Lora Lee Once upon a time there was a little black kitty (soon to be named Emmet) born to a stray mommy. This little black kitty had 6 siblings and 4 cousins (who were also born on the same day to another stray mommy). Within in an hour apart, 11 black kitties were born into this big, scary world. A world that is full of dangers for a tiny kitten in the wild. Animals that would see it as a yummy snack. Diseases that would take hold of its tiny body. A big, scary world, indeed.
Luckily for this kitty and its siblings and cousins, there was a kind lady who understood the dangers that were out there. She took the 11 kittens in, vowing to find them good homes. She provided them with a warm, safe home. Plenty of yummy food and toys. And lots and lots of love. They all received names that fit their personalities and color collars, because sometimes black kitties look the same.
When the time came for the 11 black kitties to find their forever homes, the kind lady was shocked at how difficult it was to find homes for black kittens. No one seemed to want to adopt a black kitten. Why? Why is there such a stigma against black cats? She did manage to find homes for 2 of the kittens. But that still left her with 9 black kitties that no one wanted. The kind lady decided that maybe these 9 black kitties had already found their forever home with her. And they all lived happily ever after as her Kracken Kitties.
This sounds like a fairy tale. But it is actually the true story of Emmet and his siblings and cousins. And although these 9 black kitties did hit the jackpot when they were born at my house and they continue to live their most purrfect life, there were some snags in the road for Emmet. Shortly after their 1st birthday, Emmet’s brother, Captain Flint, passed away from FIP (read about FIP). In April of 2019, the cure for FIP had not been released yet. Then, 4 months later, Emmet started to show the signs and symptoms of FIP. And so began my journey with Emmet to get him healthy again.
The Beginning of Emmet’s Journey
After losing Captain Flint to FIP and knowing that it could happen to the other kittens, I quickly became a “helicopter” Cat Mom. If one of them sneezed, we were off to the vet to have a check up. The kitties and I were becoming very familiar with my vet’s office. I know they all thought I was crazy. I even thought I was crazy at times. But FIP is such a devastating disease and I wanted to make sure that if one of the other kittens had it, that I was able to catch it early on.
So, when Emmet started showing symptoms of FIP, we were at the vet instantly. I was not losing another one of these kittens. I absolutely refused. Blood work did confirm that he had the markers for FIP. He started on a round of antibiotics and a steroid. At this point, the cure for FIP is out there, but it is very expensive. After weighing all the options, I decided to try a steroid therapy to see how he would respond. I did not have the thousands of dollars that was needed to purchase the cure and hoped and prayed that this therapy would be able to buy me and Emmet some time.
The Twists and Turns
This was in August of 2019. The next two years had a lot of twists and turns. Emmet had to take antibiotics 3 different times due to high fevers. Each time, the antibiotics irritated his little stomach causing him to not want to eat. Kittens need to eat in order to grow. And Emmet needed to eat to help keep his immune system strong. It was a struggle to keep him eating like he should.
Taking his daily steroid was another challenge. He, understandably, was not a fan of having pills popped down his throat. We did manage to get into a rhythm, and he learned how to take his medicine without an issue. This might have been aided by a little dollop of whip cream after taking his pill. However, I knew that prolonged use of a steroid is not good on the organs, and I wanted to get him on the lowest dosage that we could.
We started trying to wean him down on his steroid dosage. Each time we lowered the dosage, Emmet would be fine for a few days and then he would relapse, and we would have to increase again. Some of the relapses would be accompanied by a fever and we were back on antibiotics again. We finally got to a 1/2 pill every other day routine that seemed to work.
Surprises I Discovered Along the Way
I consider myself to be a very spiritual person. One who believes that all living things have energy and sometimes that energy strays off its course. I believe in the power of the mind and our thoughts. I believe in the power of manifestation and visualization. When Emmet first got sick, I would lie on the bed with him and just pet him. I would move my hands slowly down his body and visualize healing light moving through his body ridding it of disease and infection. I did this every night for over a year. And it worked! Each day he got stronger and stronger and better and better. I now know this as Animal Reiki and have since become certified and still practice it with all of my cats.
Emmet started taking daily supplements from The-Two-Crazy-Cat-Ladies, starting with Catalyst. Then after a few months, I added Oxy-Cat. Finally added B12 this past summer. Each supplement helped Emmet become stronger and healthier. It was amazing. Adding supplements to your cat’s diet is something every cat parent should do for their babies. Read about the supplements I use here.
And speaking about diet. This was the biggest surprise that I found with Emmet. Up to last August, Emmet’s diet consisted of wet food along with an all you can eat buffet of dry food. I had no clue this was one of the worst things that I could be doing for him to get him healthy. Eventually, I woke up to the benefits of a species appropriate raw food diet and that was when I started seeing a major improvement in Emmet and his health.
Emmet’s Fairy Tale Ending
So, how has Emmet’s fairy tale played out. Well, in September of 2020, I was finally able to afford to get Emmet the FIP cure. We had a complete blood panel done and sent it off to the vets with FIP Warriors. They got back to me with some surprising news. Based on his most recent blood work, they did not believe that Emmet had FIP anymore. This can happen when a cat’s immune system becomes strong enough to fight off the FIP. This is not to say that the dreadful disease could not show up again, but at this point Emmet does not have FIP.
My next step was to get Emmet off of his steroid. Even though he was on a very low dosage, it was still a steroid that was affecting his organs every time he took his pill. January of 2022, I brought Emmet back to see his fans at the vet’s office for another complete blood panel and full physical. The vet was amazed. She had never seen him look this good and healthy. She even said that she would not believe that he had been diagnosed at one point with FIP if she hadn’t been the one treating him. We were given the “all clear” to start weaning him off the steroids and to keep doing whatever I have been doing. We dropped down to 1/2 pill every 3 days with the goal to drop to 1/2 pill once a week and then no pills.
It has now been a month that Emmet has been off steroids, and he is doing fantastic! I am following my vet’s instructions to keep doing whatever I have been doing. So, Emmet get his daily supplements mixed in with his species appropriate raw diet. He also receives daily Reiki and love affirmations. And, of course, he still does get a little dollop of whip cream, because I am not 100% convinced that the whip cream didn’t help cure his FIP. Just saying.
I love this mini panther so very much. We have bonded over the past 3 years. He is my buddy, my little boy. There is nothing that I wouldn’t do for him to ensure that he is happy and healthy. Today, April 4th is Emmet’s and the rest of the Kracken Kitties 4th birthday. Emmet has come so far over the past few years, and I am so happy that I was able to give him a fairy tale ending.
“Cats leave paw prints in your heart, forever and always.” – Unknown
