Mojo
Mojo was rescued by a group that specializes in feral cats. We didn't
know much about his history, except that he was found with a slightly
older white cat that didn't appear to be related to him. We fell in
love with his beauty and wildness but also his wonderful trust. He'd
dart under furniture like a wild creature when he was startled and
then come out right away, his blue eyes full of curiosity, to see why
the rest of us didn't go hide too. My teenaged son adored him. When
Mojo started to become ill my son took care of most of his needs. The
diagnosis was very difficult and it took several visits, each one
adding a new medication until we had to post a large schedule on the
refrigerator to keep track. Mojo became jaundiced and started to
suffer from brain damage, including blindness. My son slept on the
floor with him as he became more sick, and Mojo would sleep inside his
sleeping bag. One of my favorite memories was when I came downstairs
one morning and Mojo came out from the sleeping bag with a friendly
meow while my son slept on. That morning it appeared that Mojo had
made a slight recovery. He was no longer blind and wasn't crying in
pain, so it gave me so much hope.
Mojo had trouble staying warm, so when the boy wasn't home he slept in
a basket near the woodstove or sat on the hearth. At long last the
vet believed that Mojo was suffering from FIP. My understanding of
FIP is that it's an incurable infection of a mutation of the corona
virus that happens mostly to kittens, though not usually kittens as
old as Mojo's, which was why it took so long to diagnose. Just over a
month after we adopted him, we had to put Mojo to sleep. Those of you
reading this understand how very difficult that was to do. We lost
him just before Christmas 2007 and we're still reeling from his loss.
The vet told us that if animals didn't go to heaven, she wasn't
going. Me too. It's my deepest hope that we'll be reunited with Mojo
someday. We all loved him dearly, and we miss him so much. Blessed
be, Mojo. I hope wherever you are, you have a warm, soft place to
sleep. I also hope our story encourages more research into FIP, so
that someday we can quickly diagnose and fight back against this
puzzling, devastating disease. Many thanks to the Camas-Washougal
Animal Hospital and the Feline Medical Clinic of Vancouver,
Washington. Your hard work and compassion didn't save Mojo's life,
but it made all the positive difference in the world, and we're very
grateful.
The Miller Family
