*Edited to add: We’ve received over $2,950 in donations in less than two days! That’s more than enough to pay for the surgeries for ALL of these kittens, thank you all so much! You’re the best!!!
I have news about the kittens! And that’s all this entry is going to be about today, so if you’re one of those readers who care not about sweet bebbe kittens and have no desire to help them, you just move along, Heartless McGee.
The vet consulted extensively with an ophthalmologist (I can never spell that right, I always have to ask Google how it’s spelled!) who practices in Birmingham, and there is a way to correct the kittens’ eye problem. What they do is, they take a bit of lip from the corner of the kitten’s mouth and graft it onto the eyelid. The kitten would have sutures both on his/ her eyelid and their mouth, poor thing.
The really good part is that I won’t have to put the kittens through the trauma of driving them down to Birmingham (a 2-ish hour drive each way), because the vet is confident that she can perform the surgery herself.
Since Bill, Hoyt & Sam are all over two pounds and big enough to be neutered, they have an appointment to be neutered tomorrow, and the vet is likely going to perform the eye surgery on at least one of the boys at that time, if not all three of them. Once the first surgery is down, she’ll have a better feel for exactly how long each surgery will take, and then she can determine whether the rest of the boys should have their eyes done at that time, or wait until a later date.
Sookie, the only girl, will be spayed, and since that’s a more extensive surgery than neutering, she’ll have to have two separate surgeries. And since Terry has to have his hernia repaired in addition to being neutered, he’ll have to have his eyes repaired in a separate surgery, also, since the neutering plus the hernia repair plus the eye surgery would have him under for too long.
So we have our solution and we’re ready to move ahead!
I don’t have a sum yet as to what the surgeries will cost – the vet is working on that and I should have a number later today – but I know that it’s not going to be inexpensive to reconstruct the eyelids (or part of the eyelids) for six tiny cats, and I know that the surgeries will strain the shelter budget quite a bit.
That’s where you come in (you knew that was coming, right?). If you can spare some money to help pay the vet who will be reconstructing the eyelids of these kittens so that they won’t suffer eye damage as they grow up, it would be very much appreciated.
Challenger’s House accepts donations by mail (check or money order), by phone (Mastercard/VISA), or select the button below to donate through PayPal. (Make sure you make a note to let Susan know that the donation is meant for the True Blood Kittens’ surgeries!)
Challenger’s House
112 Tristian Rd.
Toney, AL 35773
Phone: 256-420-5995
Please help spread the word – feel free to steal either of the banners below, or create your own. Link to the permanent page about the kittens. Every little bit of help for these kittens is very much appreciated.
“But… I don’t WANNA go be tutored and have my eyeballs messed with!”
Bill thinks perhaps having good eyesight is overrated.
Snuggly Terry.
Got all six of them in one picture for once! Even looking in the same general direction!
I was waving a feather toy over my head to get their attention, and it makes me laugh that Terry (on the back of the chair) thinks perhaps if he stands up on two legs, he can reach the toy.
Bill in silhouette.
Bowl full o’ Sookie.
Terry keeps warm in the sun.
Upside down cat beds are far more comfortable than right-side-up, apparently.
Previously
2008: “Huh” is very versatile, no?
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
2004: I think our cats are as antisocial as we are.
2003: Damn PMS Fairy.
2002: You know, I don’t believe that once you become a parent, every bit of you has to be absorbed into that role.
2001: Dumbass, thy name is Robyn.
2000: No entry.
Donation made, good luck
Hit the button, left instructions . .
Donation made! Good luck to the kittehs.
Good luck boys. Buttons have been hit and notes left.
Thanks, you guys – you rock!!
I am helpless to resist the cuteness so a donation had to be made! Please give them all a snuggle for me…
LOVE the pics of them on the chair! So cute!!!
Hurray! I’m so glad their eyelids can be repaired. Donation and note sent. I sincerely hope Susan won’t know what hit her (in a good way!
Ever since you fostered this litter, I wanted to chime in and let folks know that wonky eyes, while they may look a bit scary or goofy, are usually not much of a hindrance to kittehs. I adopted my beautiful calico Molly from an awesome local shelter, and she has micropthalmia (abnormally small eyes), a crossed eye (strabismus), benign discoloration in one eye (iris of Bombay?), had an ocular feline herpes virus infection, corneal scarring, etc etc…. She can see, but her vision is probably rather limited. (She refused tp read the eye chart at the vet hehe.) If you look at her, you would notice that both eyes are a bit small and kind of sleepy-looking. Her right eyeball points up into her lid and the left points cross-eyed, toward her nose. But she does everything my other kitty, Amy (who I adopted at the same time) does, except jump onto high surfaces. And I have to say, she is the happiest and most loving kitteh who has ever owned me – I love my girls!
So three cheers for Robyn for helping these sweetie pies – thanks to her, they too will own some lucky human soon! (Oh, and donation made. 8o))
Cat
Donated what I can at the moment. Cannot resist teh bebeh kittehs!
Put a tenner in the jar for the babies. I ain’t no Heartless McGee.
(That sounds like it should be a line from a song..)
Left $10 for the babies!
I will try to put in a $20 next week or so, I get paid on Friday. I just had a HUGE tuition bill to pay so my normal “extra” money is now school money…bastards.
Oh, and I did leave instructions to the rescue about the TB6.
The chair pic is just the BEST! I would be happy to help these precious guys out!
I will donate when I get my first paycheck!
Contribution made. They are so cute.
Made a donation!! Anything to help baby kittehs!!!
Every time you put anything “McGee” I crack up. I started calling my one cat Chubbs McGee. lol!
I would like a bowl full o’Sookie please. I adopted a 2 yr old rat terrier last week from our no kill shelter here. There weren’t many kittens there but ohhhh the adult cats!
I put $25 in for them- wish it could be more.
imgonna die from all that cuteness! how did you get them all on the chair?
We have a dog named Flash, but I’ve always said this his full name is Flash McGee!