Bailey

Writing about Ollie last week inspired me to head over to the singlewide trailer and seek out another one that can be affectionately described as "an old wreck of a cat": Bailey.

Leslie told me that Bailey and his brother, Shoe (who has since passed away), came from a site off SW Marine Dr. in Vancouver, where they'd been fed for many years by Fearn, one of RAPS' original volunteers. The fact that Bailey and his brother were around 6 months old when Fearn started feeding them lets us know that Bailey is an old fellow indeed at around 18 years of age. 

He was apparently a cranky feral until just a year or so ago. By this point he had become deaf and got into the habit of loudly (very loudly - he couldn't really hear himself, so probably assumed we couldn't either unless he yelled) demanding extra food. At the same time, he started gradually accepting the idea of people touching him until staff could do practically anything with him. Leslie calls this the "good dementia" in a formerly feral elderly cat. Some of them seem to just forget why it was that we were supposed to be scary and awful.

photo by Michele

Leslie describes the Bailey of the present:

"Bailey is now a scrawny, old fellow who surprises everyone with his continued presence ("Every week, I expect to find him gone!" they say). He has been diagnosed with kidney disease, and in spite of his lack of body weight, he still does a long-legged sprint to the food and water bowls. He has also become the cuddle-mate of one of the sanctuary's most beloved younger cats, Simone. The two sleep together and groom each other every day."

Simone and Bailey

 Simone, Bailey & Zoe

photo by Phaedra