Archie Update! Kitten Almost Fully Recovered From Human Bite Neck Wound

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When we first met little Archie, he had been wrapped in the hands of certain death. A mentally disturbed woman was found with the weeks old kitten in a California park. But it was what she was doing that brought him into the spotlight.

She held Archie in her hands while she bit him on the neck!

Thankfully, the terrified kitten was removed from her and the authorities were called. The tiny kitten was taken in by Hannah Shaw, a.k.a. the Kitten Lady. But not only did the handsome and brave boy have a massive open wound on his neck. He had ringworm as well! And that is very contagious to humans and other animals.

I finally got a chance to speak with the hero who saved him 2 weeks ago when he was being attacked in a public park, and she shared the full story, which was even more intense than I had known. I don’t really want to share details because it is nightmare inducing. It brought me to tears and all I can say is that @orphankittenclub pushed hard for him and for others who have been harmed in the area, and there is now an open investigation. My greatest hope is that this never happens again.

Archie is such a sweet, tender boy and it makes me sad to see the ways trauma still lives in his body. Sudden sounds can really terrify him. The bite on his neck is still an open wound, and 16 days into healing it still is jarring to see (although it is healing great!) And, he can be intense with food. It’s like he wants the food so badly that his jaw clamps down in anticipation of needing to hold on tight to it, but this prevents him from getting any food into his mouth to begin with. Every meal I have to sit with him and calm him down, just trying to get him to relax and know that food is ample and always will be.

So Archie was quarantined in Hannah’s bathroom to be treated for the fungus.

Luckily for the rest of us, Hannah’s fiancee Andrew Martilla is just as experienced with photography! He is more commonly known as The Cat Photographer. Talk about a PURRWER couple!

But they are more than just pretty faces, they are the best chance Archie had to overcome his tragedy. Because they know that just pulling him from the streets isn’t where his struggle ended.

Daily bandage changes on his neck were carefully monitored to ensure no infection set in.

And if you’ve ever cared for a cat or kitten with ringworm, it’s curable…but it’s also not a quick fix. Animals must test negative for the fungal infection 2xs before they should be allowed into a “general population” of others. This can also bring issues with a young kitten begins to exhibit “singleton” tendencies after being separated from other kittens their age. Happily, with Hannah and Andrew watching over him, Archie is well on his way to a full recovery.

Fans of the rescue heroes have been happy to follow Archie’s recovery shared by the two on social media.

It seems that one of his favorite discoveries is a simple sunbeam. But how precious!?

And during his ringworm treatment baths, he’s even treated to a special…and extremely clever, ringworm song from Hannah. I mean, musical talent is in her genetic makeup as her father is Tommy Shaw, guitarist for Styx.

Just this week, Hannah shared a wonderful Archie update on his “purrogress”.

His healing is on track and his personality is shining through like a kitten’s should be!

https://www.facebook.com/kittenxlady/posts/2715636455356960

Congrats to Archie and thank you a million times to Hannah, Andrew and all involved with saving this sweet soul from death! Be sure to follow all the amazing rescue stories from Kitten Lady and their organization, the Orphan Kitten Club.

Photos by Hannah Shaw/Kitten Lady and Andrew Martilla / The Cat Photographer