Motor Boat

Intake week: 1/15/2019

In January 2019, an eight-week-old kitten was brought into our city shelter. She had paralyzed back legs from an unknown injury, an extremely full bladder, and a non-stop purr that was as loud as a boat engine. We knew immediately that she needed to be a part of the ALIVE family. We scooped her up that night, named her Motor Boat (after that loud purr), got her the vet care she needed, and placed her in a loving foster home.

In the beginning, we weren’t sure of the extent of Mo’s paralysis. Per the vet’s request, Mo’s care began with a few months of crate rest. After that, she started physical therapy at Integrative Pet Care to see if she’d ever be able to walk again. She did months of laser therapy, massage, treadmill work, and acupuncture. Over time, we learned Mo was permanently paralyzed but not in pain. And due to her paralysis, she’d need her bladder expressed a few times a day for the rest of her life. Totally fine with us-- she was happy and healthy, and that’s all we cared about.

Motor Boat stayed in her same foster home for a year and 9 months while she waited for us to find her perfect match. She’d gotten quite a few applications, but never the perfect fit, and so we waited patiently and networked her until the right family came along. Well, we finally found them! On October 29, 2020, Motor Boat was adopted by an amazing, experienced family. She even has an older cat brother, who is also paralyzed, named Lukas!