Food, Fun and Feline Friendship

Precious claims her own bag! - DW

Every Sunday afternoon visitors arrive at the Sanctuary, and many of them bring gifts.  Often, they’re very practical and welcome gifts – a new cat-bed, a couple of bags of dry cat-food, a bag of Fancy Feast cans. More often they are intended for immediate use – the inevitable bags of cat-treats!

Some visitors are known to bring tasty food! - MW

It’s inevitable, I suppose. We want these cats to want to be with us, and for many food-motivated cats, treats are a way of attracting them.  When sweet Gilbert first came to us he was an untouchable feral.  Many Temptations later, he has learned that humans carry good stuff, and are no longer to be feared.

MW

But it’s sometimes hard to get our visitors to see that handing around cat-treats is like having many boxes of cookies open at a children’s party. One or two treats – no problem.  But a handful of them from each of a dozen visitors, and cats are so full of goodies that they no longer want to interact.  Lori brings fish and chicken – good food for obligate carnivores – and many of the cats are already sated.

Little Orange and Latte anxiously wait for Lori to arrive - DW

I usually try to get visitors to restrict treats to just one at a time – just as you would only offer a child one cookie. What I find it’s often more important to teach is that cats love attention from their visitors as much as they love goodies – though what form that attention takes may vary.

Saffron loves bubbles - DW

Some cats are fascinated by bubbles - quietly watching them, or leaping to bat them and watch them disappear

Ninja hunts bubbles - MW

I rejoice in the Sunday visitors – many of them regulars – who “get it”. Some come almost every week, and make a point of sitting quietly with the cats who need a quiet lap and no action. Timmy, Tigger, Leland and several others have all benefited from this gentle approach.

A preferred technique for one visitor

Catnip is a favourite for many cats - though there are some that couldn't care less.  Feline opinion is divided over a preference for drooling over a catnip bag vs. the privilege of claiming the fresh green stuff.

Leland in a catnip coma - MW

Our sweet departed Bobby claimed this plant for himself - DW

Almost as much appreciated is the cat-grass that some of our volunteers grow at home and bring into the Sanctuary.  The back courtyard cats have access to grass in most of the pens, but for the indoor cats and the caged cats, a nibble of greenery is much enjoyed

The SingleWide cats enjoy a cat-grass treat - DW

Scott and Mel go from area to area, calling in with favourites all over the Sanctuary. They encourage play – they always bring fishing-pole toys, and many of “their” cats have a wonderfully energetic session with them, leaping and chasing feathers (and not fingers).

Slim jumping - AM

But they are also able to be quiet and patient when needed; they groom and pet, and sit patiently waiting for the shyer cats to approach. Mel has been doing some wonderful work with timid grey Mischa in the back courtyard.

Mischa allowing a closer approach - MD

This, of course, is the basis on which our Kitty Comforters are selected – noticing the people who are able to be quiet and patient with nervous cats; to groom, or play, or treat on occasion, and never to force interaction if the cat is not yet ready for it. Many of our former ferals will never be ready for adoption, and it’s one of the blessings of the Sanctuary that we are able to allow that, and know that feral or friendly, the cats have a safe home with us for the duration of their lives.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Melanie Draper, Angelina Mak, Debbie Wolanski, Michele Wright

Twin by Name

The two Lincolns share a shelf - DW

When we welcome newcomers to the Sanctuary, various things come into play with naming them.  If we know nothing of the cat in question, it’s usually up to the med staff to choose a name – preferably one that’s not already used, and one that begins with an alphabet letter that’s not too well populated.  The cat may be named after someone responsible for catching it (like Zimmer) or if it found its own way to us, it is given the name of a TV detective (Magnum, Kojak, Cagney, Watson...)

Sophia (top) & Sophie (bottom) - BC

But if it comes in to us with a name in place already, we try not to change that – we don’t know how much cats recognize their own names (though they certainly recognize voices). And so, inevitably, we have a few naming duplicates.

Orange & tabby Hannahs - MW

Our two Hannahs both live in the back courtyard.  Neither shows much interest in the other; tabby Hannah prefers people to other cats – vice versa for orange Hannah

Tabby & b/w Lucys - PH

Both our Lucy-cats are ladies of solid proportion, and again, both are back courtyard cats. Tabby Lucy would rather stay in the warmth of the laundry- or tea-room, unless the sun is out, in which case she sunbathes happily; black-and-white Lucy is usually found somewhere round the entrance gate

Cinnamon Bun Lincoln is less elegant and pushier than his long-haired "twin" - MW

The two Lincolns are Double-wide cats who occasionally visit in the back courtyard; both love human attention.  Handsome Lincoln can usually be found posing on one of the DW shelves;  Cinnamon Bun Lincoln (named for his curled tail) can be pushy when it comes to getting human attention, and is occasionally known to make his pee-mark!

Sophie/Sophie/Sophia - MW

 We have several Sophies: there’s tubby Sophie in Pen 2, who’s ready to greet all visitors; tortie Sophie in the Single-Wide; sweet Sophie of the beautiful green eyes in the Moore House – and there’s Sophia, also in the Moore House.

Calista - front (MW) - and back (BC)

Calista is not the most common name – but we have two of them, and they’re both shy. Front courtyard Calista is Renee’s sister; she has her favourite people, but tends to stay out of the way when there are too many visitors around. Back courtyard Calista is still pretty feral, but volunteer Marty has been working with her, and she’s allowing feeding, and (finally) a little petting.

WobblyBob (BC) & BellyRub Bobby (MW)

At one stage we had four or five Bobbys – the only ones now are Belly-Rub Bobby in the front courtyard, who loves everyone (but especially volunteer Chris) and Wobbly Bob in the back, who really only loves people when they have chicken in hand!

Mary SW (MW) & DW (CF)

Mary in the SingleWide is a sweetie; a former feral who has lost her shyness and enjoys attention. Her namesake in the DoubleWide is still very feral, and prefers to stay hidden up on the cage-tops.

MadMax & New Aids Max - MW

Mad Max, also in the DoubleWide, is something of a misnamed boy – neither mad-angry, or mad-crazy; Max is very shy, and wary of humans unless they have something worth hanging around for – he’s another chick-aholic. Beautiful orange/white Max in New Aids is something of a newcomers, and has not had his Neko-profile done yet – watch this space!

Princess with BFF Spike (DW) / manx Princess (MM)

I guess Princess is a fairly common name for female cats. Our royal trio in the Sanctuary includes the beautiful girl who is Spike‘s BFF and hangs about near the med cage, the little black and white manx in the Moore House – less beautiful but entirely lovable – and the elegant Princess Diva, who is the cat who walks by herself in the back courtyard.

Her Highness, Princess Diva - MW

Repeated names -  but all very individual personalities – there’s no confusing one of these cats with his/her “twin”!

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Claire Fossey, Phaedra Hardman, 

Marianne Moore, Debbie Wolanski, Michele Wright

Kitties, It's Cold Outside

The snowfall of last week was reinforced by a blast of arctic cold, and along with the rest of the Lower Mainland, the Sanctuary has been at sub-zero temperatures.  The vast majority of the cats have decided that they really prefer the indoor life-style, and every bed - especially the ones under the heat lamps - has been claimed.

Front courtyard snugglers - Debbie, Petunia (back) Gilbert (front) & Spencer - DW
Fabio & Lucky are somewhere in the pile!

That, of course, makes for some difficulties for the volunteers – cats take exception to being moved off a comfy spot just because some human wants to shake a blanket out, or to change it for a clean cover. And the production of clean bedding is made possible only by careful use of the washer/dryer, because the system is easily overloaded – both by cats and by electrical needs. Having either the washer or the dryer running, of course, is much in demand; the warmth and the vibrations make the appliance top a preferred sleeping space.

One variant of the Dryer Gang: Diablo, Bantam & Simone - MW

Out in the back pens, the cats are also preferring to cuddle together and not venture out. Cleaning pen 1 yesterday, I found twelve of them watching me anxiously; most are semi-feral at best and would normally be backing away, but comfort came first, and they waited patiently while I replaced an ice-filled water-bowl from outside their door with one full of warm water, adding a splash of warm to the inside water-bowl as well.

A wary group of ferals - BC

In pen 5 May and Adam were eager to greet me (though that was in part because of treats in pockets), but Chinook, Willow and Salish also joined in the love-fest, enjoying the chance for some interaction since they’d not had the chance to get out.

From top: Salish, Willow & Adam - waiting hopefully - BC

There are, of course, always the cats who want to do their own thing. Our little grey Gizmo (not to be confused with orange Gizmo in the Moore House) is definitely a cat who walks by himself.  Now that he’s out of a cage, he’s interacting much better with humans, but other cats are still not his favourite thing.

Gizmo the Grey - BC

The cats in the feral pen would prefer not to be inside if they can avoid it; when I go in first thing in the morning to scoop their box and refresh food and water, they hurry out of their house. Cold toes are infinitely preferable to dealing with (horrors!) a human!

Smithy says "Don't look at me!" - MW

The decorations have started going up in the front courtyard; the carolers will be visiting on Monday at lunchtime, and cats are finding their patches of sunshine to make the fur coats compensate for the chill.

Jake's attention is caught by a possible food hand-out - BC

Bobby would prefer that he not actually touch the snow - BC

Some actually seem to enjoy it; semi-feral Autumn must have some Maine Coon in her little body, because her fur has grown in thick and luxuriant (especially her ruff) and I found her today rolling ecstatically in the snow.

Autumn actually loves the cold  - BC

The end is (theoretically) in sight, though;  more snow is forecast on Sunday, followed by warmer temperatures and a return to our usual Wet Coast weather. Pretty as the snow has been, it’ll be good to return to unfrozen water-bowls and functioning sinks again!

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Debbie Wolanski & Michele Wright

Wobbly Bob

Who would ever think that Bob would be a popular name for a cat? But we’ve had several Bobs at the Sanctuary: there was Snotty Bob, with his permanent cold; quiet short-tailed Bobby in the Old Aids; we still have Belly-Rub Bobby in the front courtyard, and if you are very quiet you might occasionally see Wobbly Bob in the back.

 MW

Back courtyard Bob came to us as so many cats did 10 or so years ago – development was hitting Blundell Road between Garden City and No 4 Road, and long-standing houses were being torn down to make way for townhouse developments. An elderly man was feeding a colony of ferals in his back yard, and when he moved out, the developer turned to Richmond Homeless Cats, and Carol arrived with her traps.  There were about 10 cats trapped from that site, and they all came to us – mostly black and white “cow cats” and brown tabbies. The last to be trapped was a ragdoll cross who was whisked away by med-staff Leslie, and named Clooney.
Darla, from that group, has her own blog entry, and had her own fans, but most of the others remained quite shy. They included Sonny and Cher, Bob and Marley (do we hear a theme here?), Harmony, Cookies ‘n’ Cream, Molly and a couple of others.

PH

Bob was actually one of the first to venture out and express interest in contact with humans.  But at some time in the years he’s been with us, he had some sort of neurological episode that leaves him very unsteady on his legs. Bob’s quite a long cat, and when startled, it sometimes looks like his front end wants to go one direction and his back legs in another. This unsteadiness has understandably left him feeling vulnerable, and his former friendliness has changed to a skittish wariness.

BC

Chicken to the rescue! – he’s fairly food-motivated, and when chicken is being handed out, I am sometimes aware of Bob sneaking up behind me. He’s happier not making eye contact, but he no longer runs away when that happens, and he will actually approach closely enough that he can take food from the hand. 

BC

Life must be a pretty scary prospect for poor Bob, but I think he’s learning again that humans are his friends, and that touch is possible. We just need to encourage volunteers and visitors to move gently around him and to let him know that he’s in a place of safety.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Phaedra Hardman and Michele Wright

Bobby

Bobby and I met on Monday night as I was passing through the front courtyard on the way to the doublewide. He was a little uncertain about the intentions of this strange human approaching him where he'd been sitting, minding his own business, on the porch of the Connor building, but his reservations were quickly overcome and some serious following, weaving, ankle rubs and headbutts ensued.

In short, a very sweet boy.

Bobby was trapped as a kitten along with his brothers Ralph and Norbert on a farm along No. 9 Road in Richmond. Norbert was adopted by Debbie, while the other two brothers remain at the sanctuary. Bobby had a problem with his knee that kept him off the adoption list fairly early.

Having remained close friends with his brother Ralphie, Bobby doesn't come across as the least bit unhappy to be living at the sanctuary. Marianne wrote about the pair in the February edition of the RAPSity News, in an article appropriately titled Love, Love, Love.

 Ralphie & Bobby

photo provided by RAPS