The Gift of Life – a Tenth Life
In late 2010, a generous donor provided the seed funding to create an account dedicated to helping cats with extraordinary veterinary needs. The fund, which we call the Tenth Life Club (TLC), is used to provide life-saving medical care for cats that would otherwise be euthanized. In the past seven years, FieldHaven has saved dozens of cats and kittens using money donated to the Tenth Life Club.
Here are their stories:
CRAISEN is a true miracle. Last winter, he was found nearly frozen to death. Upon arrival at FieldHaven, he had no measurable temperature, was anemic, emaciated, dangerously dehydrated, and hypothermic. He also had severe dental disease, unequal pupils, and was diagnosed FIV+. It took seven hours to slowly raise his temperature to 94 degrees, and three more days before he had a normal temperature of 101 degrees. Craisen faced many obstacles in the weeks he recuperated in the med room, including possible liver damage. He faced them with the determination of a champion and, after only four weeks, he was adopted.
LAUREN was playing with her littermates as kittens will do, especially precocious ones. However, after she took a tumble, she wasn’t able to walk on her left hind leg. X-rays revealed a fracture. She underwent surgery, which involved inserting a pin down her femur and attaching it to two external stabilizing pins. Lauren was a perfect little patient and tolerated her treatments and bandage changes very well. After eight weeks, her pins were removed and she recovered fantastically, so much that her foster dad adopted her.
THE PANLEUK PALACE. When your cat receives its FVRCP vaccine, the P is for Panleukopenia, commonly called “Feline Distemper.” Panleukopenia is a highly contagious viral disease caused by the feline parvovirus, which disproportionately affects kittens. Sadly, many are euthanized at shelters. Our FieldHaven staff and veterinarians apply a highly effective panleuk protocol, and this year, accepted ten feral kittens that had been exposed to the virus. Because of the extremely contagious nature of the disease, the kittens were treated at our off-site isolation facility, dubbed “the Panleuk Palace.” Staff and trained volunteers oversee their care through treatment and recovery. It is a long, labor-intensive process, but helping these kittens survive and thrive makes it all worth it.
These are among the extraordinary treatments and procedures FieldHaven administers with the skills of our veterinary staff. Your donations to the Tenth Life Club will ensure cats and kittens in need of critical care will continue to receive it.
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