Meet Seasoned Crouton

Seasoned Crouton’s story before arriving this week is not an easy one. When concerns about his condition were first raised at his previous situation, his foster was told that he was just too young to warrant or receive medical care. As time passed, his injuries and infections worsened, and he continued to decline.

Fortunately, Crouton was with a foster who recognized that something was very wrong and did not stop advocating for him. She provided attentive care, sought help repeatedly, and ultimately worked tirelessly to find a rescue willing and able to take on his medical needs. That search led her to us.

By the time Crouton arrived, he was severely underweight, anemic, and critically ill. He is fighting septic arthritis, a severe joint infection. One front leg is currently non-functional and may very well need amputation eventually, and a back leg is swollen and contracted.

He had extensive swelling, scarring, and trauma that caused his urinary opening to nearly close, a life-threatening condition that required immediate surgical intervention. Otherwise, the opening would have completely closed by the next morning. Dr. Werden and a number of the Harmony Hill team worked to keep Crouton at a proper anesthetic depth while locating and repairing his urethra. Due to his size and limb injuries, intravenous access required placement of a tiny jugular catheter. Kittens this small cannot receive many standard anesthetic medications, and those that are safe must be precisely diluted, sometimes into fractions of a milliliter. We were able to keep Crouton stable under anesthesia and finally created a new opening for him to urinate out of.

These conditions, combined with chronic malnutrition, have left him extremely fragile.

Right now, Crouton is hospitalized receiving:
Around-the-clock intensive, supportive medical care
Antibiotics and pain management
Bandage changes
Physical therapy

Despite it all, Crouton is bright, has an insatiable appetite, and likes to play. If you scritch his head in just the right spot, an impressively large purr erupts from his tiny body. His case is serious, but he has already shown that he wants to keep fighting. 💕 Interestingly, we have absolutely no idea if Crouton is a boy or a girl due to the severity of the injuries. We just use pronouns… interchangeably. It will be a surprise!

If you would like to help us care for Crouton and other cats just like him or her, please donate here: https://givebutter.com/tcal2026 #neonatalkitten #kitten #vetmed #cat #catrescue