Help Koko Walk Again at Avalo Cat Sanctuary

On January 11, 2024, a calico kitten fell from the third floor of a tall building outside of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. A teenager found the kitten, still alive but paralyzed, and begged for help on social media.

His plea was answered by animal lovers Aditya and Shraddha Gupte who drove two hours into the desert to find the kitten lying on the ground. Despite the shock and pain, the kitten purred, reached out to Aditya, and touched his face as if saying “thank you.”

The couple carried the kitten, who they named “KoKo,” to their veterinarian in Doha, where x-rays determined the fall had broken KoKo’s back. The vet felt the kitten would never have a happy, pain-free life and suggested the compassionate action would be euthanasia.

Aditya and Shraddha could not bring themselves to end the life of such a sweet and vibrant creature, so they decided to find someone who could truly save KoKo. They reached out to cat rescuers in Doha, leading them to Gautam Saha, who had worked with Michelle Altmeyer in 2019 to rescue a cat in Singapore — another sweet kitty paralyzed in a fall from a building. Michelle is the founder of Avalo Cat Sanctuary, a large nonprofit sanctuary outside of Aiken, South Carolina. Through Michelle's loving care and rehabilitation, this cat from Singapore was now walking again.

Michelle enthusiastically agreed to take KoKo. Gautam took three days off from his work in Atlanta, Georgia, to fly with KoKo from Qatar to South Carolina.

It took a village of heroes to bring KoKo to Avalo Cat Sanctuary, where she now lives with other “special needs” kitties, some of which are blind, missing limbs, or have physical disabilities like cerebellar hypoplasia.

KoKo is currently undergoing hydrotherapy and acupuncture to increase her strength. She sees a special veterinarian every week at the Aiken Rehabilitation Center. Michelle would love to increase these treatments to twice a week to give KoKo the best opportunity for recovery.

Also, the growing population of “special needs” cats at Avalo Cat Sanctuary would benefit from an assistant to support Michelle in providing the quality of care needed while allowing Michelle to spend more time on education and fundraising.

Funds raised on this page will go to the following support of KoKo and her therapy:

See this message of thanks from KoKo's original rescuers Aditya and Shraddha Gupte

Please support KoKo and the other cats at Avalo by donating on this page or on Avalo's Donate page.

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