Daisy

I first heard about the RAPS cat sanctuary from a friend who'd volunteered there a while back. Once I'd started volunteering there myself, he asked after cat named Daisy, wondering if I'd seen her and how she was doing. I remember being surprised that he'd remember a particular cat so well among hundreds even after a few years had passed, but Daisy, as I found out when I did get a chance to meet her, is a very unusual cat and would be a hard one to forget.

photo provided by RAPS

Daisy's story is one of those defining ones for a successful no-kill animal shelter. She was found unconscious by the side of a road in Burnaby by a kind-hearted woman who took her in to the SPCA. The little cat revived, but was so frightened and unfriendly that her roadside rescuer was worried she'd be judged to have very low adoption potential and have to be euthanized. This was not at all what the woman who'd found her had in mind, and so this little cat, now named Daisy, came to the RAPS sanctuary. There, she could take all the time she needed to recover from her fear-aggression and let her real personality show. And in this, she outshone anything anyone could have expected. According to Leslie, "Daisy blossomed and quickly became a favorite of volunteers and visitors who carry her in their arms like a baby."

drawing by Claire

It no longer surprises me that someone should remember one little cat called Daisy so well and so fondly even after not seeing her for some time. Many volunteers call her Koala Cat, I sometimes call her Bunny Cat.

As I was sketching the picture above, her appearance reminded me of some depictions of the Japanese maneki neko, the "beckoning" or welcoming cat. The wide-apart eyes, round face and cheerful, welcoming disposition have a certain Daisyness to them. Daisy also brings so much happiness to all the people around her that she has the real spirit of a good luck cat.

maneki neko
drawing by Claire

To quote Leslie once again, "Daisy truly represents RAPS’ mission to rescue and rehabilitate unwanted animals."

Daisy helps to remind us why we do all the things we do to make sure that animals like her will have sanctuary for many years to come.