Rochelle

Until recently, Rochelle lived in the back pens - the part of the sanctuary where many of our ferals can be found. She was so shy that no one knew what a sweet tame girl she was.

This was only discovered when she was brought inside to be treated for an ear infection. Instead of a hissing wildcat ready to strike out, she turned out to be... nice. Shy, but nice. When I first met her in February, I was told it was not only quite safe to go into her cage but I could pull back the towel that's often put up as a little privacy curtain for frightened ferals and actually visit with her. Here's what I found:

She let me pat her almost immediately and soon started purring with pleasure. I stayed with her for quite some time, stroking her until she drooled.

Now her ear and mouth infections appear to have cleared up, but Rochelle is being kept inside for a little while longer because it gives people working or volunteering at the sanctuary the opportunity to spend lots of time with her, helping her to get over the shyness she'd displayed before. The sign on her cage says "Please spend time loving her."
And how could you not?

Updated February 2013: Rochelle is now enjoying her forever home with one of our volunteers!