Slakk's Story

Everyone has an animal that is special and for us that is Slakk.  Slakk, Slakkie or Slakk Michael (he has many names) came into our family when we went to buy cat food for Cassie.  In this dirty pet store was a squalling kitten.  Poor thing was in this dark box screaming his head off and covered in fleas and his ears full of ear mites.

I do not remember how much the cat food was or if we even bought it but I do know Slakk was the best $24.95 we ever spent.  Steve reminds me it was $24.95 plus tax.

Whatever...

At the time Steve was in the military and gone a lot so Slakk and Cassie were my companions in a new city (I had moved from California to North Carolina when we married)  Cassie was a typical aloof Persian but Slakk was my shadow.  He was huddled under the covers with me when we were riding through Hurricane Fran a Category 4 Hurricane while Steve was in Florida at some Meteorology School for the USAF.  He was my rock when I was laid off from my job the day I was put on bed rest when I was pregnant (again Steve was off wherever...)

When Cassie passed Slakk was very depressed.  They had been constant companions for ten years and he was lost.  In our grief we went to the Charlotte Humane Society and ended up with the most unadoptable cat ever known.  Copy the one-eye feral who peed on our couches and beds (he has stopped that thank goodness but he loves us from afar).

At the same time we had sold our home and moved into a larger one, the move was tough on Slakk and soon he just looked like he was on an all-night bender and was using the litter box a lot and drinking all the time.

We took him to the vet (a new one since we had moved) and was told he was diabetic.  We were told he had less than a year to live, that diabetic cat's did not make it and that we probably needed to put him to sleep.

Devastated was not the word -I was furious.  He was not just a cat, he was part of the family and telling me a cat had a good 10 year life and not even try was NOT gonna happen.  I went online and spent hours researching and luckily found the Feline Diabetes website.  I learned that there was hope!  Armed with the information I called the vet and told her I wanted to fight the disease, I had read story after story - there WAS hope.  She called me back and told me that the internet was full of nuts and that it could not be done.

Wanna bet?

First thing I did was find another vet.  This one believed in home testing and was open to allowing me to try to use diet control to assist Slakk.'s body become healthy again  After much research, we decided on a raw diet.  Honestly I think Slakk thought I was trying to kill him with the food, but luckily his inner pig and some parmesan cheese sprinkled on top got him over the hump.  Copy, the ex feral, I think went through post traumatic stress over raw.  If Slakk was not amused Copy was worse - his final couch pee was the first night of raw.

But the best news was that withing three weeks of a raw diet Slakk's diabetes went into remission.  That was three years ago and he is still going strong.  Best of all our cats look great and feel great and we have NO HEALTH ISSUES.  Sam is also now on organic food as well.  And while a senior dog with some arthritis, he is also doing great.

For us Feline Diabetes was not a death sentence it was a life sentance - it gave our pets a better life.  Now I cringe when I see people buying those bags of processed by-product filled bags of poison (Steve has banned me from the pet food aisles).  No kitty crack is allowed in the house!  I also am passionate about Feline Diabetes and have helped other owners of sugar kitties to learn that it is not all gloom and doom.

So for Slakk we have made this website, so more cats and dogs can live happy, healthy lives.  With high quality organic food and health accessories for cats and dogs at affordable prices.  Because we deserve healthy animals and they deserve us.

Oh and I did march into that vet's office and *discuss* with them that they may want to do some new reserch...  I was nice.

I swear :-).

And here is my favorite photo of Slakk and his *Copy Cat* - Copy is on the pillow Slakk is in his favorite position - SLEEP!!!