When he was still in the womb, his Mama was chased into a woman’s trailer by mean-spirited children. They threw sticks and rocks at the pregnant cat until she managed to escape them— and luckily, the owner of the trailer offered the pregnant feline her care.
“[Leo’s mom] was young, pregnant, terrified, sick and filled with parasites,” @alaskakittenfoster explained on Instagram.
“The woman called a rescue and hand fed this sweet mama herself until she was stronger. Mama delivered six full-term babies under a kitchen table and struggled to care for them.”
“The woman, with the help of the rescue, assisted this sweet mama until everyone felt this little family was strong enough to move.”
The furry family was sent to go live with @alaskakittenfoster, who has years of experience fostering kitties. “We officially started fostering cats when one of my twins brought home two five-week-old kittens that were left in a box on the sidewalk three years ago,” they told our staff via Instagram.
To date, they have fostered over 100 kitties. So they knew something was going on when the litter started behaving a bit oddly.
The kittens were a bit wobbly. One of the babies, Petunia, seemed to always be going backward. “It was like she had a reverse syndrome,” the foster explained. “If she was to turn left, she would turn right. Front, she would go backwards. She eventually figured it out.”
“We would see head wobbles, attention tremors in most of them, an unsteady and incorrect gait. As [they] grew, it seemed to get worse.”
The family would soon realize the kittens had cerebellar hyperplasia (CH), a condition which affects balance and gait. Leo’s mother had contracted Feline Panleukopenia during pregnancy, a likely source of the kittens’ CH.
A post shared by Leo The Lop (@drunken_sailor_cats) on
One of the kittens, Colby, passed away from a virus contracted from the mother. The others were all adopted into loving homes— but Leo, Demi and Breezy were adopted by various members of the @alaskakittenfoster themselves. Here’s a photo of baby Demi and Leo snuggling:
At first, Leo had trouble dealing with his CH. In addition, he also suffered from scary seizures. But with his family’s love, dedication, and care— they soon found ways to help the kitty cope.
“Leo has adjusted to CH rather well,” his Mama told our staff. “I had done tons of research and became very familiar with ways to help him.
“Poop was a problem. He would fall in it regularly. Or he would have a ‘poopsplosion’ and would be covered in it. We figured out food was a huge issue.”
Whenever Leo fell into his mess, his family would clean him up with a bath. Now, however, his Mum says, “He eats mostly soft food and will tell me when he has to go the bathroom and I hold him.”
A post shared by Leo The Lop (@drunken_sailor_cats) on
Eventually, Leo’s seizures got worse and his family wasn’t sure what to do. They tried various medications, but it was hard to get the right dosage. After trying a variety of pharmaceuticals, Leo’s family decided to try a holistic approach. They started giving the kitty CBD oil.
“I was really against trying it initially,” Leo’s mom told our staff. “But my husband and I decided his quality of life had become so terrible we were willing to try anything.”
Since Leo started his CBD treatments, he seems so much happier. The fluffy guy is up and moving, talking, playing, and interested in things like never before. Without his condition holding him back, Leo is like a brand-new cat!
On an Instagram post, his Mom writes, “Leo becomes more himself everyday; we didn’t even realize how much we had lot to medication and disease. I am beyond thrilled to have those bright eyes and sassy personality back!”
A post shared by Leo The Lop (@drunken_sailor_cats) on
Leo’s devoted Mom says, “Leo has changed my life completely”— and even though the little guy isn’t completely better yet, “He gets stronger every day, and the stronger he gets, the more he wants to explore and play!”
