Bryson

Bryson came to RAPS at the end of July. Carol had received a request to come and trap a feral black shorthair mom. She went to the site and successfully trapped a black shorthair, only to discover that the cat was a neutered male.

This cat, who RAPS staff named Bryson, seemed very scared at first, so it was unclear whether he was a stray or a feral who'd been trapped, neutered, and released. But it didn't take him long to stop hiding at the back of his cage and come out for cuddles. Leslie even had to add a warning to the sign on his door that he snuggles right at the cage door. Why is this something to watch out for? He gets so into flopping over and wriggling around that he's oblivious to the possibility of rolling (and falling) right out!

As a result of all this snuggling and wriggling, I was only able to get the one clear photo of him. So people will just have to go visit him in person (he's in the Connor building). Just don't let him get so carried away with visiting that he wriggles out the door.

Precious

Precious, who arrived at the RAPS sanctuary at the beginning of July, is every bit as sweet as her name suggests.

She unfortunately suffers from chronic diarrhea, which is one of the reasons she ended up at the sanctuary. But she doesn't seem to be letting any of this phase her, and receives visitors to her cage in the Connor building with unreserved pleasure. She was so ready to cuddle when I met her this evening that it was tough to get anything but out-of-focus photos of the top of her head as she happily purred and rubbed.

She also likes to give kisses, and spent some of our visit gently licking my hands. A very, very sweet cat. Come and pay her a visit.

Katie in her new home

Here are some pictures of Katie enjoying her new home. Thanks to Leslie for forwarding the photos.

Sam

Sam is a sweet 14-year-old who was brought to RAPS in July after his owner died. He's very affectionate, loves to be visited, and seems to view strangers as friends he hasn't met yet -- the first time he saw me, he meowed until I came into his cage, then climbed into my lap as soon as I sat down. And although he didn't get around to this with me (too busy rubbing against my hands drooling on my knee), I hear from Brigid that Sam's a headbutter.

Brigid also mentioned that Sam lost not only his owner, but his older cat friend. I can't help thinking he must be lonely there in his cage. All the more reason to pay him a visit and love him up.

Alex

The owners of 13-year-old Alex couldn't look after him anymore, so they asked RAPS to take him. The No. 5 Rd. shelter had a particularly large number of cats at the time, so asked the owners if they could wait until there was a bit more room. The owners felt they couldn't wait, and looked into euthanization as an option because they were worried about him facing an unknown fate elsewhere. Luckily, vet staff called RAPS.

Alex now lives at the sanctuary. He's not too happy about this. Since his arrival in late July he's settled down from being very upset to being potentially a nice cat but still one to be approached very slowly. A visit that starts with nuzzles and rubs quickly turns to tail flicks and angry noises when he's had enough of sharing his cage with a visitor.

In memory: Donni Derr

Anyone who's been around the sanctuary on a Sunday afternoon will likely remember this lovely lady sitting in a comfy corner she'd set up, surrounded by a group of cats who looked like they couldn't be happier. I came across her name more than a few times when researching posts for this blog, being told "Oh, that's a Donni Derr cat" in response to my question about how a particular cat had found its way to the sanctuary.

Donni Derr and friends
photo provided by RAPS

Donni passed away last week, leaving us with a mixture of sadness that she's no longer with us and fond memories of her and all she did.

From the RAPS Facebook page:

The RAPS Cat Sanctuary lost a dear friend with the passing of Donni Derr on Wednesday evening. Anyone who visited on Sunday afternoons would remember her entrance: "Happy Sunday..... how are all my goombahs," to a waiting audience of at least 50 cats that would start looking for her about 1/2 hour before she arrived. She had the biggest fan club, who loved all the tuna, treats and catnip she would bring. She will be dearly missed by all her human and furry friends. 

In lieu of flowers, her family suggests a donation to RAPS in her memory.

Chester

Chester and Katie

Chester is the brother of Katie. Both came to RAPS as kittens, part of a large group of barn cats rescued in 2009.

I've featured Chester for some time as the blog's header kitty, but had meant to wait to write about him until I found another yet-to-be-featured cat to take his place in the header photo. I've found I like this photo too much to swap out, though, and so he'll just have to stay there for a while longer.

The first thing people generally notice about Chester is his adorable curly tail.

The rest of him is pretty cute too.

He's a very friendly boy, and will come out to greet visitors to the back pen where he lives. He always loves a little cuddle, and is often in the mood for a play as well.

photo by Marlene

sleeping cats of summer

The sanctuary cats have a great idea of how to relax on the BC Day weekend (and on every other day): serial napping.

Elliot
photo by Brigid

Fred
photo by Brigid

Mama Mia
photo by Michele

Mario, with Shrek and Nelly watching over

Marmalade
photo by Brigid

Max

Nelson

Patterson
photo by Brigid

Kiddie

Rusty

Rusty and fellow feral Patches had been fed for years by people who'd come across them at their workplace. As the cats aged, the people noticed with concern that Patches didn't look well. They asked RAPS to trap and treat Patches and then return him to the site where they would continue feeding and looking out for him and Rusty. RAPS did this, but Patches's problem, ear polyps, returned, and so RAPS was asked to give him a permanent home at the cat sanctuary. Rusty, who was also getting on in age, was later trapped and brought to the sanctuary as well.

The people who'd cared for the cats all that time didn't forget about them and paid regular visits to them at the sanctuary. Patches sadly died earlier this year, but Rusty continues to live out the back in a feral-friendly pen. He's still scared of strangers and will flee if approached. He's much more comfortable with the people he knows, though, and the people who used to feed him have no trouble getting close enough for a proper visit.

Rusty has recently started letting Leslie get close enough to administer fluids when he needs them. Like more than a few of the cats at the sanctuary, he can be more willing to make friends if there's food in it for him. I hear he particularly likes ham.