The story of Wally and Lipton starts in 1995. My friend's cat had kittens, and for whatever reason, was unable to care for two of the three. The first one, was taken into the attic of the house and literally dropped down into the wall. He was stuck there for almost two days, meowing as loud as he could before the place where he had landed was finally found. A hole was cut into the wall and he was pulled out of the wall. He was cold and very weak. But very hungry, too. That belly growled even the slightest bit and he let you know about it with a crying kind of meow. He was put into an old, clean aquarium, with a towel, a teddy bear and a small clock. My friend then called me. She had two young kids and just didn't have the time he'd need to survive. He then came to my house. My sister and I decided to take "shifts" taking care of the little guy who had been named Wally. We called vets, to see what could be done for him. We were guessing that he was about two days old when he had been pulled out of the wall. That would make his birthday August 17, 1995. Most of the vets told us that it was pointless to even try, and that he should be put down. But one vet told us what to do to try. He didn't tell us it would definitely work, but he was willing to help. We started feeding him KMR formula every two hours. And with each feeding, he also needed to be stimulated to go to the bathroom. He was kept in the aquarium, with a wrapped heating pad (set on low), with his teddy bear and his clock. Because he was so weak, he couldn't nurse from the tiny bottle we had. We ended up using a medicine dropper to feed him.
When they were about 1 year old, Wally started vomiting occasionally after eating. He also seemed to be losing weight. He went to the vet, and a full blood work was done, among other tests. He had also become violent at times. He would be curled up on a lap, when he would suddenly bite, claw the person whose lap he was on, and then start running around the house randomly. The blood tests showed antibodies of Heartworms. It was explained that that meant the waste of the actual heartworms. It was also discovered that his heart was abnormally small. He had also suffered brain damage when he was dropped into the wall as a newborn kitten. The tests gave the vet an idea of what life stage the worms were at, and told us an approximate time frame for the worms to start dying. From the life stage the worms were at, he had most likely been exposed (and infected) with the heartworms before he was put into the wall, or even in the wall. Wally was put onto steroids, to strengthen his heart. He was also put on Pepcid AC (cut in 1/4's) before eating, to help with the vomiting. The brain damage had caused (somehow...I don't know, medically) a form of Epilepsy. The "wild times" were the "seizures". Nothing could be done about it. For one, it wasn't severe enough to call for giving him more medicines. We had about a year from that day to "wait" for the heartworms to begin dying.
Wally did really well on the meds, and was healthy for that entire year. When August (1998) started to get closer, we watched him more carefully every day. That was when the vet had said the worms may start dying. It would be the "pieces" of the worms, as they were broken down in his body, that would end up killing him. They would start to back up, within the arteries and inside his heart. August came and went...Wally was fine. He went back to the vet for more blood tests, nothing abnormal was found. He was taken off the steroids (slowly weaned from them). He then had his next "series" of shots. My sister and I had both gone to the vet with him that day. We stopped to get something to eat, then went to a park and sat outside (with Wally in his crate, on the picnic table) to eat. About a half hour after we left the vet's office, he started vomiting and panting. We rushed him back to the vet's office. (It was a short drive from the park) We ran him in, they took him right in from the lobby. They didn't even make us wait for the vet in an exam room. After a few minutes, we were taken to an exam room, and told that he was having an allergic reaction to one of the three shots he had just gotten. They wanted to keep him for observation overnight. The next day, we called, and went in to get him. He was doing better. We took him home, and he's been fine since then. They decided that day that when he has shots, he stays all day, they do a shot of Benadryl (antihistamine), then a vaccine (1/2 hour later). Wait a few hours, repeat the process, until he's done for the day. A few months after he had the reaction, we were taking one of the many critters we had between the two of us to the vet. We got to talking with some of the staff. They told us how scary it really had been with him that day. They had actually carried him, room to room, because they were afraid to leave him alone for any amount of time. He had been in shock due to the reaction. It was a very scary moment in time. So was August of 1998, when the heartworms were dying.
Wally and Lipton were 10 years old this August (2005). They are both healthy and spoiled rotten. Wally is no longer on Pepcid Ac. He's also on a prescription diet, to provide more nutrients in a smaller amount, since he does vomit occasionally still. Lipton is doing fine. She doesn't have any of the health troubles Wally has had. Thank Goodness!
I have learned a few things since raising these two. For one, a medicine dropper should NOT be used to feed kittens. The formula can accidentally be forced into their lungs. For another, KMR has since started making a "follow-up" formula for kittens, so the problems we had may not even happen now.
Well, that's Wally and Lipton's story. I hope you found it interesting, maybe a bit informative, even. Thanks for letting me share their story! (((hugs)))
That same weekend, I got a call from the friend who had found Wally. She had found another kitten in her garage. This one was also very young, cold and hungry. It was found face first inside of a drinking glass. It's body had sunk down in the glass so much that in a few more minutes it probably would have suffocated. It was brought in to the house, and wrapped in a warm towel until I got there with the KMR and another aquarium. I took this one home, and she was named Lipton, for being found "cold and in a glass".
The first two weeks were going really well. Both Wally and Lipton were growing some and becoming more active every day. Wally was still a bit thin, but he was gaining weight. At about 3 weeks, we found blood in Wally's stool. He was a bit less active than usual, and less interested in eating. We called the vet immediately, and took both kittens in, for a check on Wally and to just make sure Lipton was doing alright, too. They had been in an aquarium together, but Lipton tried to nurse off of Wally...making him very sore. Because of that, the vet took Lipton's temperature, instead of Wally's. Wally weighed 1.1lbs and Lipton was 1.0lbs. So tiny!! The vet said that with a mother cat, as the kittens grow, the mother also changes her diet, by eating more, etc. Because we couldn't do that with the KMR, he recommended that we start slowly weaning them to kitten food. Wally had basically been starting to starve, not because he wasn't eating enough, but because the KMR was no longer providing the nutrients he needed.
Now begins the fun stuff!! 
The way Wally and Lipton were weaned onto kitten food is this: We made the KMR, as usual, then soaked dry kitten food in some of it overnight. The next day, before feeding them, the "mush" was smashed more, to make a pasty kind of texture. Then, we added canned kitten food to that. And a bit more warm KMR to make a soupy "gruel". It was at first put into tiny (unused!) "disposable" ashtrays, because they were so tiny. Even the smallest bowl or even a lid to Tupperware ( or rubbermaid, etc.) bowls, was too tall for them. Because kittens "knead" while nursing...they "kneaded" in the bowls while sucking the mixture up. Wally always seemed to find a slightly harder piece of dry food, and would suck the liquid through it. After every feeding, they were covered in KMR/food from their ears (top of head), over their faces, down their chins, both front legs, and down to about their belly buttons. They both became quite accustomed to baths after every meal!! 
They grew very quickly, and were putting on enough weight at that point. They started having their first shots, etc. They did very well, even the vet was amazed by how well they were doing. They started eating regular dry kitten food, and continued to grow.
Wally and Lipton at about one year old..."playing"...
Charlie Brown Tribute page
"There is no more intrepid explorer than a kitten." (by Jules Chamfleury)
![[Flag Campaign icon]](http://a1032.g.akamai.net/f/1032/81/30m/www.gamesville.lycos.com/art_gv/ribbon_small.gif){kind=small}