Furry Harry, aka Hair Bear, is a 12-year-old cat who was rescued by the Seattle Animal Shelter as a stray. His back right leg was badly fractured and had to be amputated. After surgery, he spent a month recuperating at the veterinarian hospital before he was taken in by SAS foster program volunteer Katy, as a foster. She noticed that he did not seem particularly interested in eating when she brought him home. The vet did some testing that showed nodes on his spleen and some kidney issues. Harry was treated with pills and when that didn’t work, he had a splenectomy and liver biopsy. The biopsy showed a liver issues that was treated again with more medicine and this time around, Harry showed improvement. Katy stated that he was the first cat she had to give meds to and he was “a complete angel about it.”
Taking him to the veterinarian was emotionally tolling, and Katy was worried that there would come a time when SAS could not do anything more for him, but thankfully that time did not come. Harry continued to improve physically and adjusted to missing a leg. There were times when he would slip around on the floor and not make the jump to the couch. As he improved though, he was able to move more successfully around the house.
In spite of his physical challenges, however, Harry was the most loving cat Katy has ever fostered. He would curl up by her side and sleep with her. “He was a constant source of sweetness and love,” Katy said. He had a hard time playing with toys because it was awkward to pounce with three legs, but he learned to play with a circular ball toy. As he got more confident with his missing leg, he was able to jump on the bed or the couch. He loved to fall asleep in strange positions and spots and liked to lay on Katy’s bowling ball bag. He would follow Katy from room to room and would jump on her lap and meow at her. Harry had some quirks too such as sticking his head in his cat grass and chewing on it. He also slept right next to Katy’s head. Once when her husband was eating dinner, Harry jumped on his lap and tried to eat the food right off his fork. For a cat with three legs, he jumped very gracefully to get a smell of that dinner.
When asked what makes Harry a success story, Katy exclaimed, “Based on all of his health struggles, he should not have been a happy cat. But not only was Harry a happy cat, he made me so incredibly happy to have him near each and every day. None of his medical issues could stop him from being his sweet and loving self.” Harry has since been adopted by two sisters who love him dearly. He gets along with their resident cat and can still be found sleeping in strange positions and spots.