Meow! My name is Rio

In March 2011 we got an urgent notice about a breeder in Arizona who was being evicted from her home. On the property were nearly 95 cats. They had been left there for over a year with just a caretaker coming in to feed & water them. They were mostly unsocialized, but we were told
that there was a good chance they could become loving kitties with some time and TLC. Most were in good health, with just some minor things such as ear mites, that needed treatment.
Purebreds Plus took in taken in 11 of them. One year later we still have three of these cats in foster care. Rio is one of them.

Rio was super thin and missing a lot of hair. For awhile we were afraid he wasn't going to make it. Because we couldn't handle him, we wouldn't be able to medicate him if there was a serious issue. We were able to put some worming medication in his wet food and he immediately began
gaining weight and his coat has become quite lovely. From the first few weeks we had Rio, he would come out from behind his hiding places and sit and stare at us while we cleaned and fed the cats. Frankly we felt as if he was stalking us and deciding whether or not to launch himself at our faces. But pretty soon we realized that he was just curious and probably trying to get in touch with an old, old memory of being held and loved as a kitten. That was long before he was turned outside to live caged in the extreme heat and cold temperatures in the high deserts of Arizona.

After a couple of months Rio decided he'd like to live inside the house with us. He has been great with the litter box. As you can see he still prefers to come out in the garden and hang
out while we are working. We think he will be happy as a completely indoor cat, or in a home that can allow him a very safe garden or screened porch where he can stop and smell the flowers now and then. We are trying to teach him how to play but he finds feather toys confusing. He began allowing us to pet him while he was being fed and recently he has let us pick him up and examine him. He is actually quite affectionate as long as we don't try to push him too much by looking in ears and mouth. Now that we are able to handle him, we realize Rio is in need of veterinary care. He has an ear infection with ear damage that has probably been ongoing for years. He may need a minor surgery to rebuild the ear canal so that it can drain properly. He may be deaf in that area. We also feel he is going to need a dental with quite a few extractions. We are looking at a low estimate of $400 for the dental and basic diagnostics. If we get into the surgery for the ear canal or find something like a nasopharyngeal polyp we may be looking at quite a bit more.

Please help us get this long neglected kitty some needed vet care. This boy deserves a fabulous home. We hope someone with patience and a very kind heart will step forward to take on this boy. In the meantime please consider even the smallest donation to help us get him great vet care. Rio's vet care will be handle by Dr. Jeff Schmidt at Arborview Veterinary Clinic in Roseville.

Email us at Info@purebredsplus.org.