Extended feline fam comes to RAPS – some with bullets in them

A mama (and grandma) cat was shot. We’re making her better and showing her that humans can be kind. Will you help?

This post updated July 6, 2023

Deelia, and her four-week-old kittens were surrendered to Sammy’s Forgotten Felines, a rescue agency we work with in the Kamloops area. Deelia and her five kittens – plus Deelia’s adult daughter, Lydia, who was pregnant – came to us recently.

PLEASE HELP US CARE FOR DEELIA

Our friends at Sammy’s were concerned about Deelia’s breathing. She also seemed bloated. They took her to the vet and discovered she had been shot.

At that time, veterinarians decided not to remove the bullets, for reasons not clear to us.

Lydia gave birth to four baby boys on May 8.

The whole extended family were transferred to RAPS on May 21.

Lydia went to the RAPS Animal Hospital right away to check if she, too, had been used for target practice but they didn’t want to sedate her at that time as she was still nursing. After the babies were weaned, it was determined that Lydia had not been shot. Lydia and her babies are currently in one of RAPS’ amazing foster homes. We plan for an X-ray soon and Lydia’s babies should be available for adoption mid-July.

Deelia went to RAPS Animal Hospital on June 8, where she received full body X-rays that showed three bullets. She is scheduled to have the bullets removed. Because she’s a young cat, there could be complications later in life, due to lead poisoning.

The doctor performing the surgery already has a personal connection to the feline fam. Dr. Connor Ward is adopting one of Deelia’s kittens!

The RAPS team are often the first kind human beings that some animals encounter. After experiencing the inhumanity that some bipeds are capable of, Deelia, Lydia and their extended family are luxuriating in the care and love that they missed out on earlier.

RAPS has committed to caring for these animals – as we do hundreds of others – and providing everything they need to thrive. The kittens will almost certainly find families, while Lydia and Deelia will be assessed for their level of socialization. Cats that have been homeless for a long time are sometimes hard to accommodate in human homes – but these are both young cats and we hope they will find individual homes. If not, they will live forever in our “Kitty Club Med,” the RAPS Cat Sanctuary.

We can do this because we have the support of a community that shares our values. As we do so often, we are coming to you again. YOU are the reason we can save the lives of animals like Deelia and Lydia and their kittens.