Burned cat still in recovery

A Topaz Ranch Estates feline is still in aftershock, so to speak, after receiving a jolt last week from a 25,000-volt power line that set him on fire.

John Respess, supervisor of the Douglas County Animal Shelter, said the cat was still in the hands of veterinarians.

"They didn't think it was in good enough condition to be adopted at this time," Respess said Monday.

As for who will adopt the frazzled feline, kennel maintenance worker Joan Gomez said the shelter received at least 50 calls from all over the country.

"We had calls from Canada, Washington, D.C., Ohio and Oregon," Gomez said Thursday. "I guess it got onto the major news. After awhile I just quit taking phone numbers and told people I had too many names on the list."

An owner for the pet was finally found this week, Gomez said. An employee at the cat's current location, Carson Valley Vet, will be taking the scorched kitty home when it is released.

Gomez added that the cat has been experiencing fluctuating temperatures, which is common for burn victims, so its release from the vet is still unknown.

Respess said it's up to the veterinarians when the cat can be taken to his new home.

"Right now, they're just giving it fluids, monitoring it and addressing the burns," he said.

A modified version of The Record-Courier story was picked up by the Associated Press and within 24 hours had hit Web sites all around the nation.

Television stations from Florida to Hawaii posted the story, as did newspapers from Alaska, Colorado, Texas and North Carolina.

Even the ivy league was not immune with postings on Harvard Law and Columbia Web sites.

The largest news organization to pick up the story was ABC News, which broadcast it on Good Morning America.

A Google search revealed at least 30 different Web sites picked up the story, including the Drudge Report and several sites such as MSNBC, Free Republic, News.Yahoo, America Online and Cox Cable.

For more information on adopting pets, call the Animal Shelter at 782-9061.