The Family

Zoey & Basil  (LBF)

You would think that in a Sanctuary for unadoptable cats, most of them would be unrelated to each other. Cats, after all, have a reputation for being loners. And while that may be accurate enough for many of our furry friends, we have always had cats in our care who are in fact family, or who have bonded to become family of choice.

Percival & SweetPea  (LBF)

Currently there are three colonies that are genetically “family”. Our newest group, introduced last year, are from the Kootenays, and there’s no denying the relationships between them.  Having come into our care as a very scared bunch, they are becoming increasingly social, and hurry to the gate for attention when their pen is approached. They’re not “tame” yet, but SweetPea is enjoying petting and even occasional lap-time, and many of the others are sufficiently food-motivated that touch is not far off.

Together is good  (LBF)

The cats in Pen 6 came to us from Sammy’s Forgotten Felines in Kamloops, back in 2021. As with the Kootenay cats, there is a strong family resemblance among them, and they like to be together, emerging from their pen like a shoal of goldfish. Of them all, only big Persimmon and pretty grey Chamomile are enthusiastic about human attention; by the others we’re accepted as a necessary evil, but one that does at least bring food on occasion.

Lucius, Shimmer & Sherbet  (LBF)

The biggest influx of cats at one time was the group that came from a hoarding situation in Alberta the same summer, and which has taken over Pen 3. Visually, they are less “family” than the other two groups, and there is definitely a variety of genetics at play, but there are also similarities in appearance.

Baker & Jenkins (LBF)

Jenkins and Baker are tuxedo near-twins, Holly and Reinhardt have identical pale green eyes; Cornelius’s short legs can also be seen in Dior and Jason.

Cornelius making up to Mercury  (LBF)

Cornelius is a social butterfly, and ready to be friends with everyone. He’s closest to his own colony, but he also snuggles with Cadbury, in the adjacent pen, and has an orange-boy-bonding with shy Mercury, who hangs out in the back of pens 1 & 2. Mercury tends to be a loner, so it makes us all happy to see him with Cornelius.

Juno, Atlas & Mercury  (LBF)

Mercury is also a family cat; he was part of a group of more than 60 cats and kittens trapped not too far away when someone’s feeding of feral cats got out of hand. His remaining family, Atlas, Juno and Nyx, hang out in the same area; they like treats enough to come running when chicken is offered, but they are not so keen on physical contact with humans. 

The family stare  (LBF)

The other group that comes to mind when I think “family” is mostly unrelated to each other. And to be honest, I think about them as The Family because fellow volunteer Daphne calls that back deck area of the Double Wide “the Red Light district” (for the heat lamp), and “The Catsino” with its inhabitants “the Mafia cats”. Tuxedos Hamlet, Luke and Bodhi (with occasional visits from Pancake) tend to be front and centre, with support from consigliere Denzel. But the metaphor loses power when the inscrutable stares give way to purring demands for attention and tidbits.

Best buds - Luke, Bodhi, Guthrie  (KN)

Many of our cats prefer to live in groups, whether blood-bonded, or just by affection. We love that Sanctuary life can offer them this option, and yet allow those who chose to be loners to live as feels most comfortable for them .

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen & Karen Nicholson

Sweet Holly

Holly  (KN)

The swarm of little cats that came to us in 2021 from an Alberta hoarding situation are steady fixtures now.  A couple of them were adopted (Finneas and Shimmer) but between having no visitors since last fall, and almost-overflowing adoption centre, the rest of them have remained in their Sanctuary home. They have adapted to various degrees; some, like Reinhardt, are not interested in interacting with humans; others, like Cornelius, flirt with humans and cats alike.

Peeking out for attention  (LBF)

My own little heart-cat in this clowder is pretty Holly. She might well be Reinhardt's sister; though with different colouring, they have similar shape and the same beautiful translucent green eyes.  Initially very shy, Holly has blossomed with the people she trusts.  She doesn’t range as freely as some of the boys, and Pen 3 remains the centre of her community. But when you enter the cabin, Holly is always one of the greeters.

Can I come up on your lap?  (BC)

What makes a cat get labelled “tame”? For me, it’s usually about comfort with touch, and especially with lap-time. My own boy is “tame” but carries the remains of a fearful feral, and has only recently started crossing my lap – he prefers to rest beside me.  Holly has no hesitation in jumping up in my lap; she loves being fussed and petted, and is pretty food-motivated.

Happily exploring  (KN)

Holly’s drawback is her fur – like many fine-furred cats, she mats easily, and if volunteers don’t have time to brush her every day (and we don’t!), this seemingly fluffy gal suddenly presents with big lumps close to the skin. It’s a constant problem, especially with the outside-pen cats – there’s no way we can handle them all every day, and Holly’s the sort of cat that needs daily grooming. Right now there are several cats with bad haircuts, where mats have been clipped out by the med-staff;  when the warmer weather arrives, many of the bad haircuts will be exchanged for something more drastic, and there will be little lions in the back pens.

Jason with Holly  (LBF)

Not surprisingly, Holly is none too cooperative about being groomed – I’m sure those mats hurt! - and most of the grooming I can do is confined to preventing new mats appearing, rather than taking out the ones that are there. At least she is happy to be handled; her buddy Cornelius has similar fur, and is often seen with dreadlocks. Though friendly and flirty, he is less tame and doesn’t really want all the handling that goes with being groomed.

Cornelius & Holly  (LBF)

Of all the Pen 3 clowder, I would put Holly high on the “possibly adoptable” list. Because most of these cats are so social, I would guess that an adoption application that involved her and one of her buddies would be the most likely to be approved, and would make a move from the Sanctuary less stressful for them both.  When we open again for visitors later in the spring, a lot more people will have a chance to visit with the Pen 3 cats, and with some of the others who are not ready for a stay in the Adoption Centre, but who are definitely adoptable.

Holly  (KN)

To have a home where she might be groomed and petted every day would probably be Holly’s idea of heaven. 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen, Brigid Coult, Karen Nicholson

In Tigger's House

Smithy and Sprocket are best buddies  (KN)

When the Sanctuary was constructed more than 20 years ago, much of it was thanks to the generosity of devoted donors who sponsored the cost of building cabins and pens. As you walk around, you will notice signs memorializing the beloved pets of those donors.

At the south end  (BC)

The back courtyard is structured in an L shape, with one wing reaching east and another to the south. At the south end of the latter wing is a cabin that is labelled as “Tigger’s House – in Memory of Waldie’s favourite cat.”

Waldie & Barb  (DW)

Tigger is long gone now;  Waldie is now in his 90s, and only comes occasionally to visit, but up to a couple of years ago, he held down a regular Saturday night shift at the Sanctuary, scooping the back pens, while his wife Barb fed the cats. The two of them have been devoted Sanctuary supporters since the beginning; Barb is still a regular volunteer. Their home is well known to their neighbourhood cats and they have been responsible for rescue and TNR around there for many years. When Waldie is visiting, he always seeks out Rookie, who they brought to the Sanctuary.

Rookie  (KN)

So “Tigger’s House” is actually known to most of us as “Waldie’s Hut”, and it’s the home base of a number of the shyer cats. Some of them have relocated from Pen 8 next door, when it had to be closed and refurbished for the colony of cats from the Kootenays. Pen 8 had been an open area – most of the cats living there were semi-feral – and the inhabitants were used to the courtyard space. Some, like hissy-Smithy, preferred to stay in the courtyard just outside, hiding out in the collection of boxes and shelves backing on to the SingleWide deck. Others preferred the shelter of a cabin. 

Smithy says "leave me alone!"  (KN)

Smithy’s friend Sprocket can often be found in Waldie’s Hut, high up on a shelf. When outside, he likes the company of his hissy pal, but at night, he prefers his comfort. His brother Rocket, in the New Aids building, has finally accepted attention from humans and enjoys being petted;  Smithy’s touch-me-not attitude has rubbed off on Sprocket. He doesn’t hiss, but he prefers no-contact.

Sprocket is comfortable with wandering - just not with touch  (KN)

Princess, who was featured in the blog a couple of weeks ago, can also be found here. She also prefers no touch, but hovers hopefully if chicken tidbits are offered. 

Princess wanders freely, but likes this hut  (KN)

The real chickaholic in this area is sweet Selena. She was a feral mom who came to us more than 10 years ago, and joined the other tabby/white cats in Pen 8. Now she is aging, and with senility has come the loss of feral-fear – she loves attention (especially when food is on offer), and shoulder-climbs when I am cleaning in the cabin. She also no longer restricts her area, and can often be found visiting around the Tea-Room. Like Sara Lee, she’s starting to look a little raggedy, and lap-climbing is a little painful with her old-lady claws.

Selena waiting hopefully  (BC)

If there’s anyone who has picked up the hiss-habit from Smithy, it’s Magpie. This handsome boy prefers the bed adjacent to the door, which means that he can’t pretend that he’s not there when you enter, and he hisses until eye-contact ceases. He’s not a cat I have even tried to touch, and he’s not really food-motivated – he’s just one of those cats who will probably remain feral.

Magpie is always suspicious  (KN)

There are a few other cats who rotate in and out of the hut, depending on mood and weather. It was a favourite place for Cinnamon Bun Lincoln until a few months ago; now he’s very frail and prefers the comfort of the heater in the Tea-Room. His girlfriend/worshipper Dusty prefers the hut; Dusty is another who hisses early and often, but her hiss is reactive, and she does allow human contact when given time. She is a cat who prefers cat-company; her two earlier boyfriends, Salty and Ridley, have both passed, and she follows Lincoln adoringly – though mostly, he ignores her.

Dusty is a loner when not following Lincoln  (BC)

And let’s not forget the outside of the cabin – there are several of the back courtyard cats who prefer to have their secret cat meetings well out of reach, and have found a way to climb to the roof of Waldie’s Hut. We have to be careful that the fencing above them prevents them from getting onto the roof of the SingleWide. And in the heat of summer days, it can be very hot up there, and occasionally someone needs to climb up and make sure that all is well with the cats.  

Sprocket keeps watch as Quinn chairs the day's cat-meeting  (DW)

Like most of our back-courtyard cabins, Waldie’s Hut is showing its age – these cabins were not designed as long-term structures, and a coat of paint is a temporary fix-it for some of its imperfections. But it’s full of memories – if you close your eyes, Samantha and Eclipse, Chimo and PawPaw, Lucky the Bengal, and many others are still there for the long-term staff and volunteers who loved them.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Karen Nicholson & Debbie Wolanski

Psych!

Don't you just want to pet me?...    (KN)

In the fall of 2018, a little stray cat was brought into the RAPS Shelter. Ariel won the hearts of the staff there with her friendly, outgoing ways;  they put the necessary hold on her to give someone a chance to claim her, and when no owner appeared, she was given all the necessary vet treatments and put up for adoption. Someone came to visit, fell in love, and by the end of December she had a new home.

Contentment....  (GA)

Sadly, not the end of the story...

Back in a cage - and not happy about it  (GA) 

Early last year, her owner returned to the Adoption Centre to let them know that he would have to surrender her. He still loved her, and hated to do it, but after the initial honeymoon period, things had gone downhill. She had started to bully his dog – and her owner, on occasion – she became reactive and aggressive, and she began to use the “inappropriate urination” weapon. He was not quick to give up; he took her to the vet, he tried different diets, but the turning point was when she pee’d on him one night, with a clean litter-box right there.  

She doesn't much like other cats  (GA)
(though Christina and Hope are incapable of the mean-girl gossip this looks like!)

So Ariel returned to RAPS, and to some of the people she’d known four years before. Initially she settled well; she liked the staff at the Adoption Centre, she liked where she was, she didn’t much like the other cats, but she could roam the building during the day and avoid them. What she couldn’t avoid was being caged at night, and that turned into a major battle of wills. Finally the staff decided that she could neither remain caged nor roam freely, and that the Sanctuary was the only option.

Guarding the top of the climbing frame from other cats  (BC)

There, she was initially placed in one of the large cages in the Connor. I remember going in to tend her cage, and having her scream at me – no ladylike hissing for this girl!  I think some of us got into the habit of taking some protective padding with us when we had to clean in there. Once the cage was opened, it made little difference;  for some time Ariel sat and defended her territory against both humans and cats.  And when she finally emerged, we learned to watch the space between ourselves and this demon girl. Shena tells me that when a private group visited (this was just before our spring visiting opened), Ariel sat in the gateway and drew blood from every single person that approached.

I dare you to walk through this gate....  (KN)

So, come visiting time each Saturday, some brave staff member had to find Ariel and pop her into her cage around noon, and she stayed there until visitors had gone on Sunday.  There was much growling and grumbling; she wasn’t happy in the cage, but she wasn’t happy with the cage opened, either. When visiting time ended in the fall, the need to cage aggressive cats, or to collar reactive ones, was not so necessary, and Ariel gradually relaxed.  

Lap time with a favourite volunteer  (GA)

These days, she’s allowing contact occasionally – with luck you can get in a couple of head-caresses before you need to start watching your ankles.  She’s more inclined to let you know with her grumble when she’s had enough, rather than just attacking. She’s even taken a leaf out of Cher’s book and indulged in a little lap-time with some of our calmer (and braver) volunteers; she seems to like the men best!  Some of the photos here are from Ariel's best friend Graham, with whom she's very relaxed. It looks like we’re starting to see the Ariel that first came to RAPS more than four years ago.  

Ariel  (GA)

But I think we’re all subconsciously waiting for her to revert to her old ways, saying, “Psych!  I fooled you!” 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Graham Akira, Brigid Coult, Karen Nicholson