Kitten Has Six Legs Or Is Happy to See You

[Lizard]

FL - Hex the kitten is six-weeks old and was born with an extra set of hind legs and duplicate organs.

http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2...ed_kitten.html

[Rotten Apple]

[Lizard]

Aw.

Hex died.

http://www.nbc6.net/news/16167458/detail.html

[w8ng4msrgt]

It all comes down to the money.

[Catlady]

It all comes down to the money.

Well, no. Here is an article that describes what happened:

Kitten Born With Six Legs Dies
Veterinarians Say Barium Used In Test Burned Hole In Hex's Intestines

POSTED: 11:14 am EDT May 5, 2008


MIAMI -- A six-legged kitten awaiting surgery to remove the extra legs has died.

Hex the six-legged kitten died Thursday, according to a poem posted on The Hex Foundation Web site.

Veterinarians told owner Barbara Flores that Hex had a Siamese twin that never fully developed. An operation to remove the extra legs, remove the extra colon and correct the intestines was initially scheduled for last month, but Flores sought a second opinion and was told to wait until Hex was between 10 and 12 weeks old.

Flores took Hex to a local veterinarian to run a test that consisted of barium on the 7-week-old cat. When Hex underwent a CT scan Tuesday in Gainesville, veterinarians discovered that Hex had some barium left in his other half's pouch.

Veterinarians said the barium burned a hole in Hex's intestines.

Hex was the only cat in his litter and the first born to his mother, Vanilla.

A poem titled "We Must Say Goodbye…" written as the voice of Hex reads: "We were supposed to be two, but I was born the only one, with half of my brother still holding on strong. We tried to get help and sought to repair this tangled body that somehow we shared.

"Though the doctors fought hard and worked past being tired, we did what we could do, but we grew oh, so tired. Now we know there can't be one without the other, here we'll stay attached to one another.

"Knowing that all prayed for the best here we lay together for this long eternal rest. We thank you for your prayers, your support and your love. Until we meet again in the heavens up above."

[Lizard]

A case like this reveals to me how split my own self is. On the one hand, I grieve for Hex and hate that he had to die--and must close my eyes and breathe deeply lest I think that perhaps he suffered. On the other hand, I think of the many, many, many, MANY perfectly normal (4-legged, correct number of internal organs) adoptable kittens that die every year--or do not even experience life, because, yes, veterinarians do abort pregnant cats and/or kill kittens removed from the womb that *could* survive--were it not for the perception that there are not homes for these kittens.

Nathan Winograd, ya'll...if ya ain't read his book...do....

[Catlady]

A case like this reveals to me how split my own self is. On the one hand, I grieve for Hex and hate that he had to die--and must close my eyes and breathe deeply lest I think that perhaps he suffered. On the other hand, I think of the many, many, many, MANY perfectly normal (4-legged, correct number of internal organs) adoptable kittens that die every year--or do not even experience life, because, yes, veterinarians do abort pregnant cats and/or kill kittens removed from the womb that *could* survive--were it not for the perception that there are not homes for these kittens.

To me, they are all equal. I can't place a higher value on a "perfectly normal" kitten than I would on one with a physical ailment, handicap or deformity nor do I think the healthy ones are somehow more deserving of homes. Please understand I am not implying that you think they do.

I have had my share of both kinds of cats/kittens and am not in a position where I get to choose them. I have and will take whatever comes my way whether they be emotionally damaged, handicapped, ill, whatever. It does not matter. I have never once regretted taking in a single one. To me, they ALL deserve a home and love.

Unfortunately, there will always be a section of the population that feels differently. I was doing a behavior consult one time and mentioned my little girl Jazzy, who was a feral kitten that was attacked by a dog and had part of her rear leg bitten off. I subsequently was able to trap her and she ultimately had to have the rest of the leg amputated. She has adapted to her handicap beautifully and climbs the cat trees, runs and plays just like the rest. This woman was horrified that I kept her and asked why I didn't put her to sleep! Sad. (I did ask her if she felt we should euthanize all the people that are in wheelchairs and she fell silent- I think she got the point.)



Oh, and here's a few pics of my little 3-legger:

[Nell]

Man, Catlady I wish you lived closer to me! I bought this kitten at a pet store and it was insane. I don't mean a little, I mean off the wall nuts. You couldn't even get near it. I never once held her because she bit and scratched if you tried to pick her up. I didn't know what to do with her but I didn't want to take her to the pound. It took me 2 months to find a lady that does adoptions out of her house and I don't know, she looked really overwhelmed. I hope the kitty was ok.

[Lizard]

To me, they ALL deserve a home and love.

I agree with you 100%. And I have brought home many kittens that had almost zero chance of survival, and I have stayed up all night with those kittens, administering fluids and medications, cleaning eyes and nose and anus, encouraging them to swallow just a drop or two of formula, and in almost every case, holding them while they died. I also have used my money to pay for medical treatment of kittens and cats that I knew would not be joining my household, all because I thought they deserved a chance. The problem is that every minute, someone is making a decision about who lives and who dies, because we are not at a "place" where there is a home and love for every kitten born. Every shelter that euthanizes animals (and I'm not even going to touch on those instances in which the animals die while at the shelter because of lack of appropriate monitoring, care, and/or medical services/treatment) has some sort of set of "rules" (not always written) about which animals will get the blue juice and which won't, and most of the time, the kitten with 6 legs or a cleft palate has no chance against its "healthy" sibling.

Some of the ones that were supposed to die...they didn't. The "parents" of two of them send me a card on their behalf every Mother's Day.