2000 Keni

Meet Keni – a hard-luck story with a happy ending.

Cat Guardians first became aware of Keni when a nearby resident called in late spring of 2000 to report that a cat had been lurking nearby for some time. It seems that neighbors had seen this cat in this area near Kenilworth street (thus his new name) as far back as January.

When Cat Guardians volunteers arrived, Keni was extremely weak and in such physical distress that he was barely able to drag the lower half of his body into a cat carrier. Keni was taken to a local animal hospital where it was learned that he was not only severely malnourished and dehydrated, but had also become anemic and suffered kidney damage. He was, however, found to be front-paw declawed and neutered, indicating that he was once part of a human household.

After three days on intravenous fluids, Keni improved enough to be taken to the Cat Guardians shelter. Keni’s history before his rescue by Cat Guardians is unknown. He may have escaped his home and gotten lost, or was abandoned and neglected. In any case, he has been through quite an ordeal. In spite of it all, Keni has a very sweet disposition. He enjoys human contact and attention, often napping in the nearest welcoming lap. Physically, he has made progress, but he is still quite weak and is not out of the woods yet. After he was rescued, he was unable at first to chew dry food because he had lost so much muscle tissue in his jaws. Also, his hair was so badly matted that it could not be combed or shaved without damaging his skin. Keni has shown a great deal of resilience, and we hope that with time and proper attention, this strong-spirited cat will make a full recovery.
Update: Keni has been adopted by a shelter volunteer, and continues to make progress in his recovery.