By Hayley Gastmeier
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It is all in the name with little Lazarus the cat.
When the female kitten was dropped off at South Wairarapa Veterinary Services in Featherston on Tuesday, Jessie MacNeil didn’t hold high hopes.
“We really thought she was dead or on the way out.
“But then she gave us some sass when we gave her some fluids, so we figured we’d give [saving her] a go.”
Ms MacNeil, a veterinary nurse, said the kitten was about six or seven-weeks-old.Lazarus had been brought in to the clinic by a man, who had her ” wrapped up in his t-shirt”.
“He said ‘I found this on the side of the road and it kind of looks beyond what a little food and water can do’.
“So we took Lazarus off him.
“We took her temperature, and she was cold so we plopped her on a hot water bottle.
“We tried to give her fluids under the skin but needles made her absolutely manic so we settled for dribbling water into her mouth, and we rubbed honey into her gums.”
This was so the sugars could be absorbed, giving the kitten “enough energy not to die”.
“It took her two or three hours to regain consciousness, and then she was really wobbly for the next couple of hours, but then she just steadily came right.”
Ms MacNeil suspects Lazarus had been feral, as she had been “pretty averse to human contact”, but says the cat would still make a good pet.
“She’s young enough to be brought around.
“She’s already taking pats pretty good and she hasn’t tried to attack us or anything.
“She’s just frightened more than anything.”
Now Ms MacNeil’s aim was to socialise and nourish Lazarus.
Clinic staff had settled on “a returned-from-the-dead name” for the kitten, which should be ready for re-homing in a couple of weeks, she added.
