Aster's Bideawee Journey

All animals that come to Bideawee have a different experience while in our care. Some find homes within only a few days and some stay a little longer.  Some are in great health, while others require extensive care from the Animal Hospital at Bideawee.  Some have perfect manners and some need extra time with our certified trainer.

Aster, a one-year old orange domestic shorthair cat, is one of our most recent residents that needed an overwhelming amount of effort and collaboration from all departments at Bideawee.  Our veterinary team, behaviorists and adoption center staff collaborated closely to bring her through this challenging journey to a permanent, loving home.

Aster was rescued out of the deplorable conditions that resulted from the Missouri floods.   As a Commander of the United States National Disaster Medical System’s Veterinary Medical Assistance Team, Bideawee’s Chief of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Robin Brennen DVM was invited to the flood zone to assist local humane professionals dealing with the crush of orphaned and homeless animals.  
As she helped the local authorities with triage she saw poor Aster, alone and terrified.  Dr. Brennen knew that Aster was not only frightened, but in need of immediate medical attention and arraigned to have this little cat transported to Bideawee so she could get the help she needed.  Once she arrived at our adoption center, Bideawee veterinarians determined that she was suffering from severe allergies, gastro-intestinal distress and worst of all, gingivitis and stomatitis, an inflammation of the lining in her mouth.  To fully treat her condition, Aster required major oral surgery to remove all of her teeth.  In addition to these unimaginable physical ailments Aster was also beginning to spiral into a depression, possibly triggered by this unfortunate combination of health ailments.

Once the surgery was completed, Amy Steares, Bideawee’s Animal Care Supervisor, took little Aster under her wing for specialized attention.  According to Amy, “At first, we weren’t certain if Aster’s depression could be fully attributed to her medical issues, or if there were other behavioral factors that needed to be addressed.  Housing her in my office where I could work with her on a daily basis, monitor her and provide her individualized care was the turning point—we felt confident that after this surgery, she would flourish in a home environment.”

The astounding generosity of our donors completely funded Aster’s extensive dental surgery, and our veterinary team, lead by Dr. Jeri-Ann DiPaolo, worked on addressing her remaining medical issues.  She has continued to steadily heal, but still needs a home environment to reach her full potential.

After surviving a natural disaster, overcoming myriad health difficulties, and breaking out of her emotional distress, Aster has been through a long, arduous journey in her life. Hopefully, her journey will be complete soon as she may have found her forever home, with none other than a compassionate donor who supported for her operation.