Oscar

After packing away Simon's things, my heart needed a break from loss.  But, yet again, Facebook had other plans for me.  Oscar had been found as a stray and was in very bad shape when he was brought to New York City Animal Care and Control in Manhattan on 10/10/2018.  His medical assessment wasn't a very good read - "geriatric, blind, emaciated, severe dehydration, depressed mentation, dental disease, anemic, low blood pressure, and vomiting green bile".  This sweet boy had been trying to enter someone's home, clearly seeking help and compassion.  Instead, his medical issues won him a spot on the "kill list" 4 days after entering the shelter.  I couldn't resist his face, so I reached out to the rescue that had pulled Memo, asking if they would pull Oscar for me.  They graciously agreed.

I got Oscar to our new vet the same day that he arrived at my home on 10/16/2018, hopeful that he could be "fixed" and get to live his final chapter being adored and doted on.  But the vet just kept looking at me, bewildered at why I would try to save a cat in this state.  During his physical exam, he vomited a large amount of green bile and the vet gave me the option to "let him go" or have him stay overnight there on IV fluids.  I chose neither option and instead drove him straight to the ER where he was admitted to the Internal Medicine department. 

An abdominal ultrasound revealed that Oscar's stomach and intestines were distended with fluid and two days later he had exploratory surgery to figure out what was going on in there.  Before they could perform the surgery, Oscar required a blood transfusion because his hematocrit had continued to drop to dangerous levels.  Once in surgery, the doctors quickly found that he had a physical obstruction and removed it.  They said he must have been eating whatever he could find when he was abandoned on the streets and it all stuck together like a rock, blocking his intestines.

Oscar recovered well from his surgery and slowly regained his strength, and his vision.  His fur went from coarse and almost greasy to soft as silk, and his personality shined - he was a total love!  Oscar came home 3 days after his surgery and received daily fluids (his kidney values were still quite high), weekly Darbopoetin shots (his hematocrit was still too low), and constant love.  He slept in bed with me every night, always spooning with me, up close, constantly purring.  But we couldn't get his kidney values to stop climbing through the roof and despite another hospital stay, he passed away on Thanksgiving Day 2018. 

Oscar was a true gem and it broke me that he didn't get the help that he needed soon enough.  If the obstruction had been caught sooner, would he have had more time?  He certainly deserved more time and he deserved better than what he ultimately had to suffer through for who knows how long.  He was smart, silly, loving, grateful and an amazing companion.  He was stunning with a crinkled ear and amazing markings.  He was deeply loved and I am 100% certain that he knew how deeply he was loved.