22/02/2025
Rest in peace, Millie 🌈
Millie was rescued after an acid attack at the end of September; her back was almost completely burned, and she had severe neurological damage. She showed great strength of will, never faltering, and she managed to survive and completely recover. At the first vet visit, she was also diagnosed with FeLV, meaning that no matter the outcome of her injuries, she would have a tough future ahead.
After her recovery, she was fostered by Lucy for one month and then tested for FeLV again to confirm the result. At that time, she was diagnosed with multiple tumors, requiring immediate mastectomy, and the vet was certain that they signified rapidly progressing cancer.
Millie went to a second foster home, the mastectomy went well, and the biopsy showed that the tumors were not malignant; she did not have cancer after all. There, she remained waiting for her 1-month follow-up appointment that would decide whether she would need a second surgery.
By the time of the follow up, she had deteriorated, had lost weight, and would not eat. She was hospitalized and found to have aplastic anemia, mycoplasma, pneumonia, and jaundice; a few days later, she also developed ascites. All had developed in less than a month, as very little time had passed since her surgery, when she was fine. The vets believed that these came from the FeLV being activated because of all the stress her body had gone through with the attack, surgery, and environment changes. The diagnosis included FeLV-associated secondary infections and lymphoma. PCR of the abdominal fluid was also performed to exclude FIP, which also causes some of these conditions, and it was negative.
Millie fought hard for seven days at the clinic; she was taking all possible treatments, and I was visiting twice a day to feed her and keep her company. Despite everything, she was getting progressively worse until she could no longer hold on. Millie would shy away from human contact in earlier months, but she was very affectionate toward the end. At least, she got to experience cuddles and love in her final days.
Millie is now sharing her resting place with Harry; may they keep each other company for a long time 💔
