Update: Bucky aka Kreach

Bucky (aka "4 ears", "yoda", "cutie", "kreacher", etc) has been on the road a bit lately and, as you can see, has acquired quite a few nicknames.

"Kreach", Bucky's most common nickname at my house (for the cat from Harry Potter), frequently comes to work with me since everyone loves him. Throughout the day, people come behind the front desk to ogle at and kiss this cute little guy. Kreach, of course, takes it all in stride.

A little over a week ago, we headed to our trusted vet, Dr. John at Tri County Animal Hospital, to get a better idea what was going on with this little guy. Kreach made quite an impression on Dr. John who said he had resisted the urge to do any research before seeing Kreach because he "wanted to be surprised." From the appointment, we gathered that Kreach definitely has some neurological issues which are obvious by the fact he cannot blink his left eye at all. Instead, Kreach has adapted by using his third eye lid to lubricate his eye. We are not really sure at this time what can be causing this or what else could be affected. Moving on with the eye issues, Kreacher also has cataracts already which could remain the way they are now or get progressively worse as he gets older. He also has limited vision, but since he's a just a baby, he seems to be adapting to this disability. He uses his whiskers a lot to feel around and those big ears to make up for his partial vision loss. On a good note though, his blood work came back well, leaving his stunted growth as a mystery for now. At our vet visit, he was less than 2lbs when he should be well over 3lb by now with his age.

More recently though, Kreach and I also went to a meeting recently for Joa’s Arc, which was much more along the lines of a gathering of the strange, special and unique. Oddly enough, it was the mostly "normal" cats at Jen S's house that seemed to intimidate Kreacher into staying put in his carrier instead of coming out to play. Apparently he'll take people coddling and cooing at him over his own species any day. Tweet This

Introducing Scooter

How can you resist that little face?! I found it impossible... even after I found out the little munchkin was a paraplegic kitten who drags his back legs around. Thankfully, so did Joa’s Arc volunteer Jen S and these two adorable kittens are now safe in foster care with Joa’s Arc. Meet Scooter and his littermate, Bump. Although Scooter's "normal" littermates had somewhere safe to go, we were told that Bump loved him and followed Scooter everywhere. Did we mention Bump doesn't have any tail either? It's a fact! She barely even has a "bump" of a tail on her rump.

Scooter and Bump were on the patio of a nice lady in Southern New Jersey. Although they were barely done nursing from their mom, we felt it best to get them into foster care due to the fact they were living outside and that their semi-feral mom cat had made several attempts at moving them to places where we could not reach them. We felt it best to get Scooter and Bump inside and safe, especially since Scooter is paraplegic - dragging his back legs around from the hips down. Here is a cute photo of Joa’s Arc volunteer Joyce M getting ready to help feed the babies their first night in foster care. Scooter is happy exploring. Bump is so impatient for food she seems to be considering just climbing into the cup of food.


The video is dark, but you can get an idea of how Scooter gets himself around. Although Scooter has an obvious disability, he doesn't know there is anything wrong with him. It is hard for us not to go weak in the knees for paraplegic kittens and just like Joa, whose spirit encouraged Joa's Arc's mission, quickly stole everyone's heart, Scooter seems to be doing the same already... and Bump too! The two are quite the adorable pair.

Stay tuned in here for more information and updates on Scooter & Bump. Feel free to donate towards their continual care too. Any and all help is greatly appreciated! Tweet This

Introducing Buster

Buster was tied to the fence along with two other dogs at Camden County Animal Shelter ("CCAS") about a month ago. One of Joa’s Arc's volunteers, Joyce M, was at the shelter when a shelter worker walked by with Buster. He was terrified! The poor boy was walking along the wall to avoid any human contact. Joa’s Arc's Joyce M was so upset seeing this type of behavior. Although CCAS was doing a great job with him, Buster was clearly petrified and the shelter is a very hard environment to teach a dog to trust after who knows what Buster had been through. Two days later after not sleeping, Joa’s Arc's Joyce M went and pulled Buster to take him into foster care. My the things you learn then!

You learn things like Buster loves other animals - dogs and cats! Foster care has shown that although it looked like Buster did not trust humans, that is not the case. Buster is a bit shy with new people, but within minutes he will be kissing your hand. He also loves to sleep in bed with his foster mom and always has to be touching her.

Buster was also thought to be 3 - 5 years old, but that doesn't seem to be the case either. His blossoming behavior and temperament point towards Buster being like more around just a year old, if that. He is full of energy, loves to chew like a teething pup who hasn't learned better ... and Buster so friggin cute. Ok, maybe that's not exactly relevant, but it's true! He is easily corrected when getting into trouble and hasn't been the type to repeat mistakes. He is crate trained, but only if you anchor the crate down because he seems to be a great escape artist - with tactics including guilt trips like crying pathetically until you feel bad.

Maybe Buster smelled a sweet soul in Joa’s Arc's Joyce M? He sure has opened up in foster care with her! Aside from being initially so shy, Buster has no real "special" needs and is available to be adopted. Buster just needs a good active home that is ready for a almost full-grown pup. Tweet This

R.I.P. - Nora

Over the past weekend, our good friend and a Joa’s Arc volunteer, Maria, lost her beloved dog, Nora.

Nora came to Joa’s Arc's volunteer, Jen S, several years ago with her hip completely out of the socket and a very large hernia. Poor Nora had lived like that for many years. Kind volunteers at a local shelter just could not bring themselves to put to sleep Nora and so Jen S fostered her while several wonderful groups and people raised to funds for two surgeries to help Nora feel and move better. First, Nora's hips were corrected and then she had her hernia repaired.

Jen S and her awesome daughter fostered Nora for two years (talk about dedeication!) before Maria came into Nora's life. For just about a year, Nora was Maria's loyal, loved friend who faithfully stood by her.

Nora succumbed to a heart condition on Saturday, August 28th, 2010. In respect to friends who did not know until just recently, we had not posted this blog post sooner.





Now you've got some real wings, Nora. We'll all miss you. Tweet This

Introducing Muffy

Muffy, Muffy, Muffy ... She is one special girl!

Muffy came in to Joa’s Arc's care from a local shelter after being brought in by someone that did not know what was wrong with her. You see, Muffy has Cerebellar Hypoplasia, known also as "CH" (like Nero), which varies in severity and, in Muffy's case, causes her to bob and weave all over.

Muffy will need a very special home that will overlook her disability (as she does), but still keep her safe. "CH" is a condition affecting the cerebellum of the kitten's brain. The cerebellum is the portion of the brain that influences fine motor control. Kittens affected with CH will have poor coordination (jerky or wobbly movements when they walk or run). Some animals affected by it will have head tremors as well. This can happen to a greater or lesser extent in each animal differently. Many will fall over during movement. HOWEVER, life expectancy is not affected. The cause of CH may be a viral infection during gestation or in kittenhood. Distemper is the most common cause of intra-uterine infection. However, CH can occur in-utero or at a later date due to injury, poisoning or a virus.

The symptoms of CH generally do not worsen as the animal ages and most will learn to compensate to some degree. However, this will be a lifelong condition because there is no treatment for the condition. The animal can have a good quality of life if given protection from accidents - these cats will be clumsy and must be protected from stairs, for example. They absolutely MUST NOT be declawed as they need their nails to help them hang on when they slip or fall. Cushions should be placed under places from which the cat may fall (window sills, etc.). It is a good idea to use untippable food and water bowls and a litter box with high sides but a low entrance area. These cats also absolutely be kept indoors for their own safety. CH cats seem to be unaware that they are different in any way and therefore may attempt feats that could be dangerous for them, but they seem to lead very happy lives.

Do not be fooled though, Muffy's condition does not slow her down! Muffy is quite the athlete - she loves to tumble and tumble and tumble some more. As of today, Muffy is almost 15 weeks old. She came to Joa’s Arc eight weeks ago and her coordination and limb strength have really shown improvement and she is able to contol herself much better. She loves to play and cuddle and if she sees hair hanging, she loves it!! Muffy is so funny too. She makes everyone laugh once they realize that her special needs does not affect her ability to be happy and enjoy life. She is also up to date with vaccines, combo tested negative and will be spayed when appropriate. Tweet This

Introducing Bucky

Meet Bucky!! Because of his little face and giant ears, people keep insisting I (Jen W of Joa’s Arc) name him "Yoda", but Bucky was the name I got him with and I like it more than "Yoda."

I first met this boy a couple weeks ago when he came into the Animal Welfare Association with his foster mom to be weighed and I just fell in love with his little face and squeaky meow (it's probably not a good idea for a "rescuer" to work for a shelter...). Within the last few days though, I've become Bucky's foster mom! His two "normal" siblings weighed enough to be spayed/neutered and put up for adoption, but this poor little guy was still too tiny. I more than happily offered to take him home with me.

Do you see anything a little off with this little kitten? No, not his tiny eyes. Keep looking! Real close! Ok, maybe I'm not being fair. It's a little hard to see the craziest thing about this kitten in that picture, so let me show you another and make it easier on you...

Four ears!

Yes, tiny little alien eyes (when he blinks, he doesn't really shut his eyes so much as he just folds his third eyelids over them), a little face, lots of fur and tiny little ear flaps behind his actual, normal ears!! Apparently, he's not the only one though. When first looking into this weird condition, I came across a fairly famous kitty who is named, surprisingly, Yoda! Upon further digging, I found this website which is really interesting and apparently Yoda is not the only kitty like my foster boy either: Feline Medical Curiosities: The Ears.

For now, Bucky's in foster care with Joa’s Arc because he seems to be a little slow developing. As I mentioned above, he had two siblings that seem to be completely normal and are an appropriate size for their age. Bucky on the other hand is still pretty tiny. Joa’s Arc is considering having a vet take a good look at Bucky and maybe take some blood work to see if he is maybe a bit abnormal on the inside as well.

Right now, like most kittens though, he likes exploring, wrestling and snuggling. He's a great little kitten! Tweet This

Introducing Dash

Meet "Dash" (AKA "Mini Misty")!

Dash came to Joa’s Arc from a branch of the PSPCA. She was saved after being found on the streets of Philadelphia with a leg injury. It was thought that Dash had a broken leg and would require extensive cage rest, if not surgery. Further inspection showed that there were no fractures or breaks seen on x-rays.

After resting in foster care with Joa’s Arc to be on the safe side, Dash is now running, jumping and playing like any other 5 - 6 month old kitten. Dash is a beautiful dilute gray tortoiseshell cat with a silky coat who loves to wrap her paws around your neck and kiss, kiss, kiss! She likes to kiss your neck and kiss your face - Dash is just full of love. Also, Dash has been already been spayed, is up to date on vaccinations and she combo tested negative for FIV/Feline Leukemia.

Now all she needs is a family for her to kiss and love and call her own. Will it be yours? Tweet This