12/21/20 – What a weekend. It started with Mickey. His rescuer called early Saturday morning to tell me that her son had tested positive for covid and that she was experiencing chest pains. She had gone to the doctor who said the chest issues were a result of anxiety. The rescuer wasn’t confident of that and felt she was unable to take care of Mickey because Dr. Z had told her to keep Mickey away from her son and anyone who may have covid. Thankfully, between Dr. Zalac and our friend Emily K. who has taken on Mileena, I learned more about the virus and pets and Emily found a foster for Mickey who can keep him in a separate room — quarantined, So, once we had Mickey scheduled to go to a safe place, I called Dr. Z to find out more about pets and covid because although I had heard speculation early on about pets and covid, I haven’t heard anything since. Dr. Z advised that her research indicates that cats are susceptible to contracting covid from humans; the jury is still out as to whether cats can transmit the virus to humans or other animals. At this time dogs don’t seem to be as susceptible but the jury is still out. After 14 days of quarantine, Mickey will have exploratory and corrective surgery. (see his story in an earlier post). – diana

12/19/20 – Another happy photo. This is our dear friend, Liz and her pal, Dino. Read Dino’s story on our website. He was taken in by Gina when she worked in emergency. After surgeries and a great deal of care he was adopted by a LONG-time friend of my family. Dino looks amazing!! – diana

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12/17/20 – Freddie Update — Freddie is now home with his foster mom. Debra picked him up and, thankfully, no surgery was needed. Dr. Z took additional x rays today and no blockages were discovered. Freddie is on medication and he will be watched closely. Thank you to all of our dear friends who work together to save these sweet, abandoned and stray animals. – diana

1 2/17/20 – Please pray for this little guy. At this time we have 3 serious cases under the medical guidance and skills of Dr. Zalac of Orion Animal Hospital. Freddie is one of them. He was originally rescued from a nearby mobile home park. When our friend, Jo A., got him he was shaking uncontrollably and cried all night.

He was only about 6 weeks old and appeared to be doing well over the past couple of weeks but over the past few days he stopped eating and was vomiting. Fortunately, when we were advised, Dr. Z squeezed him in and saw him last night. Dr. Z is concerned over a blockage and the fact that he is so small. He stayed the night at the hospital and will be further examined today. I have already authorized surgery if that is needed. Also, a huge thank you to our friend Debra Berolatti who traveled many miles through yesterday’s snow to take Freddie to the hospital and will be picking him up when ready. Paws crossed that this little guy will get through this safely and have many good years ahead of him. – diana

12/16/20 – Every day I get multiple requests to assist either rescue organizations or independent rescuers with stray animals they have either found on the streets or saved from a neglectful or abusive situation. As I’ve said before, I try not to overload our fb page with the cases with several posts a day so here are some of the cats we have assisted over the past few months with spay/neuter, vaccines, testing, and flea/parasite medication. Many times, the cats also have upper respiratory infections and we always take care of that too. Here is Zelda, Bella, Ashley, Bear, and Angelica. We always offer to place these animals on our Petfinder page if they are adoptable but often the rescuer wants to keep the animal or have already found an adopter. Without the Village these animals would not have a chance! – diana

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12/15/20 – Calling for prayers for this very sweet boy who was abandoned when his family moved and was left to fend for himself. A kind woman who tries to assist stray cats was able to catch Mickey who kept hanging around his former home and brought him to All About Animals to get vetted. Her intention was to find him a permanent home — actually she thought Mickey was a Minnie because when Mickey was examined at AAAR, there were ‘complications’ with his male ‘parts’. A friend of 4p1h who works there suggested the rescuer contact us and so did our friend. Thankfully, our great veterinary at Orion Animal Hospital, Dr. Zalac, got him in the next day after I contacted her (today) and she called me after the examination. This is the huge issue. Last night Mickey started bleeding from his rectum and today Dr. Z said she could feel a penis but she could not feel any testicles. She suspects that Mickey may be a hermaphrodite and only by doing exploratory surgery will we know what the real condition is. As far as the blood — it could be a reaction to stress which can happen. So in short for now, Dr. Z will be running some tests and providing antibiotics if needed. In 2 weeks, we will determine next steps for this little guy/girl. Of course, this is all predicated on his FIV/FeLV. I will let you know more when I hear. – diana

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12/14/20 – There are those easy cases, and then there are those that break your heart. Last week I received a request from a person who does everything he can to rescue and home stray animals who are abandoned near his home. We have helped on several occasions and, this time, is was for Ripley and Luna. They both showed up amongst the many cats Jim cares for. Ripley, a 6-month old, had very runny eyes and it appeared he had an upper respiratory infection. Little Luna, a two-month old, was very lethargic and seemed to have difficulty breathing and was struggling. Both were taken to Dr. Zalac at Orion Animal Hospital. Ripley was treated for the infection but Luna was found to have a hole in her diaphragm. Weighing in at 1.5 lbs. and in very poor physical health, surgery was a very high risk. After discussion between the doctor, Jim, and I, it was decided to let little Luna cross the Rainbow Bridge and relieve her of her suffering.

RIP – Luna. May you be enjoying the kitten life with all of the other kitties. – diana

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