Altaira

Ken Pope

a cat with her head down is looking up at you

When we adopted Altaira 4 years ago, she had to go straight to intensive care for a while.

She'd been found outside with a wounded paw, sick, severely dehydrated, with neurological symptoms, unregulated diabetes, and a urinary infection.

A remarkable array of specialists -- including a neurologist, internist, radiologist, and several critical care experts -- managed to pull her through so we could bring her home where she immediately made friends with the other special needs dogs and cats.

Here she is with some of her friends...

Sleeping pressed up against Dharma, a blind dog with an atypical seizure disorder:

a little cat and dog are pressed against each other as they sleep

Spending time with Pookie, whose owner, an elderly woman with terminal cancer, had been forced to find another home for when she went into a hospital for her final days:

2 cats share a bed

Snuggling with Calypso, a cat whose lack of eyes never seems to bother him:

2 cats snuggle together on the couch

Playing with Aurora, a a cat who'd been left in a box, soaked in gasoline, her spine so damaged that her back legs were permanently paralyzed:

2 little cats play with each other on the floor

Sound asleep, leaning on Jason, a cat who'd been found barely alive by the side of the road, his spine fractured, half his tail torn off, with permanent cognitive impairment and difficulty walking more than a few steps without falling over:

one cat leans against another as they sleep

She's been such a sweet, gentle, affectionate part of our family, and all of us feel the impact of her death.

 

Please follow this link to the other special-needs dogs and cats who live as a family in our home.

 

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