Sweet Patch who just wants to be loved by someone and who was abandoned by her previous family in favor of a laberdoodle puppy now has a new home. I had a bit of reservations when I went inside this home- to say it is cluttered is putting it mildly- but they have so much love (and no other pets) in the home. It is organized clutter- not dirty clutter but the eight year old boy sat quietly on the floor and allowed Patch to come to him and sniff him out. I was praying throughout the entire visit (I was there two hours) but the love just overflowed and the mother confessed that recently she has been diagnosed with a disease that is taking her eyesight gradually. She uses the paths for a purpose to get around the house. I told Mike when I got home, that in the past, I have put cats into clean, immaculate homes and then been sorry for it later; Fog who died when the little boy decided to abuse him after his parents went to bed- and one woman who allowed Tumbles to live underneath the bed for over a week “forgetting” to feed him- so a clean house doesn’t always mean the best place for a cat to be.
When I left, Patch was curled up in Brianna’s lap purring away. Patch is a sweet torbie who came to us about three months ago as an owner-surrender.
I am also turning down so many bottle babies daily. I stand firm at not bringing the newborns here because of the panleuk we had last year. But it kills me not to be able to help these people who don’t know what to do with the kittens they are finding. So this morning, I put a carefully worded ad on CL asking for qualified bottle baby feeders and I immediately got a huge response! I will be meeting with these people in the next week and if they qualify, I will put them on a list and start bringing the bottle babies to them. One woman has been fostering bottle babies over 50 years and I got such a giggle over how excited she was to meet with me on Saturday so she can “help the wee ones out.” She has a Scottish accent and I found her delightful. They must provide two references and a current vet that they work with- otherwise it’s not going to happen. I am amazed at the responses that came in so quickly and the people are all local which helps a lot.
Mike was helping me early this morning to lift a bin of cat food and now he has a huge hemotoma on his chest (the size of Texas) 🙁 I was trying to do most of the lifting, but he just picked it up before I was ready and hugged it to his chest and now he is suffering and I feel so bad. We go to Portland tomorrow so the doctors can take a look at it and make sure nothing major was bruised besides his skin. Poor Mike- his life is not how it used to be. But his kitty Taylor- she stays right by his side and offers him such comfort. It was 98 degrees today and when I came inside, I saw he was wrapped up in a blanket! I asked him if he was okay and he said “I’m hot, but Taylor wanted the blanket!” LOL
Just curious, you mention no other pets. Our local shelters have found that to be undesireable when placing cats and kittens. They felt in the long run it created a lot of behavioral problems. When adopting kittens, they insist on either adopting in pairs or at least for the adopter to have another young cat at home. They prefer to adopt adult cats in pairs or to homes with other animals. The only cats they prefer to adopt to only pet homes were cats turned in to the shelter that were raised as only pets and now lack the socialization to adapt to another pet.
Also curious, if I may be so bold…it would seem to me that most cat lovers already have a cat or two at home, I, personally, wonder why cat lovers would be catless.
Please, not judging, just trying to learn from your experience.
They lost their senior cat a few years ago and weren’t ready to move forward until now. Everyone has their own process when it comes to adopting. Personally, I go with the cat’s character and temperament and make determinations from there. Patch is a very submissive cat and my alphas were very assertive with her. I did not feel that having another cat in the home would be an advantage for her. If she is the only cat, she gets the love times three and she will thrive on all the attention.
Some people when they lose their cat can move forward quickly. Others need to get over the grieving and come to a place where they are ready to again commit their hearts to another animal. That is Brianna’s family to a T. I feel sorry for the cats missing out on good homes at your local shelter because the families don’t quite fit the requirements others believe are the best for the cat. I have placed many cats in homes where they are the only pet. It always turns out the best thing for the cat and the people in the home.
It was a good idea to advertise for bottle-feeders, and a better idea to have references. I hope this relieves you of some of the time-consuming work you have.
Mike really has to take it easy. It’s difficult for an active man to submit to inactivity. But this is a very serious matter, and he has to adjust. I’m glad you and Taylor are there for him. I can sympathise with not wanting to move or change his situation because a cat likes it. When I sit down and cats come to sit with me, I make sure I have my telephone, my cd-player remote control, a book and at least half an hour to spare them!
Oh, and hurrah for Patches! I think kittens and cats will do fine as only-pets as long as they have plenty of attention from humans. I’ve dealt with cats who have experienced no other cats until adulthood – they probably thought they were unique as a species! – and each has adapted; some better than others, but they learn.
There is a story about the prophet Muhammad. It is told that he awoke one day to the sounds of the Adhan, the Muslim daily call to prayer. Preparing to attend, he began to dress himself; however, he soon discovered his favorite cat Muezza was sleeping on the sleeve of his prayer robe. Rather than wake her, he used a pair of scissors to cut the sleeve off, leaving the cat undisturbed. When he returned from the Mosque, Muhammad received a bow from Muezza in gratitude. He then stroked his beloved cat three times. Ever since cats have additional lives, and the ability / agility to land on their feet when they fall.
Yay for Patches….sometimes it is about going with that gut reaction. 🙂
Tell Mike to take care and spend more time with Taylor. And good luck with the bottle baby program…what a wonderful idea!