A.L.I.V.E. Animal Services Group

This is Poppi. We are now 10 months into the journey of saving Poppi’s life and helping her return to full health—and what a journey it has been. Poppi came into the care of ALIVE Animal Services Group on August 5, 2024, after a good Samaritan contacted the McDowell County, WV Sheriff's Department. The caller had spotted a young cat with horrific injuries to her back. Shockingly, her owners had allowed her to suffer outdoors for over two weeks—injured, starving, and in pain—without seeking help. At the time, Poppi was estimated to be less than a year old. Once in the care of Patti Owensby she was taken directly to a veterinarian with the hope she could be treated. That maybe basic care —a wound cleaning, stitches, and antibiotics—would be enough. What was expected to be a short recovery turned into a much bigger fight. After two months of water therapy, and an attempt at closure treatment, her condition worsened to the point that euthanasia was recommended. Poppi wasn’t ready to give up—and neither were we. In mid-October, Poppi was transferred to a medical foster home under ALIVE’s fiscal sponsor, Safe Haven. Her foster, ALIVE Co-founder Leisa Moten, consulted with Dr. Hughes at All Creatures Veterinary Clinic, who believed there was still hope. Poppi stayed at the clinic for three weeks to aggressively treat the infection. Then, on November 7th, she finally came home—to a warm, loving environment where she would receive the compassion she had always deserved. Her care regimen at home was intense: hydrotherapy, frequent bandage changes (initially daily, then every other day), powerful antibiotics, and two types of pain medications. Trips to the Vets office two to three times each week. Despite everything, Poppi remained joyful and full of life. She never once looked defeated. Just when things were improving, tragedy struck. Poppi contracted MRSA, a dangerous staph infection resistant to most antibiotics. In a matter of days, the infection wiped out months of progress—and we had to start all over again. Still, Poppi never lost her spirit. In a groundbreaking move for our area, her doctors tried an innovative procedure: an acellular fish skin graft—literally a piece of cod skin stitched over her wound to nourish and accelerate healing. It worked! The graft stimulated healthy new tissue and helped protect her from further infection. Then came a critical decision: close the wound surgically, or risk further complications. On March 10th, Dr. Striet, a skilled surgeon at All Creatures, performed the largest wound closure of his career on a cat. Using an “H-flap” technique, he created skin flaps by cutting underneath the skin on Poppi's back and pulling the edges together to cover the area. Poppi spent almost six weeks in the hospital, returning home on April 19th—stronger and closer than ever to being healed.