14/10/2026
š¤ Rest In Peace, Ruby š¤
The last 24 hours has been an emotional rollercoaster. Ruby was trapped and brought to us in late September. She appeared to have recently given birth and was carrying a lot of milk so we reluctantly released her back where she had been living to give her and the kittens the best chance at surviving. Her tail had been severed, so we did the best we could at cleaning it and applied antibiotic cream. We hoped to have her (and the kittens) back in our care within the month.
Ruby was watched over at the house she decided to call home. She used the feeding station that was set up and was seen sunbathing outside regularly. Unfortunately, her pattern of behaviour did not align with a mother cat tending to kittens and her mammary glands continued to grow in size.
Concern grew, and last night she was trapped again and brought to the rescue. She was bleeding from her belly and we could see ruptured flesh so rushed her to the emergency vet. She was sedated and an examination confirmed a mammary gland had ruptured through the outer skin and another gland was about to rupture as well. There were signs the tissue was dying and the surgeries required to try repair the damage were complicated, high risk and costly, but if they worked she had a good chance of a normal life after recovery.
Today, the vets prepared Ruby for the initial surgery to fix the rupture. We knew it was a long shot, but this poor cat had known so much pain we felt she deserved a chance.
With her tail needing properly amputated, and the potential for all of her mammary glands needing to be removed, this would be expensive but I felt responsible for the situation she was in so I decided to put in some of my own money and the lovely ladies who trapped Ruby and helped watch over her also offered to donate towards her care.
This afternoon we got the bad news that the tissue was too decayed and there was not enough healthy tissue to repair the damage. She was fighting infection and the chances of surgery working were extremely slim.
While Ruby was sedated, she was peacefully put to sleep. She now lays at rest in our garden, under the cherry tree about to burst into full blossom. She is not alone. She is buried alongside the other rescue cats and kittens we were unable to save.
My heart is torn with grief and guilt. I made the wrong decision 3 weeks ago and I have to own that. I felt at the time I was making the right decision for the kittens we believed were out there.
Thank you Monique and Lisa for loving this poor girl. Without you both, her suffering would have continued. Ruby won't be forgotten.
