Olivia

THE DONOR

Olivia was a beautiful, shy tabby cat. After quietly waiting at the shelter to be adopted, she was finally chosen! Her new family took her to the vet for a check-up, and kept her indoors for 6 months in order to gently acclimate her to her new family and home. Olivia had settled in nicely with her new family. They had planned to begin to let her outdoors on occasion in the springtime to explore her new surroundings. On her second trip outdoors, Olivia was hit by a car. She had a serious head injury and would not recover. Her owner was devastated. Shy Olivia had just begun to come out of her shell in her new home. When her veterinarian suggested that perhaps Olivia could be a Tissue Donor, her owner felt some relief from such a sad loss, knowing that Olivia would be able to help other animals in need. Through tissue donation, Olivia lives on in others. Pets Helping Pets…

Ivan

THE RECIPIENT

Ivan is an adventurous Siamese who fell out of a tree and fractured his mandible in three places. This was a severely comminuted fracture involving the symphyses, as well as the physes. His surgeon was able to wire it back together, but there was a lot of missing bone and concern that it might not heal well without using bone graft. With the help of tissue donation and the selfless forethought of owners like Olivia’s, Ivan’s surgeon was able to ensure that his mandible healed correctly. Today, Ivan has a normal bite and can continue his explorations – though now, from the safety of the INSIDE of his home! No more tree-climbing for Ivan!