Katrina's Page
Meet Katrina, the most vocal kitty here at Rude Ranch. (Yes, she is even louder than Marilyn!)
As her name implies, Katrina is a New Orleans refugee. She was one of the first cats rescued from Jefferson Parrish, LA a few days after the flood waters from
Hurricane Katrina receded. She almost wasn't rescued at all, she was found, not moving in the middle of the parrish fairgrounds. She was so still, at first
the rescuers thought she was dead, it was only after she picked her head up that they realized she was still alive... but barely. She had been attacked by dogs, had double pnemonia,
and a bad sinus infection.
Once back at the rescue staging area, Katrina's vets and caretakers were not having much luck treating her. Her sinuses were so clogged she could hardly breathe, and she ulcers
in her throat which made it difficult and painful to swallow, meaning she wouldn't eat. Her caretakers weren't having much luck getting food into her, but she was developing
a reputation for literally biting the hand that fed her. This was about the time that Bob R arrived at the Hurricane Rescue staging area and was told of the pathetic little kitty
that wasn't expected to make it through the night. Armed with an eyedropper, Bob made an attempt to get food into her, and was promptly rewarded when she released her
bladder all over him.
Over the next few days, Bob and Katrina (as she came to be called) had several standing "dates" throughout the day. Although she still wasn't out of the woods, each day
she was a little stronger. (or at least she bit people a little harder). Soon it was time for Bob to return to Maryland, and Katrina's future was very uncertain: so far Bob was the
only person that could get food into Katrina. But under state regulations, no animal was supposed to leave the area. However, without the critical supportive care that Bob and others
was providing, Katrina would not live. Finally, it was decided, Katrina would be released to Rude Ranch under a special medical waiver. She was quickly packed up, hugged goodbye
and sent back to Maryland with Bob.
Although Katrina continued to improve over the next few weeks, her atitude didn't. Everyone that cared for her and cleaned up after her realized that they did so at thier own risk. Soon the
day came that Katrina could be let out of her quarantine area and meet the other furballs in the house. As soon as the door opened, we saw a black streak that headed for the nether
parts of the shelter. We didn't see her again for 36 hours.
Figuring that she would be another semi feral that we would only meet in passing in different parts of the shelter, we were quite surprised a few weeks later when at 3 am in the morning
Katrina came into the bedroom and proudly announced her presence. (Ceasar and Scruffy were even more surprised) Turns out Katrina is part oriental short hair, with the
voice to match! Over the next several months Katrina slowly started coming out more and more. She started playing with the laser pointer and chasing feather toys. Before long, she was starting
to sniff around plates when Bob and Kathy were eating.
Katrina has made alot of progress, now she "eats" breakfast with Bob and Kathy every morning, and is always looking for toys (although she does have issues with some
stuffed toys, especially a stuffed tasmanian devel that was donated several months ago). She still feels everyone deserves the pleasure of hearing her voice, and will usually
find the spot in the shelter that has the best echo before she starts to give a concert.
