Member-only story
“Be Kind and Let Her Die Gently.”
But I Could Not!
I was at my Vet with my feral foundling of around five weeks old.
Cute little tuxedo but unable to walk on all fours. The kitten tried to escape, crawling under old farm equipment with front paws and dragging the hind legs. The fear in the kitty’s little face and pathetic soft meow was too hard to swallow.
Well, I thought I have an excellent Vet. I know she will help this unfortunate kitty. But no. Bad news! She says the kitty has swimmers' Syndrome, a genetic fault for which there is no cure. “Is there therapy & nutrition to strengthen the hind legs gradually,” I ask?
“The kindest thing to do for this cat is to put her to sleep today,” says the Vet. “She will never have a quality cat life, doing what cats do, with the dragging hind legs. I think it is unkind to the cat. People have bound the back legs and tried manual exercises, but you cannot correct a genetic error.”
“No, Doctor, I will take care of the disabled kitty. The sweet little face appeals to me. I think this cat wants to live.”
The story began 14 months ago—no name kitty lived in my sunroom. She ate voraciously and gained weight. I added beef broth collagen to her food and watched her as she tried her darndest to use her hind legs.
