For the past couple of nights, I have heard a cat crying underneath the house. Although George has crawled in and out of that space so many times, nothing is ever found. There are places in this crawlspace that only a mouse can fit under. Last night, the crying was so intense, I didn’t know what to do to help this cat who sounds like she/he is suffering. So, I gathered my sleeping bag, my portable CD player and the CD Harp of Hope made by a friend of mine, Dr. Diane Schneider, J.d., Ph.D. I turned on the music at midnight and sat very still wrapped in the sleeping bag at the large opening by the house.

Twenty minutes into the playing, I saw a head poke out of the hole and I heard the meow of help me. Carefully, I wrapped the kitty in a towel- turns out it was one of the feral cats that I got about a year ago. One, I have never quite been able to touch. A black boy who I did neuter. I call him Magic because he has a way of vanishing before my eyes. But, not tonight. He was quite sore and bloody. He has been  hit by a car but he will survive. He is at the ER Vet this morning where they will amputate his leg.

If it weren’t for the CD to relax him, I truly believe he would still be under the house suffering. I have experienced wonders with cats when this CD is playing and I am grateful that Dr. Diane freely shares her gift in the Online world. They said it is a miracle that Magic didn’t bleed-out. It turns out, he is really a sweet boy once he knows you aren’t put in this world to hurt him.

This morning, Honeybear joined his sister and all the other beloved felines that have passed out of our care and headed for the Bridge. He just stopped thriving and trying to stay in the moment and there is a point in rescue when you have to stop and ask yourself why continue the fight? His belly was still full of bloat even though he was pooping more than before. He was able to take in a bit of food but not enough to matter. he was starting to make the same distress calls his sister made before she passed. it was just time to surrender him to a better place.

Honeybear is struggling over some major issues. He bloats up (much like his sister did) like a poison toad when he feeds. His belly becomes misshapen and it seems painful to the touch. The fs and the vet tell me this is just gas and it will pass (it hasn’t).

I am told by both camps that I should be tube feeding him every two hours:

The first week- 2.6 ml
Second week- 4.5 ml
Third week-6.6 ml
Fourth week- 8.3 ml

It didn’t seem to be working. Tube feeding although easy for me, was unsatisfying to him. He still bloated up, he was restless and moaning all the time. He hadn’t pooped in days and I was getting worried.

When I get to a challenge like this- I turn to paper and pen and write my thoughts down and the pros and cons and different options. So that’s what I did. I reviewed the kitty journal for him and then just sat down and prayed really hard for this kitty who seemed to want to follow his sister and leave his world. Then I just started writing down my thoughts.

My final decision weighed heavily on my heart. I knew that when you have one so young you had to provide proper warmth (provided) and proper nutrition. It seemed to me that he was aspirating- not because the fluids was getting into his lungs, but because the stomach was so full of whatever, it didn’t have room for the “next” feeding due in a few hours. So, I decided to feed him every four hours knowing that in doing so I was going against what the experts were telling me to do, and it ultimately could mean that he would follow his sister. But, he was just about ready to follow her anyway so I figured there was little left to loose in doing this. With some misgivings, I made him comfortable in the carrier and went to bed.

He wasn’t fed four times last night, he was fed twice. On the second feeding, I opened his carrier door to find he had pooped everywhere! His bloat was down substantially. I cleaned up the cage and set in new bedding then went about feeding him with the bottle- not the feeding tube. He pooped all over my shirt! YAY! He ate like a champ and his bloating although it did show up- it wasn’t so severe that he looked like if I stuck a pin in him, he would fly around the room backward seven times. His belly was a tiny bit distended, but gone was the irregular hourglass figure he presented in the past.

I believe that his digestive system is still forming and the every two hours was crashing his system and not giving him time to catch up. He has since pooped up a royal storm and instead of moaning in his crate, he is quiet and sleeping.

I understand that I went away from the textbook knowledge of caring for him, but I also know that these kittens are individuals and all have different needs. Even as young as he is and the risk I took with him not to follow through with the instructions given- I didn’t put his life at risk. Apparently, Honeybear has never read that text book and meows to the beat of a different drum. And so life goes on for both of us…thank God.

(At 3:06 p.m. Honeybunny’s Bridge Pass was stamped and she hopped the train headed for the Rainbow Bridge. I am so sorry little one- you stay here was way to brief)

Both kittens are losing, not gaining weight. I am waiting for the 8:00 hour where I will call my vet and see if I can make a late afternoon appointment to get them seen. I suspect they both will need a feeding tube inserted into their tiny bodies to help them live. Both of them are now aspirating a few seconds into the feedings which is not good.
Now I understand better why Alexi was trying to harm the babies born from her.

What is also not in their favor is that the CATS Kitty is down to $5.70. There is not even enough money to cover just the cost of an office call at this time. With the changeover to the new owner, I don’t have the consideration they used to extend to me in the past.  Therefore, CATS Inc., need funds desperately if these little ones have any chance at life at all. They should be gaining weight every day- instead, they are losing weight.

And as always, we need prayers all the time-

God bless all of you-