Clark loves to explore!
Update as of 12/12: Clark Kent has been given the “okay” to head to his foster home, where he is settling in nicely and is enjoying the perks of home life. He is still having complications (anemia and kidney dysfunction) as a result of his cruel abandonment, but we are hoping that over time these will abate. He will remain in foster care until we are sure that he is as healthy as he can be, and at that point we will start processing his adoption applications in the order they were received. Rest assured, Clark Kent is going to have a forever home where he is loved and cherished. If you are looking for updates about Clark, please head over to our Facebook page, where we try our best to post regular pictures.
Update as of 12/7: We are happy to report that Clark Kent is continuing to make progress! He has gained 2 pounds since he was rescued, and now that he is feeling a bit better he is eager to explore, is quite the talker, and continues to love his food. He had a laproscopic surgery to remove the metal from his stomach, and we are now waiting to see if the metal was the cause of some of his health issues, or if there are further health concerns to explore. We have lined up a great foster home for him for when he is ready to leave the vet so that we can keep a close eye on him and make sure all is well before he goes to a loving forever home. We will provide updates and pictures as we have them. In the meantime, we hope that you will also help spread the word about the 40 other City Kitties cats and kittens that are seeking loving forever homes. We are suckers for happy endings and want to make sure that all of our amazing foster cats get their “happily ever after.”
"Did someone say "food"?!"
Update as of 11/28 @ 7 PM: As we keep saying, a cat as sick as Clark is not yet out of the woods. Though he has been feeling much better in recent days, films taken this afternoon indicate the piece of metal is still lodged in his stomach. His PCV is still dropping, which is very concerning. Clark is not a good candidate for exploratory surgery to remove the metal object. Dr. Andeer has recommended an ultrasound to pinpoint the location of the metal, then (we hope) less invasive laparoscopic surgery at a specialty facility . If the metal is lead, copper, or zinc, he is also at risk of poisoning. All of this is to say that your good thoughts and generous donations will be put to good use in the coming days. We will post more details when we have them-this is literally all we know right now.
Update as of 11/26/11 @ 3:30 PM: We visited Clark Kent today (with a film crew from a local news station which will be airing his story at either 6 or 10 PM tonight) and are happy to report that he has greatly improved. He is eating, enjoying attention, and is exploring his surroundings on wobbly legs. (He was too ill to hold up his own head on Monday, so this is a dramatic improvement). While Clark Kent will need quite a bit of time to recover from months of starvation and neglect, we are cautiously optimistic that the immediate danger has passed. He will continue to hang out at The Cat Dr until he is in good enough health to finish his recovery in a foster homer and be adopted. He’s a popular fella and has already received multiple adoption applications from people who want to make sure that he has a long, healthy, happy life where he knows nothing but love and a full food bowl! Thanks to the Clark Kent fans from around the world who have sent him good wishes and supported the costs of his vet care. Through your generosity, not only are we able to pay for all of Clark’s vet care, we will be able to help pay for other kitties like Clark who need rescuing. (PS - We know that some of you would love to meet our hero and give him some love, but we ask that you not stop by The Cat Dr to see him, since they are not set up for visitors. We promise that we will pass on the love though!)
Clark Kent & Co: From L to R: His vet Dr. Megan Andeer, City Kitties Co-Founder Louisa Alexander, City Kitties Volunteer Eli Green, and the Good Samaritan who rescued Clark from the gutter, James Buckley.
Update as of 11/24/11 @ 12 PM: We are happy to report via The Cat Doctorthat Clark ate great overnight and had a big thanksgiving breakfast with one of his nurses. He is maintaining his body temperature on his own this morning, which is a great sign. He wants to send a big thanks to all who have been pulling for him this thanksgiving.
Update as of 11/23/11 @ 3:00 PM: A City Kitties volunteer visited Clark Kent this afternoon at The Cat Doctor. He’s resting comfortably, but not very responsive to attention. He is still cool to the touch and as you can see, is receiving a small amount of IV fluids — about as much as a kitten would receive, since he is anemic and the vet can’t risk diluting his blood. He is still clearly exhausted from his ordeal. Please remember to tell your friends/family that if they would like to help Clark, they can direct donations to the PSPCA’s Humane Law Officers. Under “Direct my gift as follows,” choose “Humane Law Enforcement.” (Please make sure to mark the donation as “Human Law Enforcement” so that it goes directly to them instead of the general fund).
Clark on afternoon of 11/23
Update as of 11/23/11 @ 11:00 AM: All the well wishes and TLC seem to be paying off for Clark Kent, and we are happy he is on the mend! He is bright, alert and interested in exploring the office. Also in the “good news” department, the PSPCA Humane Law Enforcement is investigating. We are confident that they will do everything within their legal powers to punish the people who abandoned this cat. The Humane Law Officers are amazing, and their jobs are funded 100% by donations. Since we have more than enough funds to cover Clark Kent’s vet bills, please tell anyone who would like to help Clark to direct donations to the PSPCA’s Humane Law Officers. Under “Direct my gift as follows,” choose “Humane Law Enforcement.” (Please make sure to mark the donation as “Human Law Enforcement” so that it goes directly to them instead of the general fund).
Update as of 11/22/11 @ 6:00 PM: Dr. Andeer suspected something was wrong by the odd way he was posturing, so she took some x-rays. Poor Clark swallowed something metal. He was was starving out on the streets and likely rooted through trash to find something with the tiniest scrap of food on it. After consulting with a radiologist, it was determined that the foreign object is likely in a loop of his colon and should pass on its own-a small bit of good news, since he is so weak that surgery would be very dangerous. Between this, his dehydration, and his anemia, Clark has a tough road ahead of him and we hope that he is able to pull through so that we can find him an amazing forever home. Please keep this guy in your thoughts tonight.
Clark Kent on 11/22
A good citizen found Clark Kent (formerly known as CeCe — he turned out to be a neutered boy) yesterday in a gutter near Clark Park. The cat was half-dead, too weak to do much when brought inside. City Kitties responded to the request for help and rushed the cat to The Cat Doctor, where his temperature was just 90 (102 is normal for felines) and his PCV, or percentage of red blood cells, was just 8 (normal is 24-45).
Upon exam, Dr. Andeer found a microchip, and a Cat Doctor staff member called the number listed on the chip. Someone claiming to be the owner’s mother picked up and confirmed the cat belonged to her adult daughter. When informed that the cat had been found and was receiving veterinary care, the woman replied, “He was acting sick. I thought my daughter took the cat to the hospital, but I guess she just put him outside.” The woman seemed completely unconcerned that her family’s declawed, defenseless, gravely ill cat had been outside on a cold, rainy day. When the Cat Doctor employee asked if her family wanted the cat back, she declined, saying he was too sick.
Lucky for Clark Kent, it didn’t matter that his “owner” turned out to be a heartless deadbeat. Thanks to generous donors, City Kitties was able to pay for emergency care to stabilize him. After receiving a blood transfusion from The Cat Doctor housecat, Diamond, and plenty of food, warmth, and love, Clark began to show signs of recovery. He finished two bowls of wet food and his temperature gradually rose to 97.
This morning, Clark is alert but still feeling under the weather. He is dehydrated, exhausted, and emaciated. His crumpled ear is the result of an old hematoma that went untreated. And on top of all his other ailments, the poor guy has a nasty cold. But he’s hanging in there, and we know he’s receiving the very best veterinary medicine. We are cautiously optimistic that he will make a full recovery, given time and additional vet care.
We aren’t entirely sure yet what medical issue caused Clark’s near-death experience. More than likely, he simply had a horrific case of fleas, which caused severe anemia and weight loss. His “owners” clearly didn’t bother to deal with this treatable condition, which must have gone on for some time to result in an adult cat becoming so sick and weak.
Sadly, Clark’s rescue story is hardly unique. Over the years, City Kitties, other groups, and individual rescuers have pulled dozens of abandoned cats from the same park, which seems to serve as a dumping ground for West Philly’s unwanted pets. And Clark is certainly not alone in being abandoned due to illness or behavioral problems — nor is he the first microchipped cat we’ve found whose owners turned out to be deadbeats. In one memorable case, an owner had adopted the cat just a few weeks before from a local shelter, then turned her loose because they didn’t want to pay for cat food anymore. We will never understand how someone could treat an animal this way.
Clark Kent on 11/21, shortly after he was found by a Good Samaritan. Another hour outdoors and this sweet guy would have been dead.
We will speak with a Humane Law Officer today about pursuing cruelty/neglect charges against Clark’s former owner, but we aren’t sure what the outcome will be. At the very least, this person will be added to every “Do Not Adopt” list in town.
The good news is that Clark Kent has supporters all over the world who are rooting for a speedy recovery. We want to thank the hundreds (yes, hundreds!) of people who have generously donated toward Clark Kent’s care from places as far-flung as Australia, Germany, Ireland, France, Spain, Israel, England, Netherlands, Singapore, Canada, Russia, Croatia, Norway and 40 U.S. states!! We are totally overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for this scrappy little cat in his time of need. His vet bills are more than paid for, and any additional funds will be used to pay for veterinary care for other stray cats and kittens in need. We would also like to thank Diamond, Dr. Andeer, and The Cat Doctor staff for going above and beyond for Clark Kent. Thank you for reminding us that for every cruel person who abandons or mistreats an animal, there are hundreds of amazing and compassionate people out there willing to help.
P.S.: Not only would we NEVER return an animal to its neglectful owner, but they waived all rights to Clark Kent. He is a City Kitties foster cat now, and we will find him a real home where he can live out the rest of his days inside, safe and loved.
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