On the night of January 4th, 2010 a little face appeared in the window. I opened the door to see if this cute little cat would run, instead he tried to come inside. I gave him some food/water and sat outside with him. He seemed torn between eating and getting love.
I noticed his eye was really runny & the gunk was starting to freeze up. At that moment, I chose to bring him inside.
I noticed his eye was really runny & the gunk was starting to freeze up. At that moment, I chose to bring him inside.
I had no idea this decision would pretty much change my life & the life of my other cats.
I keep him in my room away from all the other cats just because I didn't know if he had anything. I set up a litter box, gave him more food/water & most important, snuggles. We thought he had to belong to someone since he was so friendly so the next day would be spent finding his family. I figured we couldn't just call him "cat" or "puss" in the meantime so I started calling him Staalsy.
Staalsy is named after Jordan Staal, #11, of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He's a strong cat that has clearly never given up & has an amazing heart. It's a fitting name.
Tuesday morning brought a mass amount of phone calls. I called our vet to see if anyone reported a missing cat. No one had & I was told that the SPCA was overcrowded at the moment but that I should call anyway.
I called the SPCA & filled a found cat report. They said I could bring him in if I wanted. I chose to keep him with us instead.
After talking to my mom, she told me to call our vet back & see if they would work with us about getting him checked out/tested. I recieved a less than stellar response regarding that.
At this time my best friend called & gave me the name of her new vet. I called them & they were more than willing to work with us. At that point, I booked an appointment & we set off on a journey to Andersonville, VA.
The Staff at the Andersonville Animal Clinic are simply fantastic. This deserves to stand on it's own.
They took Staalsy back & had to sedate him to do bloodwork/give him his shots. While they had him out, we had him neutered as well.
I sat in the waiting room with my dad while we waited for news on Staalsy. The vet came out.
Staalsy was negitive for worms and FeLV (Feline Leukemia). It was then came the words I didn't expect to hear: He was positive for FIV. Staalsy had AIDS.
We left the vet with Staalsy, still heavily sedated, and heavy hearts. We didn't know what to do from this point forward. We'd become extremely smitten with him in a day & couldn't bear the thought of putting down an otherwise healthy cat. At the same time, we didn't know what this would do to our other cats.
After much researching, talking to the new vet again, and then talking to a family friend who knows what it's like we reached a decision:
Staalsy would be staying.
At the moment, I'm introducing him to two of my cats. They're not being buddy buddy, but they're not fighting at all. They're simply just coexsiting & finding harmony in their own ways.
I do not know what adventures life holds for Staalsy & I. I just know that the fight is going to be worth it.
I keep him in my room away from all the other cats just because I didn't know if he had anything. I set up a litter box, gave him more food/water & most important, snuggles. We thought he had to belong to someone since he was so friendly so the next day would be spent finding his family. I figured we couldn't just call him "cat" or "puss" in the meantime so I started calling him Staalsy.
Staalsy is named after Jordan Staal, #11, of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He's a strong cat that has clearly never given up & has an amazing heart. It's a fitting name.
Tuesday morning brought a mass amount of phone calls. I called our vet to see if anyone reported a missing cat. No one had & I was told that the SPCA was overcrowded at the moment but that I should call anyway.
I called the SPCA & filled a found cat report. They said I could bring him in if I wanted. I chose to keep him with us instead.
After talking to my mom, she told me to call our vet back & see if they would work with us about getting him checked out/tested. I recieved a less than stellar response regarding that.
At this time my best friend called & gave me the name of her new vet. I called them & they were more than willing to work with us. At that point, I booked an appointment & we set off on a journey to Andersonville, VA.
The Staff at the Andersonville Animal Clinic are simply fantastic. This deserves to stand on it's own.
They took Staalsy back & had to sedate him to do bloodwork/give him his shots. While they had him out, we had him neutered as well.
I sat in the waiting room with my dad while we waited for news on Staalsy. The vet came out.
Staalsy was negitive for worms and FeLV (Feline Leukemia). It was then came the words I didn't expect to hear: He was positive for FIV. Staalsy had AIDS.
We left the vet with Staalsy, still heavily sedated, and heavy hearts. We didn't know what to do from this point forward. We'd become extremely smitten with him in a day & couldn't bear the thought of putting down an otherwise healthy cat. At the same time, we didn't know what this would do to our other cats.
After much researching, talking to the new vet again, and then talking to a family friend who knows what it's like we reached a decision:
Staalsy would be staying.
At the moment, I'm introducing him to two of my cats. They're not being buddy buddy, but they're not fighting at all. They're simply just coexsiting & finding harmony in their own ways.
I do not know what adventures life holds for Staalsy & I. I just know that the fight is going to be worth it.
this could just become the most epically heartwarming story ever. write enough about the experience and you could probably turn it into a best selling novel!
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure my writing skills leave a lot to be desired, but thanks. :)
ReplyDelete