Yeti

Yeti  (KN)

There are several rescue organizations with whom we have strong ties, and occasional transfers of cats when the numbers get too much for them to manage, or when cats are determinedly fearful and fostering is not an option. One of them is Sammy’s Forgotten Felines, in Kamloops;  Sammy’s tackles an ongoing feral cat situation, and we will often take the overflow.

Yeti  (KN)

When you talk to most volunteers at RAPS about Kamloops cats, it’s the crew in our back courtyard that’s implied – a colony of about 15 cats – mostly orange – who arrived together in 2021, and were joined by two more (Daffodil & Thorne)  a year later after time in fosterage. But we have accepted many other cats from Sammy’s – currently that includes Deelia, Vonda & Vinnie, Butterfinger, Arwen, Orson & Keno, together with others who have now passed.

Pewter, high in Leukemia pen  (KN)

One of the latter was a pretty longhaired grey girl called Pewter, who, sadly, tested positive for feline leukemia. She joined a group of other shy cats in preferring the high spaces in the Leukemia pen, watching us warily from above as the pen was cleaned and food provided. She never really tamed, and like many FeLV cats, her life was not long – the virus is hard on a cat’s body, and any infection can turn fatal.

Yeti, wary in Old Rabbit Area  (BC)

Last year two cats came to us from Sammy’s – male and female, about five years old, and it’s quite possible that they were originally Pewter’s kittens, certainly genetically linked. They were called Yeti and Runti, and practically identical. They were also not neutered, and sadly Runti proved to be one of those cats reactive to anaesthetic, or to the surgery itself. Yeti came through safely (it’s always easier on the boys!) and returned to us at the Sanctuary.

Dinnertime in Visitors  (BC)

He is a very handsome, striking cat – but one of the many who still regards humans with deep suspicion. Visitors will rarely see him; during the day he hides away in the Old Rabbit Area behind the drapes. In the late afternoon he emerges and explores; if the north side of the courtyard is fed first, he will make his way over to the Visitor area adjacent to the Connor House, to access the plate there rather than waiting for a delivery to his home ground. His executive-blond fur makes him easily identifiable, but he also has a noticeably dark mouth - a trait shared with Pewter. It makes them look as if they've been chewing black licorice!

Relaxed for once, even with a camera there!  (BC)

With other cats Yeti appears confident and comfortable; he has a wonderful plume of a tail which is often upright in the signal of happiness. When people are around the tail tends to be lowered and he is wary about making any eye-contact; he will walk by, but not engage in any way. On a shelf in the Old Rabbit Area he can be approached, but is usually uneasy; food bribery can only go so far.  That’s OK; we have a number of cats who are still feral, and who may never be comfortable with humans. It’s enough for us to know that they are safe and happy in their own feline community.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult & Karen Nicholson

Teddy Swims has a Fan Club!

Teddy Swims (KH)

Many of the cats that come to us from other shelters do so because of available space – our cage space may not be much more than some of the others, but because of our set-up we can allow ferals, semi-ferals and problem cats free range within the security of our open pens.  Sometimes, all they need is a bit of time to settle – Rembrandt and Kahlo, blogged recently, are getting more and more comfortable with humans, and may eventually find their own homes. Others offer more challenges, and may become long-term residents with us.

Stiff back legs  (BC)

A long-haired tuxedo called Teddy Swims is one of the latter. He was brought in to the receiving shelter up north when someone discovered a limping cat foraging for himself; once in, and examined, it was evident that he had much more than just a limp, with both back legs stiffened to spasticity. The first vet who saw him said it was just bad arthritis, but a second opinion from a surgeon said that it was likely a birth deformity that affects both his hips and his legs. 

Teddy getting around  (AA)

We think he's about two years old. He’s come to us so that the RAPS hospital can get a closer look to see if anything can be done;  he will in any case need a more complicated surgery than usual for his neuter, since he is also cryptorchid – meaning his testicles have not descended to normal position, but remain tucked somewhere in his abdomen. 

Watching from cage-tops  (BC)

We’re not sure why he was given his name – the human Teddy Swims is a large, bald, tattooed singer in a variety of genres (actually to be performing in Vancouver in the coming November – we should get him to come meet his namesake). The feline Teddy Swims has lots of fur, and though vocal, is not exactly tuneful. We were concerned about his safety in getting around and he was allocated a ground-floor-only cage in the SingleWide, but since release, he has had no hesitation in climbing to the cage-tops, from where he can survey his kingdom. He will remain in the SW until he’s had his hospital visits, and will probably be transferred to the back courtyard, where there’s more space to roam, but less climbing,

Teddy can be vocal!  (KH)

We don’t know what the future holds for him. He will almost certainly be more prone to arthritis, and we will need to work on pain management, but he might well be fostered out to a home that could accommodate his disability. A double amputation and a wheelchair might be possible – but a wheelchair would be hard on Sanctuary ground surfaces.  We’ll wait and see what the RAPS vets say. In the meantime, Teddy is settling down well. He loves to play, though not so much with other cats as with toys. Little Ophelia (missing her buddy Polar, who was adopted) is not having an entirely easy time with him; she likes to play, but he then starts pursuing her and is a good bit larger than she is. Fortunately, she knows how to use the cat door to the SW deck – and he has not yet mastered that skill.

"Chillin' like a villain"  (AM)

His determination to climb reminds me of orange Terry, about nine years ago, who came to us with injuries that were the result of being hit by a car, but who hauled himself around on strong front legs, using his stiffened back legs to balance. Terry was also incontinent; Teddy Swims does seem to have control of his sphincters, and as long as he can get in and out of a litter box, has no hesitation in using it. He is obviously a stray rather than a feral, and likes attention from humans – but you do wonder what sort of “cat lover” allowed a disabled cat to roam outside. Part of his roaming was undoubtedly his unneutered condition, and with all the other SW cats safely “speutered”, he’s not too reactive – though it does need to happen sooner rather than later (for which Ophelia will probably be very happy!).

Tired after play  (BC)

In the meantime, Teddy is doing well in the SingleWide, with time for play, volunteers who drop in to visit him, a safe place to sleep at night, and the med staff to take the edge of any pain that his probably been part of his life for much too long.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Kim Howe, Anne Marchetti

Video by Alicia Almeida

A Happy Newcomer

Rockford  (KN)

Long-term Sanctuary lovers know that we have a tradition around naming cats.  If they come to us with a name, it doesn’t get changed unless there’s another cat it might get confused with. If they come to us nameless, the med staff get naming rights, sometimes random, sometimes themed – for instance, most of the Pen 5 Newton cats have fruit names.  But the big naming tradition is around the cats who find their way to us, and who are trapped in the parking lot or on the perimeter – they get given detective names. Originally they were classic TV detectives or PIs: Magnum, Colombo, Steele,  Kojak, Horatio, Cagney (though he turned out to be male, rather than female like his namesake!) Then the watchers of Law & Order /CSI/ SVU gave us Rico, Rollins, Munch & Cassidy, McCormick and Higgins. We reverted to the real classics with Sherlock & Mycroft Holmes, and we had a Watson in earlier years.

First explorations  (KH)

Sometimes these cats are clearly strays – unneutered males with battle-scars and chubby cheeks; sometimes they are younger, and we don’t know whether they have wandered or been dumped. I don’t think we’ve ever had a female detective cat – it’s mainly the males who have the urge to wander.

Such handsome classic tabby markings!  (BC)

There are trail cams set up around the Sanctuary, and every now and then there is an alert, and part of the med-staff’s duties begins to include setting up traps in favourite places.  In late May there was one of those alerts, and by early June we had been joined by a handsome dark tabby boy who was given the name of Rockford (Rockford Files in the 1970s).  Like so many newcomers, he had a very dim view of the initial caging process; getting neutered, given his vaccines, and the daily encounters for cleaning and feeding and visits from the Kitty Comforters was all greeted with hisses and swats. He was more likely to smack a tube of Churu from your hand than to eat from it, and for me, at least, he was a boy to sit with and talk to, and not one to press for petting.

Cats and their boxes....  (KH)

On schedule, Rockford was released mid-July and promptly vanished onto the DoubleWide deck – traditionally the retreat for the scared and feral newcomers. But he didn’t stay there long – within a week he was darting out to do a quick investigation before retreating back to security. His confidence increased, and before long he was approaching people and soliciting petting. He does what we call the Cricket dance (named after a beloved front courtyard cat), rising up on his back legs to push up into a petting hand.  He seems to be social with the other cats, his youth shows in his enthusiasm for wand play with the visitors and with his feline buddies.

Exhausted after an afternoon of play  (BC)

A lot of his behaviour in the cage was clearly cage aggression, to be noted if he has to be put into a carrier or a cage for any length of time in the future.  It’s still early days for Rockford, and for us to make a full assessment of him, but I would not be surprised to see him as a possible candidate for adoption when he’s more settled, especially to someone who understands the needs of a cat who’s lived outdoors, and needs stimulation and enrichment to enjoy the safe life of an indoor cat.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Kim Howe, Karen Nicholson

Rockford enjoying the sunshine  (BC)

Two Beloved FIV Boys

Sweet Taz  (SM)

There’s a steady trickle of FIV+ cats who arrive to our care from rescues all over the province.  Where there are people doing TNR (Trap-Neuter-Release), you can be pretty sure that some of the cats trapped will be FIV+ because it’s almost exclusively a virus passed by unneutered tom-cats. Once the cats are neutered, the testosterone that drives the fight-and-bite instincts is gone, and like the rest of the Sanctuary cats, they usually learn to get on well enough with each other.

Dust Bunny  (BC)

Our FIV+ boys are either ferals or strays. The ones who have come in as ferals may or may not tame up, and if they do, it may take awhile. Cypress was an aggressive, angry boy when he arrived in 2018 and now he wants in on laptime and treats. Obelix was very shy when he came a year later, and now looks for petting and love. A feral cat may appear settled, but the stress of a relocation, if we were to consider adoption for either, would probably drive them back into a place of fear. A stray, on the other hand, has known a home and human touch. The strays often appear very scared initially, and then blossom under touch and attention.

DB  (BC)

In the last six months we’ve had two new boys come to us, and settle so easily that it’s pretty obvious that they are strays rather than ferals. They began in different areas of the Sanctuary; Taz was in the Val Jones pen, and Dust Bunny in the larger New Aids. Dust Bunny arrived in March, from Foster Critters rescue in Duncan. His rescuer tells us that he was an occasional visitor at a small colony where they were doing TNR, and it was supposed that he was a barn-cat from a nearby farm. It soon became obvious that he was probably more than just a barn-cat; though initially very scared, it only took a few approaches from the Kitty Comforters to have him asking for petting and love.

Summer lounging in the back pen  (BC)

Our guess was that he has been stray for some time; he had earmites and bad skin and broken teeth. Skin and teeth are a common FIV+ problem, and it didn’t take long for the vets to whisk him in for urgent dental care. He’s not lost all his teeth, but they’re greatly reduced. Cage time was hard for him – he SO wanted human attention, and now he’s out and about he’s loving petting and laptime from volunteers and visitors.

May I come up?  (BC)

Unfortunately, as the new kid in the schoolyard, he was something of a target for Angus, who in turn was out of sorts that his favourite bed had been taken over by Kicks. Angus started taking out his frustrations on Dust Bunny, and we made the decision to move DB across to the Val Jones area.  At time of writing, he’s in a cage (short term), going for a vet check, and then he’ll be out and about with the Val Jones cats.

Taz loves his humans  (SM)

He’ll soon get to know Taz, who came to us in early summer, and who has proved to be a real love-bug. When Taz first came to us, it was hard to visit him in a cage, because a visit was never long enough, and he would cry when left. He had been in fosterage, and his foster-mother loved him, but had other FIV- cats, and her vet recommended not mixing them. In fact, we know that FIV+ and FIV- cats can live together safely, but as we saw with Angus, personalities do come into play, and territorial issues in a multiple-cat situation led her to the cautious decision.

Whatever the weather, Taz loves the heat-lamp! (BC)

In fact, Taz is loving with humans, and even more so, with other cats. Jim is delighted; he has been the resident Val Jones love-bug and his love has not always been reciprocated (not that it put him off much!); Taz and Jim can often be found playing or snuggled together.
Taz may have some vision problems; he’s slightly squinty, and possibly had entropion surgery for in-turned eyelashes. I’ve found that he doesn’t always see just where treats are, though he is aware of movement. But he moves with confidence and doesn’t feel his way around like a blind cat.

Enjoying the sunbathing....   (SM)

Both Dust Bunny and Taz are entirely adoptable. The fact that they’re in the Val Jones area and therefore living with the bladder-crystal cats doesn’t mean that they have that problem, though they’re living with that diet for now – it just means we wanted them near the front courtyard and more accessible to visitors.
We are so pleased when visitors fall in love with the FIV+ cats. In the last couple of years, first Biggie and then his brother Simon found homes, as did handsome Goose, Hank the hunk, and brave tripod Trooper; this summer sweet Kicks has gone to a foster-home where they hope to get his skin itchies under control. They may carry the FIV retrovirus, but it doesn’t mean they’re sick; it just means we need  to take a bit more care in keeping them healthy – and thereby benefit from all the love that a cat like Dust Bunny or Taz is ready to share with the right person.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult & Selena Marchetti