Daily Photo: Two Special Rescues I’ve Been Waiting to Meet
This is Old Grand Dad and Frankencat, a blind and deaf geriatric pit bull and a one-eyed FeLV+ cat who are best buds, two animals rescued from frightening fates through the kindness of a number of rescuers. I met them and their caretaker today to write a story about their remarkable relationship, rescues and lives.
Old Grand Dad, or OGD as he’s referred to, was rescued last year from a shelter where his fate at his age with his infirmities was clear, but he’s happily living out his days with Heather Long who also has other rescued pit bull dogs along with other breeds.
Frankencat was found on the street with an infected eye, and badly-healed broken jaw and a necrotic face wound, and his recovery from all this was decidedly uncertain, especially when his FeLV+ test came back positive. He was rescued by volunteers from the Pittsburgh Feral Cat Movement and was treated by Dr. Morrow and Lindsay Joyce at the Tarentum clinic until he was ready to go to a foster home. Because of his wounds and his need for medications along with his FeLV status it was considered best if he went to a home without cats to help reduce the chances of spreading the virus to other cats. So he ended up with Heather and her crew, and the best place to confine him was in a cage in the room with OGD.
The rest is history, which you’ll read about next week.
Here is Heather with her four very good, friendly, playful dogs and a buddy who was on a sleepover for the weekend. Her bond with each of them was very clear.
And thanks to Heather and Dr. Michelle Elgersma, who acted as my assistant today, for getting a few photos of me! Frankencat is friendly but two of us smelling like strange cats and me with camera were a little too much for him, or perhaps my Friday hair made me look like a strange species.
OGD is good at napping, and because he is unsteady enough to need confinement when he’s not under supervision and can’t sleep on the bed with the humans, Heather added a lion to the room wearing one of her sleep shirts for OGD to cuddle with. Franken, in OGD’s cage, still isn’t sure what species I am.
I will feature their story next Tuesday as my weekly rescue story.
Inspired by felines you know! Visit Portraits of Animals on Etsy.
All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop or Fine Art America profile to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.
© 2014 | www.TheCreativeCat.net | Published by Bernadette E. Kazmarski
—
Weekly schedule of features:
Sunday: Essays, Pet Loss, Poetry, The Artist’s Life
Monday: Adoptable Cats, TNR & Shelters
Tuesday: Rescue Stories
Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork
Thursday: New Merchandise
Friday: Bok Review, Health and Welfare, Advocacy
Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats
And sometimes, I just throw my hands in the air and have fun!
—
Pingback: The Creative Cat - Devoted to the End: Frankencat and Old Grand Dad
Pingback: The Creative Cat - Friendship and Assistance, Old Grand Dad and Frankencat Rescued Each Other