Kojak

Unlike most cats at the sanctuary who were brought there from other parts of Richmond or Metro Vancouver, Kojak is unusual in that he brought himself.

Staff noticed him hanging around outside the compound and, noting he looked pretty ragged and sickly, decided to trap him. This didn't prove easy. Ignoring the various morsels that staff placed in the trap to tempt him, Kojak repeatedly came, peed on the trap, and left again. There was great relief when he finally went into the trap and could be brought inside.

Once safely inside the sanctuary, Kojak was sent to the vet for a check up, where it was discovered that he had feline leukemia. Fortunately, RAPS has the facilities to care for cats with leukemia and keep them healthy and happy for as long as possible.

Kojak was initially thought to be feral, but over the past while he's been increasingly willing to let us get close. Brigid, who suggested I do a post on Kojak, was able to get this photo of him:

 He was a bit uncertain about being photographed with Brigid's cell phone, so she was worried I might not be able to get a shot of him with my considerably larger and scarier SLR.

When I came across him in the Old AIDS building this evening, he was initially timid as I'd expected...

... but not so much that I couldn't reach down and give his head a gentle pat. He scooted away then, but only as far as a nearby cat bed, where he sat and looked at me while I alternated between stroking his head and taking pictures. At no point did he feel a need to move from his bed.

Leslie says he may have come from one of the farms in the area, and had therefore had at least some contact with humans before he came to us. It's great to see him looking like he feels so safe and relaxed at the sanctuary.