When you go to a backyard breeder who is “growing” pets as their cash crops you often get an expensive, sick, inbred animal. Here is what happened to Louise when she drove three hours to a filthy home to adopt an eight-week-old Persian calico kitten.
“When I arrived, there was an overwhelming odor coming from the house,” said Louise. “I almost left but thought, ‘I drove three hours to get here’ and went in and was shown four unkempt-crying kittens. To save the smallest of them, I adopted her, and named her Jazzi because her coloring is snazzy.
When she was six months, she began constantly licking her lips and swallowing hard. Her vet diagnosed her with Eosinophilic Granuloma, known as Rodent Ulcers, where her mouth and digestive track is painfully ravaged with ulcers. The vet sent us to Boston’s Angel Memorial Animal Hospital where a specialist was waiting.
She took Jazzi from my arms and rushed her to surgery. It took an hour to remove the lesions and she was not expected to make it.
After surgery, I looked at her little face and asked, 'What would have happened to you if I did not take you home?' She looked at me and gave a silent 'Meow. I told her 'Good girl! It's okay!' She slowly blinked in appreciation. One thing for sure is that Jazzi is a fighter. Her weakened immune system manifests ongoing ulcers. She’s battled the effects of that backyard breeder for nine years."
When the ulcers flare up Jazzi can’t eat. Louise wakes up several times during the night to administer medications and syringe feed her cat nutrients with the reassuring words, "Good girl. It's okay!" At which, Jazzi meows, returns a slow blink and tries eating a little.
Louise’s dedication has her giving up vacations, theater, dinner plans and cancelling friends visits when the ulcers flare up.
After four or five days of medications Jazzi is back to her happy playful-self, zooming from room to room, making chirping sounds chasing an imaginary bug.
“Yes! She is a wild-crazy nine-year-old kitten,” laughed Louise. “I’ve spent money on cat toys to find her playing with a ball of paper, the corner of an egg carton or an empty shoe box. She tackles boxes like she's playing tackle football.
When I am working on the laptop, Jazzi is beside me playing on ‘her’ iPad. She took it over to play her video games, fishing for cats and mouse. She is also an avid watcher of Birds and Squirrels Extravaganza on U tube. When I’m on a Zoom meeting Jazzi sits on the keyboard. She jumps up thinking that I am putting on her video. She peers into the screen and to everyone's delight she politely meows as they talk to her.
At night, I say, ‘Let's go. Time for bed.’ Jazzi waits for me to climb in bed then she jumps up and lays down beside my pillow. I rub my thumb back and forth across her nose and she licks it as if she’s having a face wash with my thumb - purring the entire time while giving me slow satisfying blinks. Then she pushes my hand down, and puts her head in the palm of my hand and we both fall asleep purring. The best end to the day!
I describe Jazzi as the million-dollar cat because of her health issues, but she is a gem with a million-dollar personality. She is not show quality and for all she has endured she qualifies as a Champion in my eyes. I've dedicated my life and bank account keeping her alive and never given much thought about the money. I would do it all over again because of the love she’s gifted me.”
