We don't know Sophie's exact date-of-birth. It was approximately January, in 2019 ... twelve months before the pandemonium that was the Covid-19 'Pandemic'. Her registered birth date is 17-1-19 ... assigned as being one year prior to her 'rescue' date in 2020.
A tiny kitten was born to a malnourished mother in or around Wishart, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Kitten mortality rates in the wild can be as high as 75%. A cat living on the streets (as an individual) has an expected lifespan of around 2 years. As a clowder (group) they have a better chance but disease, humans and exposure are a constant threat.
Due to the lack of nutrition that Sophie's mum experienced during pregnancy, and no doubt exacerbated by what happened after Sophie's birth, Sophie's development was stunted and she developed what is known as 'Swimmers Syndrome'. Swimmers Syndrome is a developmental abnormality bought about by a delay in the ability to walk and move about in the first 21 days of life. Swimmers Syndrome is also referred to as 'frog-legged kitties'. It cannot be treated without early intervention. Soph had no such intervention.
So pretty much everything was stacked against Soph from before Day 1 ... oh did I forget to mention that she was born WITHOUT EYES ? Any betting agency (and there are plenty of them nowadays) would give you long odds of kitten Sophie surviving the first 30 days ... but our feline heroine had other plans.
Other than what we can deduce from her
medical history using hindsight, plus her age at the time of rescue, there is very little known about what happened in the first 12 months of Sophie's life. As Sophie's narrator I will leave it to your imagination, but suffice to say I have spent many an hour imagining what she may have endured ... or fantasising about people, her mum, or other cats, who may have helped her along the way.
And then, if all of that isn't enough for one small cat to endure, our Sophie falls pregnant just before she is fortuitously rescued by Little Paws Kitten Rescue
To be continued ...
Footnote: Little Paws Kitten Rescue does great work in the community and without them Sophie would not be able to have her story told. Consider helping them out with a donation or maybe even adopting a kitten or cat!
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