Franko

RAPS cats come by their names in a variety of ways. Some come with names, while others either never had human names or can't tell us what name their former people used to call them. These are given names when they arrive at the sanctuary.

Here's what the photo caption on the gallery page says about Franko:
"I'm named after the nice man who found me. There, now the name story is out of the way - RUB MY BELLY!"

photo provided by RAPS

photo provided by Michele

The name story may be out of the way, but there's a bit more to Franko's story at RAPS. From Leslie (originally published in The Love Blog in July, 2009):

"Franko, a large brown tabby and white male, stopped eating and became lethargic. A blood panel showed severe lipidosis, a liver problem caused by his failure to eat. Our vet put Franko on IV and we visited him daily to provide love and to coax him to eat. His condition worsened and he became thin, frail and barely responsive, but we weren't willing to give up on him. The vet tube fed Franko twice daily and continued to administer medication for his liver. Franko began to improve and was able to spend brief periods out of his cage for exercise. Our vet noticed that the cat held his neck tipped to one side, a position characteristic of potassium deficiency, and began supplements. Franko's recovery escalated and, after five weeks of hospitalization, he was able to return to our sanctuary.

From his experience, we learned to never give up too quickly. Since that time, we have successfully treated several cats with lipidosis at the sanctuary. When the animals become jaundiced (yellow) from lipidosis, it can take several weeks to heal them. Our Animal Care Staff provide intensive care to the cats in their home environment, sometimes after just a few days on IV at the vet. We believe our charges deserve every chance at life."

These days, doing well and free to roam around the sanctuary, Franko seems a long way from the sickly, almost unresponsive cat Leslie describes above. Today's Franko has a lot more in common with the cheerful upside down cat from the old RAPS gallery picture. All about warm laps and cuddles.

Franko - lap's eye view