Dorf

This is a nice closeup of Dorf's sweet face.  Dorf of Forty Paws has been through a lot in his seven years.  He is G.T.'s littermate and their birthday is August 3.  Dorf had FORLS for a long time before anyone realized it.  This is Feline Orthodontic Resorptive Lesions and it is extremely painful.  Just imagine going around with huge cavities and no treatment and you may get some idea of what Dorf was going through.  At first, it was thought that Dorf was acting mean to the other cats because he was stressed by being in a house with so many other cats, so he was put on kitty tranquilizers.  However, the vet finally realized that his teeth were bad and sent him to a cat dentist who removed 11 teeth.  Unfortunately, some of the medications Dorf was given for this procedure caused an allergic reaction which gave him eruptive vasculitis on his stomach, causing a huge lesion which took months to heal, so he had to wear a onesie to keep him from licking his wound and the cream which was rubbed on to help him heal.  It wasn't too long after he was all healed up from that mess that he had to go in and have 9 more teeth removed.  Six month later, he lost all his remaining teeth.  The good news is that now that Dorf isn't in so much pain, he has stopped being mean to the other cats.  He used to corner Reno and Obi and literally scare the pee out of Obi.  He still does this once in a while, but Obi isn't as afraid of Dorf as he once was.  Part of the reason for this is that Dorf is now going blind.  He has a condition which is rare in cats, but fairly common in dogs.  The Baytril that he was on during his vasculitis eruption may have contributed to his condition.  Obi is taking a bit of advantage of the situation by whapping Dorf on the head once in a while. Dorf may remain as he is with poor vision, or he may go completely blind.  Maw is taking good care of him and has been taping the edges of stairs and counters with colored tape, so Dorf can see them more easily.  Dorf still gets around pretty easily during the daytime, but tends to stick close to Maw after dark.  In spite of all this, Dorf still play wrestles with G.T. and still loves to hop onto one of the cat hammocks to snooze in the sun.  He still goes up the cat stairs to the big bed to sleep with Maw and Paw at night.  He enjoys his food and will do just about anything for yoghurt or shredded sharp cheddar cheese.  Dorf is one brave poodin and I am sure that he will do just fine, whether he loses his sight completely or not.

                                      Dorfie's a cat who has been through Hell.
                                      He's lost all his teeth and has bad eyes as well.
                                              He used to be mean,
                                              'Cause his teeth hurt so keen,
                                     But now he's turned gentle and friendly, as well.