Story Time
Lois Lane (click photo for clip)
This is how Loving Lois Rescue and Rehabilitation started. I had been rescuing kitties for decades, but it was our beautiful Lois that started the rescue site. On May 25, 2016, Lois was found in a Walmart parking lot paralyzed from the neck down. The amazing Barbara Echemendia- Radiano found her and posts were put up asking for help. We decided to take her in. X-rays showed that she had crushed vertebrae in her neck that caused spinal cord damage. Dr. Lee felt that if she did not improve within five days, she would not improve and should be peacefully put to sleep. We named her Lois Lane because we knew she was a superhero.
Every two hours, we did patterning exercises, repositioning and therapy. The patterning exercises were to remind her brain how her body is supposed to move in hopes of triggering the muscles and the spinal cord to send signals again. We held our breath for several days and we finally saw a small amount of movement in one of her front legs. We continued with the therapy hour after hour, day after day, week after week and slowly Lois began to regain her function.
Today Lois still lives with us and is happy and healthy. Unless you knew her history, you wouldn’t notice that she walks a little bit differently from other cats. Not too long after Lois, I started getting contacted by people in the community and veterinary offices asking for help with other special-needs kitties... and so Loving Lois Rescue and Rehabilitation started."
Hedwig (click photo for clip)
"In September 2016, I received a call from Magnolia Animal Hospital that they had a tiny kitty with deformed legs. He had a condition called radial hypoplasia. The radius bones in his legs didn’t form. He learned to walk on 2 legs, he army crawled, he ran, climbed and jumped. He very quickly stole our hearts and became the ambassador of the rescue. He loved all the other cats. He was a father figure for kittens. He loved humans. He loved to dress up and pose. He loved McDonald’s French fries and white cheddar popcorn. He was a wonderful boy! We lost our sweet Hedwig at the end of 2022. It was absolutely heartbreaking! I miss him so very much."
Wishbone (click photo for clip)
"Wishbone came to us (Sept 2019) as a sick little, tiny kitten with severely deformed back legs. Through a lot of love, a lot of care, physical therapy, medication and more love, she is a healthy, happy, thriving adult cat."
When wishbone was finally big enough for X-rays, Sheryl took her in and had this to say:
"Wishbone is finally big enough for X-rays. I have said from the beginning that her legs feel like they are backwards. Guess what? They pretty much are!! If you look at her hips, there are no hip sockets so her hips are basically fused in place. If you look at her knees, the “kneecaps” are in the back and they don’t bend. Even her feet are malformed. Her “heels” are in the front and her feet don’t bend. She also has a previously ruptured/scarred eye that doesn’t respond to light. None of these things hold her back in any way. She is able to walk in her own unique way. She runs around and plays and has started to climb. She is a super special kitty and she has my heart."