05/27/2026
We have a wonderful Avery (now Natalie) update for you all! Here’s a message from Nick Butler, her foster that decided to make her a permanent part of his family with his wife, Megan, and their other fur babies! (Including our retired office manager, Sophie!)
“To everyone who donated toward Avery’s care — thank you. Because of you, she’s still here and she’s doing amazing.
As of Mother’s Day Avery is officially ours, and she now goes by Natalie. After more than two months of treatment, medications, sleepless nights, tube feedings, quarantine, and constant care, Natlie is healed and likely calicivirus-free (just waiting on the test results to confirm). Her mouth ulcers are gone, the inflammation has resolved, and she’s back to doing all the normal cat things she hasn’t been able to enjoy for quite some time.
Without the support of her village, Natalie likely would not have survived.
When we first met Natalie, she already had a full mouth extraction. She was exhausted, drooling, matted, underweight, and in obvious pain from severe stomatitis caused by calicivirus. Eating hurt. Grooming hurt. Existing hurt. But even then, you could tell she still wanted to fight.
Dr. Lacie Lee at the Cat Care Center of Baton Rouge (If you haven’t heard of them look them up) quickly realized Natalie needed an esophageal feeding tube just to have a chance at recovery. She also prescribed an anti-viral medication called BOVA EIDD-1939. At that point, euthanasia was a very real possibility. But because some very generous donors were willing to help cover those initial medical costs, treatment became possible.
And that’s when the real work began.
Recovery from calicivirus is not just medication. Natalie needed strict quarantine, a calm environment, around-the-clock feeding schedules, and constant emotional support to reduce stress and allow her body to heal. For weeks, our office became her recovery room. Megan spent most of her days with Natalie, and I spent most nights sitting in a chair with her till 2 or 3 in the morning. Sometimes I even found myself waking up on the floor when Megan came in for her morning routine.
A month into treatment, we hit a setback. She still tested positive and wasn’t ready to have her feeding tube removed, but we kept pushing. Then one morning Natalie decided she was done with the tube and removed it herself. Thankfully, there was no internal damage, and from that moment forward she started eating independently.
Now, two months later, she’s thriving.
We call her our “parkour princess” because she tears around the office bouncing off walls like she’s making up for lost time. She plays hard, sleeps hard, grooms herself, and finally gets to just be a cat.
To top it off, Dr. Lacie Lee is now adding Natalie’s case and outcome to her ongoing study involving full mouth extractions and BOVA EIDD-1931 treatment for stomatitis caused by the calicivirus. Natalie’s success wasn’t just about medication — it was the combination of medical treatment, nutritional support, stress reduction, quarantine, routine, and constant care that gave her the chance to heal. Cases like hers help veterinarians better understand what gives these cats the best possible chance at survival and recovery. Hopefully one day Natalie’s story, and the process that helped save her life, will help save many more.
To everyone who donated, shared, cared, or believed she deserved a chance: thank you. You truly saved her life.
Stories like Natalie’s are why rescues matter. Medical cases are expensive, exhausting, and emotionally draining, but they are survivable when people come together to help.
It takes a village. Natalie is very thankful for hers — and so are we.”
