Doc Kressler and Kitty Scarlett Out Stubborn Death

When Greenbelt first met the stubborn animal that she would eventually name Scarlett, the cat was a crumpled mess lying in the .

In the aftermath of a car accident, Scarlett was teetering on the edge of death. She had multiple abrasions, a head injury and an infected hock breaking through the skin — that would likely require her leg to be amputated.

Kressler considered putting Scarlett to sleep. It wouldn’t be right to make the animal go through what she would have to endure to survive if in the end she wouldn’t make it anyway.

For some reason though, Kressler attempted to save her. Trained in the science of veterinary medicine, Kressler’s decision came down to a different kind of science — one not based on stethoscopes and lab results. 

It’s an intangible thing, Kressler said, trying to describe what inspired her to keep the cat alive. It was a look in Scarlett’s eyes that communicated something to Kressler that she still can’t explain. "I don’t know what it is," she said and shrugged, "I felt like I needed to try."

The Fight for Life

What followed was a fight of extraordinary proportions as a kindred stubbornness took hold of both vet and cat.

For two days, well into the evening, Kressler treated Scarlett at , where she works as a veterinarian. On the second night, Scarlett was finally strong enough to attempt surgery — which she would come out of without her leg.

Afterward, Scarlett got no breaks. A plethora of maladies plagued her. She couldn’t see, hear or smell and wouldn’t eat, not uncommon in animals with head trauma, according to Kressler. Over time animals can regain some of their abilities, Kressler said, but she added, “The sight often doesn’t come back.”

Doubt set in as Kressler began second guessing her decision to keep Scarlett alive.

Perhaps the first sign that her decision had been on target was blind, deaf love. Immediately after surgery, when many animals don’t want you near them, Kressler explained, Scarlett was different. Kressler would crawl in her cage, and Scarlett wanted her close. She loved you right in her face, Kressler said.

The treatment it took to try to restore Scarlett was no cakewalk. Still Kressler said, "Despite everything she went through, she was gentle, no matter what I did to her."

After about a week and a half, Scarlett, got up on her feet, unsteadily. She also began to show signs of hearing and it appeared that she was recovering some of her sight. Eventually, Scarlett learned to walk on all three legs, earning her the name “Tripod” among the team cheering her on at the Greenbelt Animal Shelter, where she came to be housed during her recovery.

"She seemed very determined, resilient, like we had a chance," Kressler said.

The Final Challenge

Scarlett couldn’t jump yet, and it was unclear if she would ever regain her ability to do so. But there was one ability she had to regain or all her fight would be for nothing. She had to eat. Kressler and Team Tripod had been force-feeding her. But they knew that wouldn't keep her alive for the long haul.

Determined, Kressler fed Scarlett sardines and brought in food item after food item for her to try. She even tried cooking chicken, hoping the strong odor might help Scarlett smell and trigger her eating. But nothing doing.

Kressler remembers well the day Scarlett’s friends at the Greenbelt Animal Shelter texted her a picture of Scarlett — eating.

It was at that moment that Kressler knew Scarlett was going to make it. “That was a very happy day,” she said.

A week and a half ago a Greenbelt family adopted Scarlett. They live near Kressler. So in the end, the two stubborn ladies ended up as neighbors of a sort. On Sunday, Kim DeAngelis, manager of the Greenbelt Animal Shelter went by to pay Scarlett a home visit.

“She’s doing great,” DeAngelis reported. And low and behold, while she was visiting, DeAngelis said she saw Scarlett jump up on a desk. Another hurdle crossed.

The once broken little kitty is living proof that a vet who understands the meaning of a look and the power of blind, deaf love can trump even science in the end.