Eight years ago, Smokey was a feral, battle-scarred "Tom" who cautiously began to hang around the house. It took months to gain even minimal trust from him and several more months to finally capture him for his first vet visit, and what an experience that was. Frightened and frantic, he literally flew around the large examining room for 15 minutes before two vets and several assistants were finally able to trap him on the floor with a cage door. It is now very difficult to imagine that this loving, playful and responsive sweetheart was ever so wild. A dedicated walker and people-follower, who comes running and chatting when you whistle, Smokey loves to take a stroll on the beach with his humans and a special canine friend, Tucker. Smokey always has lots to say and, with his extensive vocabulary, he says it well.

One day in late February, I found Smokey standing over his food bowl, drooling and also noticed a very strong odor. "Probably his teeth," I thought, but an immediate trip to the vet revealed that it was far worse. His kidneys had failed and the blood test made it clear that his condition was serious (BUN:223, Creatinine:11.8). Leaving him for emergency treatment, I went home to tell my husband the bad news and deal with the sudden shock of this devastating situation. Late that night, the vet called to say that, to his amazement, Smokey had responded so well to the fluid treatment that he was feeling better and even eating. "And," he added, "I believe this is a kitty who wants to live."

Having just read about kidney transplants in the most recent edition of Cat Fancy magazine (Feb. 96), the possibility of doing this for Smokey became an obsession. Using the telephone and Internet, we researched and located an experienced surgeon in Buffalo, New York, 500 miles from our southern home. In the meantime, aggressive fluid and drug treatment helped to stabilize Smokey and increase his chances to survive the operation. Our local vet performed the necessary qualifying tests and Smokey became a transplant candidate in less than six weeks.

After driving Smokey to New York on Easter Sunday, preparations for the surgery began. The first step was to find a compatible donor and the surgeon was able to identify two at the Buffalo SPCA. Since we had decided ahead of time to name our donor-adoptee after his hometown, choosing the buff-colored stray seemed like fate. The surgery lasted 4 ˝ hours, an agonizing and unbearable wait. What a relief when the call finally came. Everything was OK!

Buffalo and Smokey are now home, fully recovered and best buddies. Buffalo's youthful energy and delightful personality have turned Smokey into a kitten again. They play, wrestle, snuggle, chase and touch noses, somehow understanding their special bond. They gave each other the gift of life and it is a profound pleasure to watch them enjoying every minute of it.

We don't know what the future holds for Smokey but we will always have the peace of knowing we did everything we could for a special friend who truly did want to live. He and Buffalo have certainly repaid us a hundredfold with purrs, "headbonks" and joy.

Sandy and Peyton Carr
October, 1996

the2carrs@verizon.net