He “falled off the fence and needed a lot of rest.” That’s what the first owners of the cat Orlando Ragdoll said in a Gumtree advertisement in Australia. They are looking for another person to pick up in Orlando who they say has special needs. Luckily, a rescue team arrived to help this injured cat, and he ended up with a huge fan club in his corner.
The best friends, a cat rescue in Brisbane, collected Orlando and put him in for testing. X-rays showed he had no obvious fractures from the fall, but malnutrition meant his bones were fragile and underdeveloped. He only eats chicken hearts and intestines, which lack the essential nutrients kittens need to help them grow. Although he is only 8 to 9 months old, he looks more like a 3 to 4 month old baby. He weighs about 3.5 pounds.
The crew had to work, feeding him with syringes four times a day because he was too weak to eat on his own. During the first week, your baby should be able to nibble on a few pieces of food and then be able to get into a position to lick the spoon.
After that, rescue told its Facebook followers, “It’s been just over a week since this little man was taken care of, and it’s pretty safe to say that everyone who reads his story, or meets him, instantly falls in love with him.
His caregiver calls him her little ‘angel baby’, as he is an absolute angel and an absolute little sweetheart. “
He really inspires a lot of love, even in people who have not met him yet. Fans on the internet wanted to help this kitten grow and recover from a rough start. A Facebook follower made him two cat beds, drove over an hour to drop them off. Another person saved up for a few weeks to buy some cat essentials and took a train to deliver them.
These kind gestures helped him undergo physical therapy to build strength in his legs. It was difficult, because his bones were so weak, his caregivers had to make sure he didn’t break a bone.
Shelter said, “We have to be quite careful not to get him overstimulated because we need to keep his movement to a minimum until his bones are stronger. This meant he was confined to a play pen in a quiet area of the house so he could mostly sleep and rest.
“His caregiver said, ‘Even though I know it’s what he needs, I can see that he’s getting very frustrated because he doesn’t understand! He’s a kitten that wants to play and move like normal kittens, and he can’t – it breaks my heart. I visit him constantly, and every time he sees me, his face lights up and that beautiful cry begins. ‘”
The rescue continued to care for him, unsure if he would ever get proper bone strength or if he would still be fragile. At the time, he didn’t seem to be able to heal and was able to move around like a healthy cat. However, they hope for the best and try not to rely on any lesser possibility.
The positivity, care, and love seemed to work because a few months later he was running around like any typical mischievous adult cat. As he waited for a permanent home, a foster family adopted him. When Orlando got along with their other cats and suited their home to perfection, they realized he wasn’t going anywhere and made him a lifelong member of the family.
An update a few months later from the Hobson family has this to say:
“Once Orlando was adopted by our cats and he was free to explore the whole house, that was when I took the mom helicopter. I want Orlando to have the same experiences as our other cats, to be able to get into bed and also have access to a cat tree. Then I knew that we needed to prove ‘Orlando’ our house.
“Orlando has won over his furry sisters, and has his two teenage sisters wrapped around his little paws. Our family made it official and Orlando was here to stay!
“It’s easy to forget about Orlando’s rough start, especially when he’s running through the house or playing with another cat. I admit that I sometimes have a motherly crush on Orlando, but I remind myself that he is a young male cat and that he knows his limits.
“Orlando’s favorite things to do are play with his fluffy sisters, go to the closet or empty laundry basket, watch the birds, play with interactive cat toys and eat. He was no longer scared of the vacuum cleaner and the fact that I had to vacuum around him while he was just lying there.”
“When Orlando naps, he loves to be touched and at night, he takes turns sleeping on the teen bed. We all love it when Orlando lies on his back to receive belly rubs and when he greets us at the door when we get home. ”
They added that they loved him to pieces and couldn’t imagine their home without him.
The rescue team said Orlando recently turned 2 years old and he is sure to live with a happy ending.
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