...but I got the news from Matt's mom earlier today that Blue didn't make it through the night. He went into what sounded like some sort of respiratory crisis, which makes me suspect he probably had pneumonia or even heartworm.
He tested negative for FIV and FeLV but apparently something else -- something we couldn't see or diagnose in time -- was wrong. He may well have been sick even before he and Dominique and Michelle showed up in December. And it could be he got exposed to some random germ at the clinic during neutering which he couldn't fight off due to an already weakened immune system. And he could have been much older than all of us thought.
At this point there's no way to know for sure. I keep wanting to blame myself anyway -- as in, maybe I should have pushed to get the runny eyes checked out prior to taking him to the TNR clinic. But given I've seen many, many cats with runny eyes turn out just fine it just didn't occur to me that Blue's condition could be that serious. And the clinic people apparently didn't notice anything egregriously amiss either. So whatever it was, it only reached critical badness levels over the past two days. And none of the other cats seem to have similar symptoms right now so I doubt it's going to turn into some horrible epidemic.
In any case I guess I am at least glad Blue got to see "his kittens" to the colony, where they will both hopefully go on to lead much longer, healthier, and happier lives now that they've been spayed and (by the looks of it) accepted into the feline social network.
I wish Blue had gotten to enjoy a "new lease on life" for more than the few months he spent with the colony, but I imagine he was glad to spend the time there that he did.
Rest in peace, sweet Protector of Kittens. You will be missed.
[Oh and BTW just because I realized the date just after initially posting this...I would NEVER EVER write something like this as an "April Fool". That would just be horrendously evil.]
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Very sorry to hear about Blue. Don't think about what could have been done, it doesn't help.
ReplyDeleteHe's happy at the Bridge now, and that's what matters.
He is fortunate that during his life he had people who cared about him.
ReplyDeleteOh no. :( Poor blue.
ReplyDeleteThere is no way this can be your fault. Like you said, lots of cats have runny eyes and turn out fine, and this doesn't sound like something that would be expected at all. You did everything possible when it was apparent his condition was serious, and I think most cats in his apparent condition would have lived.
Thanks everyone. I went to Matt's parents' today and was at least able to locate Dominique and Michelle and verify that they're still fine. JB/Tuxie is okay too, he was running around in the driveway. I didn't see Mimi or the other tiny girl but they're very shy and usually only come around at night. One thing I am learning in all this, at any rate, is that getting involved with cats in this capacity really necessitates a drive to not give up even when upsetting things happen.
ReplyDeleteAnd no matter how hard you try, you're bound to lose some cats simply due to the unfortunate probabilities of nature and your own inability to control every possible variable. That doesn't make it any less awful when one of them does pass, but I think it's important not to let the awfulness serve to discourage further effort. So I will certainly continue to try getting this colony properly sorted. I figure that's at least a fitting tribute to the ones that didn't make it.
My condolences for Blue, to you, and the human and feline families that miss him.
ReplyDelete