This following comments were posted on Carolina Tiger Rescue's Facebook page:
Java, one of our most recent arrivals, passed away on Tuesday. She had slowly been losing control of her hind legs, most likely due to a ruptured disk. As there was no course of treatment for her condition, the Carolina Tiger family embraced her last few months as she continued to decline. When she lost nearly all function in her hind legs, the decision was made that her quality of life was too compromised, and she was euthanized.
Although Java only spent a short time with us, the Carolina Tiger family quickly came to love her feisty spirit and talkative nature. Java did live to a very ripe old age of 18, and we were very glad to share her last few months and make them as wonderful as possible.
From: Kathryn Bertok
To: kbrunner@...
Sent: Thu, March 24, 2011 9:47:59 AM
Subject: RE: Java's Passing
Dear Kristina,
Thank you for all of your hard work helping to get these animals cared for. It does seem that they have a lot of animals that still need homes. We are keeping our eyes and ears open for any placement opportunities.
Concerning Java, we did complete a necropsy. We are awaiting the histopath from the lab, but on gross necropsy we did not find any indication of disease. Her heart, lungs, pancreas, kidneys, liver, et al looked healthy, especially given her age. We did not find any tumors or other abnormalities. Her teeth looked good but she did have two ulcers on the roof of her mouth (possible the start of more advanced kidney disease?). Her entry blood work showed some signs of early stage kidney disease but it had not progressed to the stage of being visible on gross necropsy. Otherwise her blood work looked good. Our vet believes that she either had a ruptured disk or degenerative disk disease, but neither being caused by lack of care. Given her age either could be expected.
I realize that this may not help you with getting additional care for the animals that are still at WAO. Please let me know if there are any questions that I can help with.
Sincerely,
Kathryn Bertok
Curator of Animals
Carolina Tiger Rescue
CarolinaTigerRescue.org
919.542.4684 ext 32
I am greatly relieved Java died due to age related issues as opposed to the other issues I am learning about from other sanctuaries that took in WAO animals. I am not surprised Java developed the early signs of renal failure seeing how she was on a chicken only diet, without the added benefit of vitamins and minerals. Java was a strong cat and she was a fighter to the very end.
Additional information regarding the conditions of the three lions and three tigers as they arrived at Carolina Tiger Rescue:
From: Kristina BrunnerJava was loved and she is missed. May the Lord Bless and Protect her soul forever.
Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2011 11:03 AM
To: Kathryn Bertok
Subject: Re: Java's Passing
Dear Kathryn:
Thank you very much for this information. I am greatly relieved that Java did not suffer from tumors, cysts, or growths and that her passing was related to age versus improper care.
Several facilities reported the animals they received from the WAO either had parasites, worms, fleas, or ticks. May I ask what condition did Sebastian, Sheba, Tarzan, Titan, and Bali arrived in? Were they all in good physical and mental condition? Well fed?
Based on several reports from other sanctuaries, the majority of the WAO animals were shipped away without a medical examination by the WAO's vet resulting in surprising medical problems and bills. Do you know if the six cats received a medical exam prior to relocating to your facility?
Again, thank you for the information about Java. I will miss her. If you happen to have any pictures or videos you'd like to share with me (other than what's already on the Internet) or fun stories of the former WAO animals, I'd love to see/read them. After all they have been through, I am relived the animals are finally receiving the care they desperately needed from your organization.
Kindest Regards,
Kris
From: Kathryn Bertok
To: Kristina Brunner
Sent: Thu, March 24, 2011 10:15:53 AM
Subject: RE: Java's Passing
Kris,
We did treat everyone for parasites and because we had heard that some of the animals having fleas, we did some preventative treatment but did not see any fleas. We also did not see any ticks during their entry exam. They did not received any pre-shipment physicals but we knew that ahead of time and were prepared to get them knocked down quickly after arrival. Thankfully everyone’s blood work came back fairly normal. Certainly given the ages of the tigers we were expecting some kidney and liver concerns. While they were slightly elevated they were not in major failure. Everyone’s weight was either good or overweight. We have been working on getting Sebastian’s weight down especially.
The lions were very unconcerned about their arrival. Sheba walked around quarantine to check everything out but after that they all laid down and napped. The tigers were a little more upset by the move, but again we were told to expect that. I guess Bali can get upset by change and Java needs a bit to adjust to new circumstances. After a day Java was up and chuffling and after about a week, Bali was up too.
It has been a while since we had a lion pride so it’s been fun to watch them interact with one another. In Quarantine we have two sections so that we can shift them back and forth. For their exams, we shifted Sebastian over first and completed his knock down. He was still feeling very loopy and hadn’t yet stood up but was sternal. After watching the other two pace at the door we decided to go ahead and let them over. Normally we wait until everyone is up and moving well. Immediately Sheba sniffed him from head to tail and back again. Tarzan came and laid down right next to his head. After Sheba was done checking him out, she wanted to lay down right next to him too. There were some words exchanged (grumblings) between Tarzan and Sheba but they finally worked it out so that they were both right on top of Sebastian while he recovered. It was the same with the other two. What a great group of lions!
Best of luck,
Kathryn Bertok
Curator of Animals
Carolina Tiger Rescue
CarolinaTigerRescue.org
919.542.4684 ext 32
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