Ebony at Home with Jennifer

April 23, 2011--Yesterday, Jennifer (Tucker's Mom) adopted Ebony (aka Lucyfur) from a local shelter. Ebony was surrendered to the shelter around Thanksgiving 2010 because the owner was moving. Ebony was "discovered" diabetic when she was drinking scads of water. She also was very cranky until the shelter staff figured out they should feed Ebony more food. In time, the shelter staff came to love Ebony, and some shed tears when Jenn came to rescue her. However, they did not start her on insulin. Jennifer did that this morning when, after being bit twice (OUCH!!), Jenn got a pre-shot reading of 326 and started the Missy on 1U Lantus. Until Ebony calms down, Jennifer is keeping her separate from her other cats. Ebony will soon be getting her "welcome-to-the-vet" appointment. What we know is that Ebony is FIV/FeLV negative, diabetic, and cranky/bitey. The shelter records say that Ebony is 5YO. DCIN will be paying for the vet visit. Would you like to help? We are expecting a cost of about $300. You can donate for Ebony by sending a donation through PayPal to ennis93 @att.net (remove space).

Use the "Personal" tab and the radio button for "gift" to avoid fees on cash and checking donations. If you use a credit card, you can choose to pay the fee to maximize your donation to the fund. You also can email me at ennis93 @att.net for an address for mailing a check or money order. Please put Ebony's name in the PayPal note section or your check's memo line.

Rest Peacefully, Doug

April 4, 2012--From Claudia: "No one ever inquired after him. He was happy and playful over the weekend. He is buried with his favorite catnip toy and a blanket. He’s in a better place."

You were home all this time, dear Doug. Godspeed and Angelwings.

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Update 12/20/10--From Claudia:

I need to try again to get a decent picture of Doug. He is all black, but my pictures show him as mahogany brown in color. Nothing has changed with him. A lower dose Lantus kitty that is a real good boy.

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Update May 20, 2010--New pictures of Doug, a lovely black, insulin-dependent diabetic cat fostering with Claudia. He is still available for adoption. **********************************************************************************


Update January 25, 2010--Doug has moved down to foster with Claudia in Middleboro, MA. (Claudia also is fostering Pewter Boy and Rusty.) He arrived on January 16. Claudia writes:

Doug spent a few days in my office. He is easy to test (after he settled down). This past weekend, he decided that he would eat from the communal bowls, instead of by himself in the office. Watching the adaptation dance with the other seven cats in the house was fun. He talks a lot and made a huge vocal fuss over a soft toy he found. He was carrying it all over making all kinds of "Siamese" like sounds. Next weekend I will curve him, and see if we have progress toward OTJ [off-the-juice--remission]. If someone will take another diabetic, I now have 3 ready to go. Five diabetics is certainly eating into my syringe stash (10 a day for them plus at least 4 for me).

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Connie and Em of the FDMB has a foster diabetic ready for adoption. Connie keeps a blog about her kitties, and these are the entries about Doug. Doug is owned by H.A.R.T. of Maine. This is what Connie wrote on the FDMB about Doug.

I am fostering Doug for a local shelter, so if you are interested, I can connect you up to them. I really believe Doug has some Siamese in him, as he has that longer face, and LOVES the sound of his own voice. He's also quite determined and strong of spirit like the other Siamese cats I know. He is adjusting well to being in the home. He probably could free roam in the home, but I'm just not ready to do that to my kids at this point. He's here for four more weeks, then he's headed down to Claudia's (cjleo) (in Massachusetts). He's currently eating raw (took to it very well - but does eat canned and was eating dry at the shelter) and is on Lanuts. He was on PZI but I think he needed TID dosing on PZI and I am not in a position to do that. He's still settling down on his dose, so he's not all that well regulated at this point, but I can see it happening. He was diagnosed with pancreatitis. But at this point we are simply dealing with the high BGs, and his catly attitude. He does love to sit and display his beauty. He also enjoys attention. He's not a jump up in your lap cat, but he doesn't mind one bit when I pick him up for attention, and is VERY good (and bleeds very well) for testing. My Ollie is a grumpy grumpy man, and doesn't really want Doug roaming around, so he's under strict supervision when he wanders, but as you can see from the videos that he gets along well with the attention of my other kitties.

In response to questions, Em said that Doug is 6 years old, currently has no behavior issues other then waking her up at 3am (which she thinks she has licked with a timed feeder to keep him distracted). He had pancreatitis, but that seems to be ok.

Pewter Boy in Middleboro MA

Update 12/20/10--From Claudia:

Pewter Boy has been with me since Easter of 2008. He was an owner surrender. The woman had raised him from a kitten, and she did not want him once he was diagnosed diabetic. My guess is that he was abused. He didn’t know how to play, and he cowered when approached. He has learned to trust me and learned to play and to relate well to some of the cats in the house. I’ve seen tremendous progress with Pewter Boy. He is a large cat, not fat, just tall and long. He is rather solitary and doesn’t take to strangers quickly. He’s quite vocal now, telling me when he wants food or attention. He likes bottle caps and catnip mice. He would make someone with a quiet home a nice pet. He just is not crazy about having 8 or more cats living in his home. His Lantus dose (2 u bid) has been very stable. And he is very meticulous about grooming his white fur.

************************************************************************* Update 10/17/10--Such a handsome cat, and no interest at all in him. Disappointing. From Claudia's recent update to me:

As he stays with me longer, Pewter Boy becomes more affectionate. And, he now talks when he wants food or attention. He is stable on 2 u of Lantus BID. We did a dental on him last year. His health is great other than the diabetes.

**************************************************************************** Original post, 12/9/09--Claudia (cjleo) fosters cat, I mean, she really fosters cats. She is known among her rescue group and local circles as the person who will foster feline diabetics. Pewter Boy is one of Claudia's FDs that she would like to find a home for. About PB, Claudia writes the following. You can trust what CJ says, and she wouldn't omit something important about a cat's behavior. She's had too many surprises herself.

Pewter Boy is a very quiet, well behaved, solitary cat. I think he would love a house with fewer cats. He waits for everyone else to eat before he goes to the food dishes. He is getting enough food as you can see. He came to me as a surrender. The woman who had him from a kitten was going to put him down because of the diabetes. I went and met her and took him. I think he may have been mistreated based on his behavior. It was months before he came to me to be petted. Now, he will crawl up in my lap when he wants attention. He is also medically up-to-date with a dental late in the spring of 2009. He is on Lantus 2u bid. He is a very good boy, but he doesn’t like change. Whoever takes him will need to have lots of patience. He is younger than Rusty (8, I think); but he will make a good companion for someone older – probably a couple. I think children would scare him. I need help to test him which is why I suggest a couple.