Kojak arrived at Seattle Animal Shelter weighing a mere 8 lbs. When foster parents Stina and Don took the cat home in January of 2014, his ribs and backbone were visible through his skin. Due to a flea allergy, his fur was shaven, exaggerating his already thin frame.
“We brought the little guy home and he ate and ate and ate. He was very food motivated after some hard times on the streets and would come running anytime he thought there might be something for him,” says Stina.
In addition to being malnourished, Kojak was diagnosed with diabetes. A veterinarian prescribed insulin, and Stina had to check his blood glucose levels by pricking his ear. “It was a challenge. We took him to the vet at various times where they would keep him for several hours to test his levels and then adjust his insulin based on those readings on that day.”
Stina knew how important it was to control Kojak’s diabetes. “He was such a sweet kitty, but I knew that with diabetes it would be difficult to find him a forever home,” she says. She began giving Kojak a high-protein, wet-food-only diet, which helped him achieve a healthy weight but didn’t stabilize his diabetes. At one point he suffered a seizure from low blood sugar, and his glucose level shot up to 500mg (a normal reading is between 60-100mg).
Stina began intensive efforts to get Kojak’s blood sugar under control, testing Kojak’s glucose three to four times per day and creating a spreadsheet to track his glucose levels. Using this data, she would determine whether or not to give him a dose of insulin. Stina’s efforts paid off: Kojak’s glucose started to stabilize without the help of insulin. His fur became shiny and his weight shot up to a hearty 15 lbs. Kojak was ready for his forever home.
Now that he was feeling good, Kojak’s personality began to shine through. He enjoyed going outside, so his foster mom trained him to wear a harness so he could be outside while she gardened. He loved to gather sticks and bring them inside. Kojak also liked to play with dogs, and even liked to ride in the car and look out the window. “He had such a sweet and funny personality that he made us chuckle on a regular basis,” Stina recalls.
Just after Thanksgiving, 10 months after Stina and Don began fostering him, Kojak found his forever home. He was adopted by a married couple with a nice outdoor space and a dog named Zeke. “We have always had both at least one cat and one dog in the family for 49 out of our 50 years of marriage and they have always been the best of friends,” says adoptive parent Susan. Zeke and Kojak both have matching black and white “tuxedo” coats.
At first, Kojak wasn’t sure what to think about his new doggie brother. He hissed and growled at Zeke for the first few weeks, but now they get along fine. “He quickly decided that Zeke needed looking after and that we needed his direction to properly organize the household,” Susan says. “He likes to play and to be wherever we all are. He follows all of us around, loves his perch from which he can survey all living room and kitchen traffic and is the head mealtime nag.”
Thanks to his dedicated foster parents and the Seattle Animal Shelter, Kojak has blossomed from a malnourished, diabetic cat into a healthy cat with a big personality who found his ideal home.
SASF funding supports the Seattle Animal Shelter foster cat program that helped lead Kojak to his forever home. To help even more deserving animals like Kojak, please donate today.