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Bee Holistic Cat Rescue and Care

Time to Reflect...

3/18/2020

The quarantine has allowed us more time to be with our cats (no vet visits or events) and to call friends and family. Which is nice! 4-8 more weeks are projected by our Gov. Newsome...Hey! Rump says we'll be over it by Easter: what gives haha. Need to cut off his access to the media..it's costing lives...er, more lives...now. Valerie Plame (Outed CIA agent) has been raising funds in order to buy Twitter and cut off his account. Brilliant!! https://www.gofundme.com/f/buytwitter...I digress. Have not inserted 'political' stuff till now, but dire times...I hope our cats don't lose any supporters! In any case...

My husband and I are loving the extra time we have to be with our cats here! We currently have twenty-five, including two Siamese boarders who will need an outdoor situation when healed. We can help with relocation...it's tricky; they're 'feral'. Beauties both, Siamese with a tad o' tiger. Here's one...ears down= wariness. The photo below it is the best I could do for his brother...long-haired and gorgeous...
If you know of a farm or of anyone with a big yard who would like two outdoor cats, please contact us!
510-237-1190.

It's ten days since I started this post..time to wrap it up! Read New Yorker article by a woman who has been confined in China..how different, how much better the response! How much longer the quarantine...our trials are just beginning, I'm certain...husband came back today not finding disinfectant or gloves anywhere...
Cats can't get to the vet...phone consultations and pick-ups of meds workin', AND! Thank goodness for my homeopath! She has fixed up two of mine: Heather had a skin sensitivity of some sort...raw spots all under her neck, and scabs on her in other places. Usual suspect is flea allergy...she also had what looked like a cold...she's the one with the bone anomalies..we love her! And, Little Maggie has something unprecedented here...runny poo along with vomiting bile and blood. THAT"S fixed too...thank you VERY much, Dr. Barrett!!
In the photo below, Heather is on the left, Maggie on the right!
Love to all, and stay safe!

Da Boyz and Rodney: Oh boy.

2/22/2020

It's the run-up to kitten season: shouldn't be taking in so many, but...I'm not ordering the universe. Two Siamese mix boys came in from (as always) a bad situation. One, bless him, had infected feet, pads, "pillow pad", which is torture: Can't walk without pain, pads actually burst...can't compete for food then. NOT fun; not fair! Fortunately, not too common either, although I've had my share. The brother had a very large abcess on his neck, not as hard to fix. And not on his FEET! They were comfortable with their feeder, who must move, but not so much here with me. The pillow pad takes months to completely heal. These photos are the best I could get of them. the handsome guy in the bed is the one with the pillow pad. Ears back still, but he stays in his bed when I enter the room. At first he'd flee to the safety of the tunnel, in the next photo, where his brother is.

Rodney, below, came in yesterday, from a (much) worse situation. Abuse. Nuff said. No, Terrible Abuse. I can't get him to my holistic vet this weekend, begged for an appt. asap. He's skeletal, with missing fur, and weak. He drags his back legs. He does eat!! small amounts. No stool passed for a week, eek. gave an enema. TMI? Gave a bath; he's incontinent. He has a lot of healing to do. Send prayers! On the good side, he is The Sweetest cat ever. And a loving caretaker who for good reasons relating to the abuse, can't keep him where he was. giving fluids, hand feeding, keeping him close and loved.

Cat O' the Day: Jerome! The new guy...

2/16/2020

Yes he's a mess...but not for long! He still won't let me pick him up, but when he's eating I can work on his mats a bit...he's calmer than when he arrived, traumatized, two days ago. He had an unwelcome vet appointment, got neutered, given antibiotics (his mouth needs attention badly) and got micro-chipped. His saving grace is that he's eating well! And he's responding positively to my touch now! Raises his back end. He's thin and dehydrated (got fluids at the vet; wish I could give him more: maybe in a day or two) he's an older guy, and lord only knows what all he's been through. Jerome!! You're save and loved now! His rescuer has come to visit him... a friend and husband of one of our board members.

Day two: looking a little better! Getting the lay of the land here. Isn't he gorgeous??

Cat O' the Day: GLoria

2/11/2020

This is the text from Gloria's first fundraiser...she had come far, and this is how she began:

I'm Cynthia at Bee Holistic Cat Rescue and Care in Richmond, CA. I'm raising funds for the on-going treatment of Gloria, to help her walk again after a head injury. She has seen several doctors, and they agree that she had suffered a head injury. Gloria was brought to me by a concerned man, who had found her in his warehouse. She was three months old, and not afraid of humans, which means that she had been in a home. It's sad to think, but someone must have abandoned her, as she could not have gotten there on her own. She would just fall over whenever she tried to move. She has a sunny disposition, and lets us know what she needs at all times! She's quite the gal! AND!! She has improved under the care of Drs. Anne Reed for general care and acupuncture, and of Dr. Margaret Holiday, the chiropractor Gloria can now manage to stand for minutes at a time, and to get around a bit. She is keeping her balance better, and recovering more quickly from her falls. Her treatments are expensive, and will be on-going for some time, but a full recovery is expected! This little one someone threw away is deserving of a great life. We are thrilled at her progress, and will be grateful for any help you can give to get her well again!

Gloria has been with us almost four years now...and, hard as it is to see her fall, and fall, and fall again, sometimes backwards, sometimes hard, she has been a joy and an inspiration to us. She is other wise sturdy and robust. We have never had her spayed, as the sedation would be too risky, they say. We go through the heat cycles with her, which have interestingly become less frequent. At the moment, I will be talking with her main doctor to see about getting her teeth cleaned without sedation...

Cat O' The Day: Bina II

2/7/2020

I posted this photo first, as Bina is reclusive. She came late to my colony on Wildcat Creek, just south of San Pablo Dam Road, where the creek goes under San Pablo Ave and comes out on the other side, behind Tulare Ave. I came to this colony and its twin inside the Alvarado Apartments, when a pair of twins called me about a kitten in a tree there. Long story short, the kitten came down, and I discovered that there were sixty-plus cats and babies there. Thirteen years later now, and Bina is, I think, the last. I'm not sure, as the wise management, after I'd trapped and neutered all the others, and, over the years, found homes for them or lost them by attrition, decided that they didn't want me there any more. Bina and her brother showed up at the creekside south of the apartments maybe five years ago. There were a few others there too, notably Summer, who was incredibly hard to trap. It took several springs and several beautiful litters before she went into a drop trap. The drop trap took two weeks...another story. Here's Summer:

Summer produced the most beautiful babies...many long-haired. They all found great homes, in pairs. I don't know how old she was, but one day I found her body down in the creek. Fortunately, my husband could crawl down the bank and bring her body up. She had a service and is buried here...
One by one, the few others with Bina, got sick and came home to die peacefully. One, I felt, preferred to die there, and he is buried here too. Bina's brother disappeared a few years ago. One little friendly tiger male showed up, was taken home with me and adopted. Since then, Bina has been the only one there. She comes out of the bushes now when I arrive, and cries hello. The bank has eroded so much that I can't get into the trees where no one could see us. But I keep a low profile, clear water dish close by the fence, and a flat green plate. Bina has been healthy, and may have friends down the creek a way, near Montoya Gardens apartments. I hear there are cats there....more work looming, I think.

Cat O' the Day: Layna

2/5/2020

Yes, they're all different...and some more different than others...Layna is here with us after her three siblings were adopted years back...she sprays. Yes..females do! Layna here doesn't spray often; just when we start to think she's over doing it...
We're fearful that a new guardian might not be sufficiently understanding, and that she'd be at risk. Our adoption agreement states that the adoptee be returned to us if for any reason, it "doesn't work out"...our human families don't abandoned their kids, (usually) when problems crop up, thankfully...but in humans' defense,with their animals, they often just don't know how to manage a problem, get bad advice, or no useful advice, feel inadequate to the care of the animaland give up.
So Layna stays here!! She is gorgeous, easy-going, no trouble at all...what's a bit of spraying now and again, eh?

Cat O' the Day: Bruna!

1/25/2020

Gorgeous here came to us on April 3 of 2019, very pregnant...and delivered five lovely, healthy babies two days later. She was a great mother, as virtually all of them are, and the babies thrived. They were soon joined by Eliza and her three, with whom, unusually, she was reluctant to share a room. Eliza and her three were moved immediately! Usually the feral mothers co-exist peacefully.

Bruna let us into her room, wary but understanding that she and the babies were safe.

Time went on, babies found homes, after twelve months old or older, with two remaining to this day..Bruna stayed in the back three rooms of the house. One other mom and five were there, and the babies all mixed and mingled. Bruna got spayed...see the eartip in the first photo. I had thought of releasing her, as she had had a caretaker, but when he came to visit, she did not want to say hello, and we decided she'd be better off here. He had been feeding her at the edge of a shopping center..dangerous and who knows how permanent a situation. We were right: the man never called again.

Bruna finally moved out of the back bathroom (it's big, with lots of windows) into the middle room with the other mother. Fun was had, at least for the babies. The other mother was not trusting of humans. I had to put a barrier between the babies when they were too little to jump down onto the condo from the cage, as they needed to be handled in order to learn to trust humans...
Bruna spent a LOT of time on this counter...but slowly, at a glacial pace, started to move around, to use the window seat, to come to the door to the rest of the house...still unfolding,her blossoming. The other cats, including her kittens, come into her space, and one sits with her on the window seat a lot...I can pet him, and thus come closer to being able to pet her...

After she got spayed, and before it got cold, I left the door from the back bathroom to the yard open, but she never ventured out...Will do again when it warms up...I like to be able to pick them up, to not have them run from me, before I let them out, but....we'll see how things unfold. Love you, Bruna!!

Cats O' the Day: Miller & Maybelline!

1/23/2020

These two stick together! They were born here on April 3, 2019, to a mom from the streets. They grew up with humans, and the other kittens we took in during the 2019 'kitten season'. We had four mothers, and between their babies and the orphaned kittens these great moms took in, about 20 little ones. Wheee!! They were all in three rooms on one side of the house, and co-existed fine, as cats always do...
Miller and Maybelline are now 14 months old. Miller is huge! Big and soft...with a brownish tinge to his fur. Maybelline is more solid black, and a bit smaller. They don't put themselves forward: quiet and unassuming, they are. But they are always responsive when we stroke them...and purr at a touch. the still stick together, and often join other members of the Black Cat Club.

Not their most elegant poses...

MS Maybelline, if you please!

AND Miller!

Another Day, Another Miracle!

12/21/2019

Ms. Heather!

Heather! Hard to top her for amazing resilience and recuperative powers...
I have not written about her anywhere: how to relate her story, how to explain the inexplicable?
Heather was brought to me by a dear friend and intrepid cat lady this last May. She came from a colony in Tara Hills; had slipped through the cracks of a big trapping/neutering effort there. She was tiny (first photo) and had, despite being badly crippled, had managed to creep onto the steps of a house there. I take in difficult cases, and she proved to be one of the most amazing ever!
Heather was about four weeks old: she could eat on her own. But she was tiny! And she had bent, stiff legs, with a big knob on one elbow. No one ever diagnosed her fully. Here initial x-rays (now ‘rads’) were startling. She had no femoral knob on one back leg, and no hip socked there either. Okay...and the rest of her skeleton wasn't perfect either :-) But she was a happy, otherwise healthy, little one.
Heather managed well, grew, got to be friends with the others, and saw our holistic vet for supplements to her diet. She couldn’t jump, but she could get around well.
One day she started to exhibit signs of dying. She stopped eating or drinking, producing urine or stool, extended her neck, as they do. (Gail Pope at Brighthaven has a lot of great info on the dying process: brighthaven.org. I’ve learned about hospice and natural death from her. I very infrequently euthanize a cat) As with us humans, a natural death is usually painless, or made so with pain meds. Heather, however, showed signs of having pain, she cried out at times, and I was very close to having her euthanized. She was in this condition for three days, sleeping with me.
On day four, she woke up. I have seen miracles, lots of them, though none quite like this.
She started eating, and acted as if she'd just taken a nap. No more crying...
One thing however: she had completely lost the use of her legs! All four. She stayed on the couch, pretty much immobile. But she ATE!
By the way, Heather had been tested and examined in pretty much every way possible, and nothing was found to explain her condition. Inbreeding, congenital deformities...there were theories.
It was obvious that Heather was extremely displeased with her situation! She was and is an independent, strong-willed cat. Neither she nor I fancied twenty years of this!
Our cats’ chiropractor worked with her, and had the best grip on the situation (no pun) and on her future development. She told me about how ‘workarounds’ are developed from muscle and calcium, and lots more! The orthopedic surgeon said to just wait and see how things went.
I have friends, Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, and her daughter, Basha. They run the School for Body-Mind Centering® (do yourself a favor and check it out) Basha is on our board of directors, and is wise in the ways of the body and mind. She sat with Heather, hands on, for about ninety minutes one day. At our board meeting some time later, Heather was on the table with us, and started to push herself up onto her legs. And then slowly started to walk. I just lost it!
There is so much more to relate…but let’s just say that Heather is one of my many miracles. She now runs like the wind, jumps and plays…is growing normally, and of course, is the love of our lives.
Needless to say, she'll be staying with us!

Little one on arrival

Eek! No femoral knob or hip socket!

With her loving pals...

Back from death's door and EATING!

On the MOVE!!

On the cat tree!

Valiant's miracle!

10/17/2019

GREAT DAY for VALIANT!!
Well!! Yesterday, Val got down off the couch on his own! Somehow. I didn't see him do it, but found him in the back of the kitchen on a cat tree! He had till now been unable to judge distance; was not able to get off the couch for that reason. He just went back and forth on the couch...and could get into the tree touching it, but his vision had not come back to the point where he could evaluate distances. NOW HE CAN!! Yesterday he was able to go from the greenhouse window down to the sideboard below, feeling gingerly below him. He could sense, partly see, how far it was, and made it down! Later, he was all over!! Up on other cat trees, climbing happily, playing with Little Maggie: All Over The Place!! Liberated! and happy! At the slightest touch! It's been a long journey for him, and in typical cat fashion, he breezed through it! He and I thank you for your help! (Need more hint hint) It's a bright day for Valiant...taking his place in the world after the world's worst infection in his head!
For the rest of his incredible story, here's his gofundme link:
https://www.gofundme.com/manage/let039s-all-help-with-valiant039s-amazing-recovery