Kitten Found Walking on Exposed Bone Stumps Is Now Happy And Healing With His New Family
When the Blair family found 12-week-old Pascoe on the family farm in late April, he was seriously malnourished and missing parts of both back legs.
The New Zealand family told reporters from 9News that they suspected the kitten had been dumped on their property. It was unclear whether the kitten's mangled legs were the result of abuse or an accident, but when he was found he was using the bone stumps of his missing legs to walk.
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"He wanted help," Sophie Blair told 9News. "He was meowing like non-stop when we first saw him, but he was scared and wouldn't come near us."
Though Pascoe was resistant to human contact at first, the Blairs were able to finally safely capture the kitten from his hiding spot and take him to a local veterinarian. At the vet's office, the family learned Pascoe's legs had lost muscle and the bones were infected, 9News reported.
The injured kitten required a week of rest and recuperation before he was strong enough to undergo surgery to cover his exposed bone with skin and allow him to begin the healing process.
Before surgery, members of the Blair family posted on social media to see if any owners were searching for the kitten. After nobody reached out, the Blairs decided to make Pascoe an official member of their family—naming the resilient kitten after New Zealand Paralympian Sophie Pascoe.
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The Blair family started a TikTok account and a fundraising page to help raise awareness about the brave kitten and raise money to pay Pascoe's vet bills, which have already totaled in the thousands of dollars.
Sophie Blair's most recent update on their fundraising page expressed the family's gratitude and shared good news on Pascoe's progress.
"Pascoe is sorted for life thanks to so many of you out there words can't describe our appreciation," Blair says in the update post. "We now would love to help pass on future donations to help many other animal abuse savers like us to cover food, medicine, surgery, and all other requirements these poor animals need to give them the best chance in life."
The family says that when Pascoe is older, they plan to see if he's a good candidate for prosthetics. For now, the Blairs and their new pet are just happy to be together and looking forward to a happy, healthy future.
For more information about how to help or secure an animal who is hurt and needs medical attention, check out our guide to catching a skittish cat.
