Woman feared losing her sick cat to anemia – then the vet made a selfless choice with her own pet to save a life
Most people know that human blood donors save lives every day — but many don’t realize the same is true for animals. Pets, like people, sometimes need emergency blood transfusions, and those donations can mean the difference between life and death. For writer Kim Brent of the Beaumont Enterprise, this reality only became clear when her own cats faced a medical crisis.
As recounted by Brent, her story began on June 6, when one of her cats, Memphis, suddenly fell critically ill. She was woken at 3 a.m. by his howling, finding him drooling and in visible pain. Hours later, she rushed him to Neighborhood Veterinary Center, fearing the worst. At the clinic, Brent’s fears were confirmed when Memphis turned out to be severely anemic with a tumor under his tongue, likely cancerous, which left no real treatment options. “Please stop laughing, this isn’t funny — I think he’s dying,” Brent recalled thinking in the waiting room as others misread the distress. She was told that even with multiple transfusions, the outcome wouldn’t change. To spare him further suffering, she made the heartbreaking decision to let him go.
Just two days later, Brent returned to the hospital, this time with Skeets, Memphis’s brother, who hadn’t eaten since. A vet tech mentioned to a doctor that a cat in Room 3 was in critical condition, and again, it was one of hers. Skeets, too, was dangerously anemic and had an irregular heartbeat. A blood transfusion was needed, but the hospital’s supply had run out. That’s when veterinary technician Taylor Frusha offered her own cat, Evangeline (Evie), who had just turned one and met the age and health requirements to be a donor. “I have a cat,” Frusha said, and with no time to waste, she was told, “Don’t clock out, go get your cat and bring her here now.”
Evie was the ideal donor, "She was healthy, strong, and a type-A match to my Skeets." Within hours, Skeets received her blood. Brent remembered sitting by the phone, waiting for any update, and feeling relieved when she heard a donor had been found. The next day, she visited Skeets at the clinic. He was alert but recovering, wrapped in a protective cone. Frusha visited the room and quietly shared that Evie was his donor. Brent was overwhelmed with gratitude. She saw photos of Evie donating and Skeets during his transfusion. Knowing that a fellow pet owner had stepped in so selflessly meant the world. "I nearly broke down in tears again, coming face to face with the very person who’d put their own pet through some drama to help save mine."
Skeets went home a day and a half later. The experience left a lasting impact on Brent. Weeks later, she met Evie in person while covering the story for the paper. “Skeets was the recipient of her first ever blood donation,” she wrote, “So I feel like that bond is even more special.” The ordeal opened her eyes to the unseen role of pet blood donors, the quiet, furry heroes who help others survive, often without recognition.