Will Jitterbug’s New Year Shine?
It was two days before Christmas when Jitterbug arrived at FieldHaven Feline Center. He’s perfect in every way except for one thing: he has tremors, or jitters, constantly.
ack up to two weeks ago. Jitterbug, a tiny tabby cat literally fell out of the undercarriage of a truck during a routine truck stop, likely having been up there to keep warm overnight. The truck driver, seemingly unaware, sped off, but thankfully, a kind couple saw the cat and rushed to help him. They called the nearest animal agency, Gridley Animal Services.
Upon noticing his tremors, they first thought he was cold. When warming him up didn’t help, they thought it could be related to the truck incident. Whatever it was, they knew they needed more resources to give Jitterbug a chance—and that FieldHaven would be the best option to save him.
When Jitterbug arrived at FieldHaven, Joy, our executive director, met him. She instantly knew Jitterbug was going to be special. He was sweet and playful, happy, and affectionate. She called Dr. Vernau who specializes in neurology at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and set up a consultation. Then, we visited Companion Veterinary Clinic for blood tests to rule out any critical conditions requiring immediate care. Interestingly, his blood work came back unremarkable.
We’ve noticed Jitterbug is calmer and the tremors almost stop when he is being held close to someone. He also does better sitting than standing—his back legs seem to be stronger. The tremors have not gotten worse; but they haven’t gotten better, either. Watching him is hard, because we don’t yet know what is wrong, but we see his personality and his desire to thrive. He is so happy, he purrs nonstop, and his current quality of life is actually really good. You know what that means—we’re going to fight for Jitterbug.
Will YOU help us fight for Jitterbug?
Next week is our consultation at UC Davis for Jitterbug. He’ll receive several diagnostic tests to thoroughly analyze the heart, brain, spine, and nerves. He’ll have biopsies to look at muscle tissue and possible nerve damage.
We know this is an investment, but Jitterbug deserves our help. We need to raise about $5,000 to cover everything. Our goal is to give Jitterbug hope in 2023 and make his new year bright. Will you help us do that by donating to Jitterbug?
Every amount matters. Think about the impact if everyone gave even just $10, then you asked your family and friends to donate! We CAN do this, and we WILL do this—but we need your help. Please, help us give Jitterbug a chance and ring in the new year by saving a life. There is nothing more valuable.
P.S. We’ll be sharing videos and updates on our social media pages regarding Jitterbug’s journey. Be sure to follow us to see those and know that we’ll have an update by email as soon as we can, too. Thank you for donating to Jitterbug. Your gift is so important to help us give him a fresh start in 2023.
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