Noah's Journey

Our precious baby Noah went to the Rainbow Bridge this past Thursday, June 24, 2010. This is his story...

Noah came to our rescue on April 2, 2010. I received the call from the young woman saying he had followed her into her construction firm office. He was very thin, hungry, caked with concrete and had a huge growth on his side. The growth turned out to be an large abscess from a bite wound.

Noah was taken to the vet that same day, where the abscess burst in the examination room. He was rushed into surgery to drain and flush the abscess. While under the anesthesia, he was also neutered and tested for FIV/FeLV (both negative). I picked Noah up the next day, along with the medications he was prescribed and an instruction to flush out the wound several times a day.

Despite having just undergone surgery and having a tube through his side, Noah continued to be incredibly affectionate. He would climb into my arms every time I opened his cage. He did well those first two days and the tube was removed three days after the surgery.

After the tube was removed, the skin around the bite wound died and fell off, making the opening look pretty nasty. It began to heal and I thought Noah was on his way to a full recovery.

On April 7th, I noticed Noah was sleeping a lot more and not eating as much. He also started having trouble using the litter box. On the 8th, I found out why he was missing the litter box: he couldn't stand on his hind legs very well and kept falling over. He started relieving himself on the blanket, right where he was laying. On the 10th, he stopped eating and I was on the phone scheduling an appointment with the vet again.

At the vet visit, they determined that he had a blood clot in his spine stemming from the bite wound. Noah was started on three medications to help break up the blood clot and prevent it from spreading.

Following his appointment, I kept Noah close to me during the day and let him sleep on the chaise lounge near the window. With the medications and a special diet, he seemed to improve a bit and started regaining some mobility. Sometimes he would manage to crawl off the chaise lounge and follow me around the house, stumbling. I tried to get him to walk several times a day, to use his hind legs and regain his strength. He managed to pull himself up onto the chaise lounge on the 14th, which was a huge feat for him. It was wonderful to see the progress he was making and I thought things could only get better from here.

Just when we thought we were out of the woods, another concern arose. While holding him on April 21st, I noticed a blood spot on his left eye. Another vet visit was scheduled and this time the diagnosis was inflammation behind the eye. Noah was prescribed several eye drops and serums to be administered three times a day for several days. On the 22nd I went on a little overnight trip and took Noah with me so I could apply the eye medications. I snuck him into the motel and we chilled together, watching corny shows on MTV and reading magazines. He slept curled up by by head, with his own head on my shoulder. He was such a wonderful companion.

Noah's eye got better and we were able to stop the medications. For a few weeks, things were going great and Noah was beginning to befriend some of the other cats.

Things started getting worse again towards the end of May. Noah started having frequent accidents on the carpet. He was still struggling to stand on his hind legs and stopped trying to do so. We bought him some pet diapers and took him back to the vet on June 1st. They gave him sub-q fluids, did some lab work, showed me how to empty his bladder to reduce the chance of accidents, and prescribed the last medication he would ever take, although we didn't know that at the time.

Because he couldn't get around very well, I moved him to various places around the house so he wouldn't get bored. He mostly stayed where I placed him, which was nice when I brought him to bed with me because I knew he'd be right by my side all night. But I felt bad for him, surrounded by able-bodied cats running around and playing while he just lay there, unable to move like them. I could see the intense sadness in his eyes during those last few weeks and it simply tore my heart up.

Towards the end, Noah had many more bad days than good. He slept a lot and ate very little. I had to force feed him canned food and kitten formula. He would nibble on a few bits of dry food each day, but it wasn't enough to keep his strength up.

On Noah's last night, I sat up with him as he cried in pain. He could no longer go to the bathroom and I didn't know how to help him. He wasn't eating at all and he couldn't even hold himself up with his front legs. It was then that I knew I couldn't let him him go on like this. His weakness was apparent, as was his physical agony and profound sadness. I knew I had to do something to relieve his suffering, so I gave him a dose of pain medication and promised him the struggle would be over soon.

We sent Noah to the Rainbow Bridge on June 24, 2010, to free him of the pain and suffering that was his life. He was only a year and a half old. I can't even describe the anguish I felt as we said good-bye to him; I was blinded by tears as I kissed his soft forehead one last time. Noah will always remain in my heart and on my mind. Despite all the struggles we went through to get him well, all the time and money that went into his care, he was nothing short of a blessing in my life. He was a gift, a true angel sent to me for a very special reason.

Rest in peace, sweet Noah. You will never be forgotten.