He may not look like much. To many of you, he may even appear mild mannered, which he undoubtably is. During these moments, he is simply, Leo- your everyday "average joe" of a cat. However, average he is not. See, when no one is looking, he dons his magical cape and becomes:
Leo......The Super Above Average, Rather Extraordinary, Melt Your Heart,Wonder Kitty. Leo started out as a greasy spot on the road, or so some heartless person who tossed him in the road had hoped. He arrived at our church in the care of another church member who had found him. About 3 1/2 weeks old, a spinal cord injury and a horrid respiratory infection. He could not breathe well and could not use his front paws. I did not hold much hope that he would live. We took him home and then took him to the vet, where he stayed for about 10 days- receiving antibiotics and steroids in an attempt to decrease the swelling in his spinal cord. He came home to us with limited use of his front paws, and still on antibiotics. It was unclear if he would walk normally as his paws were "flippy floppy"....sometimes obeying his commands, but often not. Initially we called him Ernie, but it became apparent to us that he had a heart of a lion, so we changed his name to Leo. Despite his rough start, he was unstoppable and totally loveable. He purred, and purred and purred, and he slowly mended. At first we thought he might have a little bit of a mental disability because the trauma injury, but he doesn't. He's just happy to be alive, and high on life. Leo is friends with everyone....cats, dogs, horses (he likes to ride them), turkeys...it doesn't matter. So if you are visiting Ararat Acres, and see a streak of orange come running towards you...... If you see a flash of a cape (that is mostly invisible to those who don't believe)......get ready to open your arms and receive a huge hug from a great big, loveable, ALIVE cat who just celebrated his first birthday. He teaches me about joy almost every day, and makes me laugh almost as often, this guy......who almost became that greasy spot in the road. Stay tuned. Leo the Wonder Kitty has arrived and will be making semi regular appearances here. He's got some stories to tell, and some joy to share.
