Pairs of Purrs

How can I pass up a Valentine’s Day posting without giving some time to all the cats who prefer each others’ company rather than being the stereotypical Cat Who Walks By Itself?

Semi-ferals cuddle under the heat lamp - KN

Most cats do tend to be solitary by nature;  some, like the “Garbo” cats, actively dislike the proximity of any other cats; others – the majority, I think – can take it or leave it. Many cuddle-puddles come into existence for the sake of physical comfort rather than any emotional attachment.

Walker and Capilano - MW

The Sanctuary has had its share of cat-magnets – some loved and now lost, like Mario, Salty or Daniel; some still with us. Blond Walker, in Pen 5, is loved by Capilano, and by Chinook (neither of whom cares particularly for each other), and is usually found in company with either one.  The trio share a cabin with two other pairs of love-birds: Rudolph and Salish, and Adam and May. Pen 5 is definitely Valentines territory! ❤️

Rudolph and Salish are always together - KN

Sweet semi-feral Tibet is affectionate with the humans he knows, but reserves his real love for feral girlfriend Judy; Judy has been at the Sanctuary since December 2011 and resolutely refuses human contact.

Tortie Judy loves to snuggle with Tibet - KN

The group of cats that came in to Pen 2 a couple of years ago still tend to hang out together, and many of them prefer to stay in the privacy of the cabin – so it was good to see this pair of good buddies have a mutual affection moment in the courtyard.

Tux Booty tells his buddy Chase how much he likes him - KN

In the Moore House, Shaggy and Spicer came in to us as a bonded pair, and their love is very clear; both enjoy human company, but they are most often found together.

Grey Spicer and the aptly named Shaggy - VL

The February page in our calendar features front courtyard BFFs Vesper and Fable. These two boys are less dependent on each other than when they first arrived, and both enjoy interaction with human visitors, but togetherness is still their favourite thing.

Vesper is very possessive of his buddy Fable - MD

Spike and Princess, in the Double-Wide, did not arrive together, and have come from very different origins, but these days, they are nearly always found together, somewhere near the med-cage. Princess is perhaps the more adventurous of the two, but she always gravitates back to her buddy.

Spike and Princess - ML

In the Single-Wide, Babylon is probably the nearest we have to a cat-magnet – he can most often be found cuddling with Presley or with Harvest, but many of the other cats gravitate to him for reassurance.

Babylon snuggles with shy Siamese Presley - MW

And the quintessential Sanctuary love-in, of course, is the Dryer Gang, who rotate in and out of position as the mood and the warmth takes them.

The "core" Dryer Gang - DW

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Melanie Draper, Moira Langley, Vicki Lo, 
Karen Nicholson, Debbie Wolanski, Michele Wright

A Different Slant on the Sanctuary

As you walk around the Sanctuary you will notice several cats that carry their heads with a slight tilt to one side. In most cases, this is an aftermath of vestibular disease. It may come on very quickly. It affects the cat’s inner ear, making the cat suddenly become uncoordinated – frequently staggering or falling, sometimes walking in circles. The eyes dart back and forth (nystagmus). Occasionally the condition may be caused by a tumour, or by an ear infection, but in many cases it’s idiopathic, meaning “we don’t know!”
There’s little to be done other than keeping the cat in a safe place so that it can’t fall. An antibiotic can help rule out a standard ear infection, and an anti-nauseant will make it easier for the cat to eat – the sensation must be like living with sea-sickness. In most of our big cages the mid-level shelf is taken out so that the cat doesn’t attempt to jump and then fall, and the floor is well covered with bedding. The latter may have to be changed frequently, because an uncoordinated cat sometimes finds it hard to use the litter box.

Yoda - ML

A frequent greeter at the gate to the back courtyard is Yoda. His go-round with vestibular disease was some time ago, but the head tilt is still apparent. It doesn’t stop him being one of the most attention-seeking of the cats. With his favourite human friends, he likes to climb up and put his paws around your neck, butting his head into your hair. My Friday mornings begin with cleaning the volunteers’ Tea-Room, and Yoda is always there for a morning greeting.

Kenya - MW

Also hanging around the Tea-Room is a small black cat, instantly recognizable by the head-tilt. We have a number of black cats, and it’s not always easy to tell them apart, but you never have problems identifying Kenya.  She’s still very shy, but in the last year or so has become more accepting of attention, and ready to interact with a few humans.

Tibet - DW

Rarely in the Tea-Room, but often in the courtyard just outside is Tibet, with his beautiful  brown-black markings. Tibet was very wary of humans before his encounter with vestibular disease, choosing to approach only a few; weeks of cage-time and human attention have turned him into a boy who loves to be petted, frequently jumping up on the table to get really close.

Babylon - MW

Interestingly, the king of head-tilt – Babylon, in the single-wide – came into the Sanctuary with the group of cats that included Tibet. There doesn’t seem to be any resemblance between them, but one wonders if there might not be a genetic quirk in common. Babylon remains very tilty-headed, for the most part, but it seems to be a habit more than anything – he can straighten himself up, and he can also turn his head around rather like an owl. Like Tibet, the human attention he received as part of his care has turned him from being a shy boy into an attention-seeker.

Paulo - MW

Paulo, in the front courtyard, is in a different category. One of the family of our little one-eyed Val, he had a go-round with vestibular disease a while ago, and emerged with a bit of a tilt, but otherwise all right. More recently he had a more serious episode that may just have compounded what had gone before, or that may have been a mild stroke. He had a long period of cage-care, and though he’s been out for some time, he still staggers, and is pretty uncoordinated. But he loves attention and his brother Silverfox has been seen taking care of him from time to time – sideways stagger and all, Paulo is very much part of the front courtyard crowd.

 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Moira Langley, Debbie Wolanski & Michele Wright

 

 

Top Hat, White Tie & Tails

It’s too bad you could never get cats to go for formation dancing – because we surely have a number of handsome guys in tuxedos around the Sanctuary

I just got an invitation through the mails
Your presence requested this evening
It's formal, a top hat, white tie and tails

 

Larry

Nothing now could take the wind out of my sails
Because I'm invited to step out this evening
With top hat, white tie and tails

Smoochie

I'm puttin' on my top hat

Tyin' up my white tie

Brushin' off my tails

 

Sylvester

I'm dudin' up my shirt front
Puttin' in the shirt studs
Polishin' my nails

 

Babylon and Bart

I'm steppin' out, my dear to breathe
An atmosphere that simply reeks with class
And I trust that you'll excuse my dust
When I step on the gas

 

Hudson - PH

for I'll be there

Puttin' down my top hat
Mussin' up my white tie
Dancin' in my tails

 

Tugboat - ML

But no – Fred Astaire is way too energetic for these very cool cats!

Blogger: Brigid Coult

Photos: Phaedra Hardman, Moira Langley & Michele Wright

A belated New Year reminder…

 

Here we are, more than halfway through January – and we still have a few RAPS calendars on hand. This is just an online reminder of some of the furry faces who should be watching over your doings, and those of your friends and family, in the coming year…

The lovely face on the front cover is that of Henrik, one of the pair we call the Sedins. Their names were actually Ethan and Simba when they came in, but this suits them much better. Poor Henrik got very matted at one point last year, and had to be taken in to the vet for what ended up looking like a lion cut.

He was not impressed!  The cat that we had all assumed was mostly fuzz turned out to be a very solid body under all the covering. These days he has a good bit more fur!

Tilty head Babylon (January) is one of the cats who has suffered from vestibular disease, which affects the inner ear. For some time the cat staggers round as if drunk, and is usually confined to the bottom of a cage lined with blankets so that falling is safe. Sometimes cats recover well, sometimes the head-tilt remains.

Babylon, interestingly, is able to straighten up, but also turns his head way round, like an owl! He also demonstrates one of the side-benefits of this scary illness – he’s much more comfortable with being handled by volunteers, and welcomes attention.
March and April give us two of the loners – Timmy and Leland are not happy campers, surrounded by so many other cats, but at least at the Sanctuary they are able to find some space to themselves; if we took them to No 5 Rd for adoption, they would have a very hard time in even closer proximity to other felines. Both cats love human attention, and might do well in a cat-savvy, single-cat household.

It was only after our pictures for the calendar were chosen that I realised that the Val family had yet again stolen the spotlight.

The picture of Latte sunning herself is a mirror image of that of her brother Silverfox, usually known as Foxy, in the 2013 calendar.

What can I say? – they’re great-looking cats!
Miss November is Autumn – and our little once-feral girl with the blonde highlights is beginning to get very brave – from a wary and hissy cat who avoided people at all costs

she has become one of the greeting crowd – especially if there aren’t too many other cats around, and she can get some attention.

There are still a few calendars left, and we’re discounting them now we’re halfway into January. Please pass the word, and if you want a copy, contact the Shelter at 604-275-2036, or contact me at brigid@uniserve.com

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos from calendar by Michele Wright and Henley Chiu
photo of Autumn hiding by Phaedra Hardman

Babylon

Babylon came to RAPS as part of the same group that included Asia, Cairo, Sahara, and Tibet. He can be a bit timid, particularly if he doesn't know you, but is generally a sweet, gentle boy.

Babylon has formed a very close friendship with Harvest (seen here photobombing his pal), and Leslie says that the two are rarely apart.