Thank You!

Trifecta is the newest FeLV+ kitty to move into Quinn’s Corner. As his name suggests, in addition to being “double positive” like Durin and Tortellini, Trifecta also has diabetes and receives insulin twice a day. He has settled right in to his new living space and enjoys the solarium and any available human lap.

In Suite G, Tucker and Derby continue to frolic about in the suite and in the Quinn’s Corner Lobby. Oram had a follow-up echocardiogram this month that showed some enlargement in the right ventricle of his heart. The other three chambers are stable from previous scans, and no medication management is required at this time.

Charles has been dealing with a recurrent otitis (middle ear infection) since coming to Tabby’s Place. This month, he was referred to a specialist where he had a CT scan and a procedure called a ventral bulla osteotomy. What on earth is that you may ask? Basically, a small incision is made in the neck behind the jaw to access the middle ear cavity. Fluid and any polyps are removed and a drain is placed while the area heals. Charles bounced back from the procedure just as he bounces around his suite, with full gusto. He recovered in our Hospital until the drain was removed. Here he received warm compresses three times a day. Since the drain site needed to be kept clean and undisturbed, Charles returned to Tabby’s Place in a large soft cone. In preparation for the surgery, his head fur was shaved. With the shaved head and large cone, I thought he looked a little bit like a bearded dragon upon his return. I didn’t get a photo, but upon his return to Suite G, one of the staff asked him to participate in some Halloween fun (see photo). He was lucky enough to return to Suite G before the Grand Opening so he was able to watch the comings and goings from his suite, solarium, and a stroller.

Finally, I want to ask all of you to keep our dear Arthur in your thoughts. We’ve known for some time that he has liver disease, but his health has taken a pretty dramatic turn for the worse. His most recent blood tests indicated very poor liver function and he is quite jaundiced. An abdominal ultrasound identified a mass (suspected biliary carcinoma) causing significant gallbladder obstruction. Aggressive treatment is not in his best interest, so we are monitoring his quality of life very closely. At this time, he is still eating with great enthusiasm and seems comfortable in his private space with our adoptions team. He is a very dear boy and this diagnosis is heart wrenching. Thanks to your support, we will continue to shower him with love and squeeze ups for as long as he is comfortable and enjoying such things.

Your Guest Correspondent,

Lisa

p.s. Please do not share your hoagies with the cats, no matter how much they plead!