Last night Shell vomited on her bedding. This morning although there are three clean boxes to choose from, she missed the litter pan. The plus of this- the stool was solid and normal looking. This is her way of telling me that things are still rocky for her. Sometimes, I wish I could just jump into their heads and pull out what is wrong. She has no fever, she is drinking water, she is peeing in the pan, she is active this morning but not to active.

We have an appointment to see the vet tomorrow and there will another going with us. The new arrival, the white kitty isn’t looking to good. She has red drainage out of her eyes, she is hardly eating. She is a old girl and it looks like life has really beat her up. I don’t know if she is coming home or if she is going Home. Sometimes, this house is a transit station and they come here to spend their last days; to know comfort, warmth and love does exist and finally understand (I hope) that not all humans are evil, neglectful, abusive or apathetic. I don’t even have a name for her right now. I just call her sad.

Shell is back on her heated pad now. She had ducked under the bed when I first came in which isn’t like her. We had a nasty wind storm last night- lost a huge tree out in the pasture and I am hoping this might have been what unsettled her. I know it woke me up when it came down. It was right by our creek and the bank is soggy from all the rain, the roots finally gave way and it came crashing down. It went over backwards which means it didn’t hit any of the houses at the back of our property. It is just laying over our creek and back into the woods behind the creek. More rain predicted for all week so it will be awhile before I get the tree taken care of and removed. Maybe the beavers will help out in that department. You never know.

It’s Sunday- say a prayer for Shell and white kitty if you get a chance. I have to work today and won’t be home till late. My prayers will surround this house as always.

It’s set in stone now. First, she meets me at the door with her squeaky meow. Sounding more like mice squeaking, the meow is finding its way into the world, pushing past ugly white ulcers that once barred its path. She hops on to the top of the cage waiting for her butterfly-flutters- a name I came up with when she first arrived. So crazed Shell became if I didn’t pet her and when I did, her fragile skin would break open and bleed. So, I would put the bottoms of my fingers flat against her chest and move my three fingers mimicing a bug in flight. She would lean into these gentle caresses, and now, they seem to be standard fare.

Back to the bed I go to get ready for the day. With a flying leap to outrival Secret Squirrel and Atom Ant she leaps the four feet across to the bed and now wants real time with Mom.

Twenty minutes later after she has been saturated with head rubs and gentle pets (her skin is now starting to have padding beneath it) tearing is no longer an issue, she is sated and waiting for her food.

Her food consists of a mixture of vitamins and canned goodness plus a generous dose of L-Lysine. Calicivirus was confirmed yesterday from the vet. The strain is strong causing her oral issues. Her meds are coming from Texas. She will likely have more mouth treatments but for now we wait for the meds which she will be on for life.

I clean her litterboxes and she is right there helping me. As I measure out the sand, she bumps my hand. “More Mom, I need more.” Obliging her, I keep pouring. I get a piece of dust in my eye and as I am putting eye drops in, she is again “helping” me. That gentle nudge on my upraised arm almost made me go blind for a moment when the tip of the eye wash bottle touched my eyeball! But, she was just “helping.” Clumsy human that I am, she needs to take care of me.

Three more cats arrived yesterday, older, beautiful kitties. One a stunning long-hair Siamese, Ragdoll or Himalyan mixture. My education in mouth ulcers still fresh, I check mouths- yep, there they are- more ulcers to contend with although none near as severe as those of Shell’s. The dilute, short haired Tortie is having problems walking on one back leg, again a classic sign of Calicivirus either that or a collision with a car.

They are upstairs in one room and the white one, the girl is most reclusive, hiding from me so that I can’t see what those black spots are on her tip of her ears…yet…

So the morning ritual is set in stone and each day, Shell shows me she is getting stronger. I look at her chopstick thin legs and marvel how it is she is still with us. She must have inherited the heart of a lion.

Rigby

I sure didn’t, but this morning she met me at the door just purring up a storm. Her purr is a bit wet sounding right now, but she still is fighting her URI so perhaps that is why.

Her appetite is back in fine style and she devoured her food and then asked for more.

Although her tongue does show up periodically, for the most part now, it stays tucked inside her mouth where it belongs.

Her auction has started and there are already bids on some of the items. If I am understanding the organizers of this event, more items will be introduced either daily or through the coming week.

I think that is why she chose today to purr- she is thanking everyone for taking her into their heart!

I tried to sleep with Shell last night, but she wouldn’t let me sleep. She was crawling all over me, lying on my hip when I turned on my side, curling up around my neck when I was sleeping on my tummy. It was so funny- but I finally told her I had to go back out on the couch and get some sleep!

When I woke up this morning and went into her room, she bounded up the pet stairs and landed on the bed. All full of piss and vinegar she was. We had quite the love-fest and she couldn’t get enough petting and strokes. I told her she has no idea how deep she has burrowed into my heart. So deep, I don’t think she will ever emerge.

With rescue, I try to keep my distance and most times I succeed. I have seen cats who have been through horrific situations. I have cared for near-drowning victims, hit-and runs, cats who have been battered due to domestic abuse issues, and others I won’t even relate due to the horror. And I’ve managed to only get involved with a few of them. Prowler, the polydactyl who lived for a year in the rafters of our barn. Gulliver, the kitty who was known in our part of Alaska as the traveler. He loved UPS trucks. Smudge found at 3 days old frozen in the ice and yet she survived. Dunkin who was a near drowning victim at the lake near our home.

But with Shell, there is something different about her. She embodies all these cats somehow. She is an old soul in the form of a cat and has the fight of an embattled warrior. She comforts my soul.

She is alert today, eating, and has decided that the carrier is now a bad place and she will now sleep on top of the cage covered with the clothes hanging down from the closet. But her bright eyes are sharp and she doesn’t miss a thing happening in her world.

She yawned once during the love fest and her mouth is still an angry red color- but I didn’t see any large ulcers roaming over her gums in the brief time I had to look.

Here she is:

Despite all the work done to her mouth- Missy Shell is eating baby food! YAY! Gosh I love her fighting spirit. When I go to the dentist, I don’t eat for a week afterward!

Dr. Steve called the clinic in Dallas and worked with the people there over the phone. He sedated Shell and went in and lanced her ulcers (after determining they were full of salivary juice) Then he went in and injected two shots directly into each ulcer; a cortisone shot and an antibiotic shot. He also did a swab for the calicivirus at the same time.

I picked her up on the way home from the hospital and she is alert- at least her eyes are open. She isn’t moving much right now- but who can blame her? I have her all snugged down in her cage wrapped up warmly.

I can’t even describe to you gentle readers the amount of admiration and respect I have for each of you. For supporting this kitty you have never met, for opening your hearts to her story and spreading the word about her throughout the Internet. It just blows my socks off. You are all a testament to what true cat lovers are. How deeply we feel for each feline and how large that love is (and how contagious). Thank you for spreading this love on behalf of Shell, a kitty who deserves a life, and maybe, now, with a lot more effort, tons of prayer and TLC she might just have one here with us, living in our bedroom and soaking up our love for her.

I had to leave Shell with my vet. They are going to swab her to check for the calicivirus and then he is going to talk to the Dallas Clinic and do whatever is necessary for Shell to get her poor mouth healing. Dr. Steve said he will probably lance the largest ulcer in her mouth if when he aspirates it, he gets the return of salivary juices.

Poor Shell, when I left her she was tense as a board and I gave her a gentle kiss and told her I would be back later.

I have to take Mike to the doctor today, the clinic is right down the street so I can check in with them then.

Please pray for Shell that the healing can finally begin today. She is so tired today- everything is overwhelming her.

She was so dirty looking. When she eats,she gets food all over her. I went in with a little bit of cornstarch and sprinkled just a tiny bit on her body. Very carefully with a baby brush, I started brushing her fur not putting any pressure on her body at all. No wire brushes for this girl! She rolled over on her belly and just stretched her legs out- loving the attention. She looks better, she smells better and we had a grand time bonding~ I love this kitty.

This morning, I went into the bedroom to see Shell (seashell get it?) Ok, I am sleep deprived- at any rate, I went in to talk to her and ask her what she wanted to do about all this nonsense? As I was talking to her, her bony little body was leaping onto tables, chairs and then finally up to the pet stairs onto the bed. I noticed her thick drool is back- she had just had her vitamin mixture though and that could attribute to the re-occurance of her condition. That, plus the stress of going to the vet.

She came up to me and demanded to be petted. Her eyes were bright, and when I finally stopped petting her and let my hand drop to the side, she gently took my hand in her mouth lifted my hand up slightly and dropped it back down!

This cat is so surprising. She’s like a train wreck with an energizer bunny battery inside. She just keeps going and going. So I will continue to fight on by her side, until the day comes when she is tired of the battle, weary of the skirmishes and just wants to go home.

There will be an auction held for her on the 11th. So many wonderful people and cat industry folk have donated items to be auctioned off! Autographed cat books from some of the fine folks from The Cat Writers’ Association, cat furniture, cat treats, beds, jewelry, even an outdoor feral cat house!

Here is the link to the auction, the one running now is for Bugsy and Gracie, but at midnight on the 11th it will switch over the one for Shell-

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart, for following this courageous kitty on her journey. We aren’t done-not yet.

Shell’s Auction Link

Surprisingly, Shell’s liver and kidney values are all in normal range. Her Blood, Urine, Nitrogen level not alarming. But, and there always seem to be a but…

Her WBC is through the roof at 19,000

Her Total Protein is 11.4

Her Gobulin is 8.9

The vet’s comment is that the WBC is in the FIP range, either that or cancer.

Whatever is going on is chronic and it is taking all her strength to fight it and keep going.

He doesn’t want to pull the plug on her yet. Said that “maybe” and that is a big maybe- the mouth mess is also wrecking havoc with her values. I am taking her in on Weds to get two more shots, then we wait a week or two and run the blood and see where we are.

He and I are in agreement that if at any time he or I feel she wants us to stop our efforts, we will and we will let her go.

I just got home, seemed like an awfully long shift tonight. I just wanted to get home and talk to her which is where I am headed now. I don’t think she is in any pain, but as any true cat lover knows- they hide their pain very effectively.