The Sushi Bros

Tobiko  (BC)

We maintain our contacts with shelters around the province – mostly for the sake of occasionally taking in a colony that’s too much for the local rescue, but sometimes for smaller problems.  A few months ago we heard from the shelter in Prince George, who called us about a couple of cats they’d had in care for some time. Nobody – neither cat nor human – enjoys being caged, and when it goes on too long, there are often behavioural problems.  We don’t know why nobody had adopted them, but when cage life began to make them aggressive, their adoption chances took a dive.

Hamachi  (BC)

RAPS Sanctuary Manager Valerie agreed that they would probably do better with us, and Tobiko and Hamachi arrived in June.  The two are obviously related, beautiful flame-points (white with reddish colouring) – flame-point is often thought to indicate siamese in the genes, but may in fact occur in many breeds. Colourpoints are temperature sensitive partial albinos, which means that they only produce color in areas of their body that are cooler, like face, ears, tail, paws. Blue eyes also signal partial albinism (as opposed to the full albino with red eyes). 

Tobiko  (KN)

Tobiko is long-haired (he’s had with a shave-cut to deal with mats) and Hamachi short-haired.  They were caged separately;  Hamachi had an upper respiratory infection and needed treatment, and there were no adjacent cages available. Their cage signs reflected the warning – Hamachi in particular needed careful handling and was liable to bite – but their cages were large enough that they were able to move easily. Tobiko settled quickly, enjoying attention from volunteers.

Tobiko  (BC)

Once released it only took a few days until they became comfortable with new surroundings – the only hitch was that Hamachi looks very like some of the Newton Hoard in Pen 6, and volunteers who had not met the pair kept reporting that a cat must have got out of the pen.  Nope – just Hamachi exploring.

Hamachi (KN)

Their names provoked the title above – tobiko is the flying fish roe often used in Japanese sushi; hamachi is a type of yellowtail used in making nigiri and sashimi.  Unlike the late Neko in the Leukemia pen, who loved it when talked to in Japanese, these guys are quite happy to be addressed only in English.  I am already hearing people calling them Toby and Hammy – but I love their original names!

Tobiko loves to be high on the cat tree  (BC)

Both boys are friendly and playful – Tobiko particularly loves wand toys, and I find I need to be careful putting the barrier ropes away after visiting hours, because any rope on the ground is a fair target for play. Hamachi walks around with his mouth slightly open, which gives his face a “Duh!” expression – I think it’s something physiological in his jaw. They’re still young; about 2 years old.  They may be brothers, but I wouldn’t say they’re bonded, but operate pretty independently.

Let sleeping cats lie...   (BC)

I don’t know whether they will ever be considered for adoption. Since release, we’ve seen no sign of aggression to humans – perhaps a little oneupcatship to other felines, but nothing actively nasty.  There is a question of litter-box use, but that is often tied to the stress a cat is feeling, and may not be an issue when away from other cats. Like so many adoptions from the Sanctuary, it may depend on a potential bonding of cat to human, and on the cat-savviness of a possible adopter.

Till then, Tobiko and Hamachi have a home with us as long as they need it.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult & Karen Nicholson