Cerebellar hypoplasia (video of Amy)

[phesina]

Hi Laura, Elmer can run quite fast, but he does it by kind of throwing his body ahead.. he lunges forward with his front paws, and his back half doesn't follow right behind but swings from side to side a bit, and usually he falls then. And he picks himself up, and again lunges forward with his front paws, etc., etc.. until he gets where he was going.

He can keep up with Poppy when they stalk each other, so she has to jump up on something if she wants to get away from him.

When he walks, he wobbles on all four legs. He makes his way along as if he were walking on stilts, and he falls over from time to time.

Whenever he falls, he just picks himself up and keeps on doing what he was doing. He does not seem to consider himself disabled or lacking in skills that other cats have. As far as he knows, this is the way everybody is! He and the other cats react to each other as equals (Elmer an equal who just happens to fall over a lot).

He is a long, tubular figure of a cat. He has grown some into his legs, but they are still quite long. He has sort of a dachshund's trunk on a giraffe's legs! I think his head is a little smaller in proportion to the rest of his body than on most cats.

Amy is so beautiful and so touching. I am not surprised that you love her so deeply and cherish her so much. She is so cute and sweet sleeping there on her couch. What a wonderful life you give her and she gives you!

Again, I thank you and Amy for helping me to realize that Elmer was to be my boy! Everyone who meets him falls in love with him and his example of prevailing in spite of life's difficulties.

Love,
Pat and Elmer