Scrufty was part of the original group of cats who were abandoned by a neighbor in Dec 2006. Ever since we got to know Scrufty about 2 ½ years ago, she has been somewhat lethargic, sleeping more than the average cat. When she moves around, she is fairly sprightly. But she seems to prefer a life as a couch potato. I just thought it was either her personality or the fatigue born of having a rough life. She sort of blended into the furniture while I was tending to the problems of the others. Scrufty is a fairly gentle domesticated cat, yet always avoiding humans and other cats.

Recently, it occurred to me that her excessive fur loss in the winter might be a symptom of something wrong with her. I mentioned this to a friend, along with the symptoms of her flinching when I touch her head and her tendency to mind any cold weather. My friend suggested she could have a thyroid problem, basing her theory on experience with one of her cats. Also, according to her, thyroid treatments are relatively inexpensive.

At the vets, I discovered that Scrufty has a very advanced stage of gum disease. Plus, her teeth are extremely rotten. I pray she has not been suffering with this infection for the whole 3 years. I never inspected her mouth since she always gave off the vibe of not wanting to be touched. Perhaps her flinching was due to being in pain. The vet says her fur loss is likely due to the long-term infection in her mouth. I would have never suspected that connection.

I have been through teeth extractions before with two other abandoned cats. So I know the price ranges of local vets for the procedure of a total extraction. I arranged with the one with the best deal for me to bring her there 12/21/2009 so she will get 2 days of antibiotic injections before her surgery on 12/23. My husband and I tried a number of ways to get antibiotics into her. (could not use the food method since we have cats who stay overnight in the same room). But Scrufty went wild, bearing her teeth and refusing to let me put the syringe in her mouth, which is probably quite sore. I am grateful that this vet is taking her for the two days before surgery without charging me anything for boarding. I just have to bring her food and litter. She has to have the pre-treatment of antibiotic or surgery could cause mouth bacteria to destructively spread more completely through her system.

We contemplated putting Scrufty down since my finances are extremely stretched by so many cat surgeries this past year. My goal has always been to reduce their suffering, not to keep them living at all cost. But, since she seems to be only 4 years only, and the vet thinks her quality of life will improve after the rotten teeth are out and the infection disappears, we thought it only fair to give her another chance.

It will cost me a minimum of $370.00 if nothing extra is needed in surgery. So, I hope some of you reading this who have not done so before would consider donating with the PayPal button above and to the right of this post. Donations to the animal rescue agencies I work with locally are way down. So I am on my own.

Hopefully, we will be able to reverse Scrufty’s infection and fur loss. I told my husband this is the last high-cost procedure we are going to spring for until I can get these major bills paid off. I am praying that the others will stay healthy for a long time to come. Fortunately, most of the feral/abandoned in our colony are relatively young.

Debby Taylor DTConsult@cableone.net

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