Subject: Peanut, the Feline Nurse
Got this amazing story from another group, such a wonderful little kitty with a big heart.
Helle
Animals can be so amazing!!
*****
Peanut, a resident cat at Heartland Veterinary Hospital, doesn't see
that other animals are sick.
Somehow, she feels it.
Despite her blindness, Peanut has taken on the role of nurse at the
hospital. When other animals come out of surgery, she slides into
their cages to watch over them. She snuggles up to or lies across the
patients. Sometimes she grooms them, too. Just before or right after
the patient wakes, Peanut leaves.
Michelle Stephenson, a veterinarian at the hospital, has seen some
interesting animal behavior. She's seen mama cats take in puppies and
mama dogs look after kittens. But she's never seen anything quite like
Peanut.
"She wants to get right in there with them," Stephenson said.
"Sometimes I wonder if she knows we saved her life or something."
Perhaps Peanut feels she must return the kindness she received about a year ago.
The hospital staff took in Peanut Dec. 19, 2003. She had somehow found
her way to the front porch of a former hospital employee. She was a
scrawny mess.
"Her eyes were completely scabbed shut with infection," Stephenson said.
The starved cat, estimated to be 2 or 3 years old at the time, weighed 3 pounds.
The hospital staff treated the cat's eyes, but it was too late. The
infections left blinding scars. Still, they did fatten her up. She now
weighs 6 pounds — a healthy weight for her height. Stephenson figures
Peanut had been on her own for some time and didn't get the nutrition
she needed when she should have been growing the most, leaving the cat
with a petite frame.
Janet Morris, for one, is glad Peanut made a comeback.
Last month, Morris' 10-year-old golden retriever, Rajah, underwent
surgery at Heartland Veterinary Hospital. Doctors removed a large
tumor from the 100-pound dog's side. Shortly after the operation,
Rajah started hemorrhaging and doctors performed a second surgery.
Afterward, Morris went into the kennel area to visit Rajah. Peanut was
lying beside the dog. The tiny cat's arms were stretched out as if she
were trying to hug Rajah's neck.
"It was just so incredible," Morris said. "It made all of us cry."
Despite a heavy dose of painkillers, Rajah was awake enough to wag her
tail at the sound of her owner's voice. Rajah seemed to appreciate the
sound of Peanut purring, too. Morris said the purring seemed to soothe
the dog.
Peanut stayed in the cage for about three hours, licking Rajah's ears
and head and playing with her fur.
Normally, Rajah wouldn't let a cat near her. Anytime she sees a cat,
the hair on her neck spikes, she growls and does all she can to chase
it, Morris said.
But she didn't mind Peanut. Even when the painkillers wore off, Rajah
just sniffed and rubbed noses with Peanut.
"It was as if she knew that was the cat that helped nurse her back to
health," Morris said.
Rajah's 15-inch incision is still healing, but she's otherwise back to
her old self.
The first time Peanut curled up beside a surgery patient, Stephenson
thought it was a fluke. Maybe the cat just liked the patient's heating
blanket, she thought. The cage door was left open to save time because
sedated animals have to be examined so often.
"It just started happening over and over again," Stephenson said. If
the cage door is shut, Peanut will pace back and forth until someone
lets her in.
The little blind cat has had as much impact on the humans at the
hospital. She loves to play and oozes with personality.
"We started treating her and just absolutely fell in love with her,"
said technician Robin King.
The staff adopted her and she lives at the hospital. They named her
Peanut and gave her the nickname Peanutter because of her size.
Even if she put on some extra weight, the name will still fit thanks
to one of her favorite playtime activities. She has an obsession with
packing peanuts. When shipping boxes come into the office, Peanut will
climb onto the boxes, waiting for someone to open them. If the
contents are wrapped in bubble wrap, she'll sulk, Stephenson said.
The staff loves her so much, they've made her a mascot of sorts,
Stephenson said. In each employee's car, a picture of Peanut hangs
from the rearview mirror. The ornaments include the words, "It's all
about her," reminding the employees that they do their jobs to help
all animals just like they helped Peanut.
By Sarah Baker
http://www.newsenterpriseonline.com/...news/news3.txt
(crediting the source!)
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