2018 Rescues

Jag's Story

Dear little Jag had shown up at the colony my parents care for the spring of 2018. He was very fearful, fought for food with the other cats of the colony if need be, but generally tried to sneak in for food when no others were around.He was Very fearful of people and only would appear to eat and leave. As he was quite small we felt he was only a 6-7 month kitten.

Oct. 14, .2018 after many attempts to trap this boy, and many missed vet appoints, I finally was able to trap him. He was taken directly to vet clinic in the trap, however because of an emergency, he wasn't able to be vetted until the following day. Not only was he very feral, he was also very sick with an upper respiratory infection. Because we never got close enough to this boy, we had no idea. He was given antibiotic, neutered and treated for parasites, after testing negative for leukemia and aids. Turns out he was more in the age range of 3-4 years old.

He was so afraid, I was unable to entice him to eat for the first 24 hours, nor use a litter box. By day 2, he started to eat, but it took many days before he would use the litter box, and not his bed. (and many litter materials, from litter, stove pellets, grass, sand, and finally potting soil which was the winner). I was pretty sure he would be a release once he healed from neuter and Upper resp infection cleared up. However after 4-5 days he finally would let me slowly touch his paw. It was a long process, but eventually I was able to pat him, and let him out of a large dog crate, into a spare bedroom, where he just became friendlier and more loving.

Jag's upper respiratory infection with a snotty nose and coughing continued, so he was put on another antibiotic for 1 month. It worked for a couple of weeks, but symptoms were back by the time his antibiotic was finished. Once again he was to our wonderful vet, who found he had a tooth infection, removed that, and put him on another antibiotic for dental infections. Once again he improved, only to go down hill very quickly after his antibiotic was finished. The good thing was, the longer I had him, the more confident and friendly he became. He actually became more like a dog, fetching, and enjoying learning commands such as, shake a paw, sitting on command, rolling over on command, and much more. He loved toys and would entertain himself very well with them. This little fearful feral cat was becoming such a special boy with so much love to give.

Having been on 3 different antibiotics for such a long time, this boy now needed expensive testing to be done, to find out what was wrong with him. Thinking he may need to have an endoscopy as he did so much gagging, along with the coughing and snotty nose, he needed to go to a specialist who did this procedure. After more bloodwork being done, it was discovered he had a rare infection, that was treated with another antibiotic for another month. He did improve greatly, and by February of 2019, he was ready to be place in a home of his own. Because of his dog like characteristics, he had a lot of interest in adopting him, after advertising him. However, he found the perfect person, and the perfect home, where he is loved so much. He did develop his symptoms again, and the vet decided to try him on allergy medication, which ended the symptoms for good.

Jag was my longest rescue, and my most expensive rescue, but he was worth every cent and every second. Every time I see photos or videos of him, enjoying his life, it melts my heart!

Jag in his new home. He's truly a success story!