Celeste

Celeste in a reflective mood (MK)

Pretty tabby Celeste is another cat-graduate of the Pen 2 colony.  Originally there were five tabbies who came to the Sanctuary in 2017, identified as unadoptable (generally because of shyness). Calvin and Chase preferred to remain in their Pen 2 cabin;  Zivko migrated next door to Pen 1, and became the ringleader of the Back Courtyard Boys Club until his passing. Sassy Sophie moved to the Tea Room, and Celeste opted for the warmth and comfort of the DoubleWide.

Those innocent eyes!   (MW)

Celeste and Sophie have remained in their chosen surroundings, and nowadays they have very little to do with each other.  Celeste is easily picked out from the other tabbies by her pretty face and expressive eyes. She has learned that people gravitate towards her when she presents herself, and at the weekends she moves out of the indoor comfort of the Laundry Room to her place in the Breezeway, ready to welcome the visitors.  

Posed to receive tidbits   (BC)

Other cats may crowd closer to the gates, looking for the first pets and attention, but she stands at chest-level where she can’t be missed, and proves an immediate magnet for people looking for strokable cats. We do have to warn a number of visitors about the reactivity of our collared felines, and to find a cat that is clearly saying “Pet me!” is a welcome treat.

In the box is always best  (KN)

She has also learned that visitors carry little cups of kibble, and if she gets to them soonest, she gets first choice. Our cat-treats are not usually all empty-calorie Temptations, but are a mixture of donated cat-kibbles, usually higher-value than the standard treats. Celeste is not afraid to turn up her nose at something she likes less, and demand an alternative. She loves to preen and pose and have attention given to her.

Celeste knows that all the volunteers listed on the board
are there to serve her!  (BC)

Typically, someone will ask if she’s adoptable. At first glance, that would be an obvious “Yes!” - but adoptability is not always just about how friendly the cat is, and Celeste has a couple of quirks that put her firmly on the permanent-Sanctuary-resident list. Under the shelf of towels and folded bedding in the Laundry room are two of the litter boxes for the local cats.  And first thing in the morning (and other times as well) we will always find a little cat-poop deposit outside the litter box.  This is usually Celeste;  she can be observed using the litter box for urination, and then popping outside to leave a solid deposit.  She’s not the only one – but she’s probably the most consistent!

Celeste  (MW)

Her other quirk is one she had in common with Calvin. The Pen 2 water-bowl used to have to stand inside its own box, because Calvin used his paws in drinking – and Celeste does the same thing.  The Breezeway water-bowl has to get changed more frequently than all the others because she will stand in the bowl, and lick at her paws, or splash at the water to get it moving.  And on a muddy day, or after visiting the litter-box, that’s pretty messy!

you put your left paw in.... and you shake it all about   (BC)

A very cute, dainty cat, on the surface, but probably not one to have as a house resident. Celeste has the best of both worlds – lots of human attention and petting, plus the ability to indulge in her own bad habits, and have volunteers mop up after her, morning and evening.  She knows that we know she does it – but those big innocent eyes say, “Who? Me?” and she is immediately forgiven.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Mike Kossey, Karen Nicholson, Michele Wright.

Pen 2 cats - 2:Too Many Tabbies!

Calvin - MW

The Pen 2 cats were introduced in a recent blog, with some specific focus on the black, and black-and-white inhabitants.

Too many tabbies - DA

I hesitated over tackling an introduction to the cats in this pen, because five of them are at first sight seemingly identical tabbies, and it’s difficult to tell them all apart until you spend real time with them.  All of them have the characteristic tabby M marking on their foreheads, but their subtler markings vary.  Most tabbies have lines that appear to go from the corners of their eyes, and may run parallel or otherwise; it’s worth looking also for cheek markings and for the chest rings that may run cleanly or be interrupted

Sophie - MW

The most outgoing and confident of the Pen 5 tabbies is Sophie – she frequently meets visitors at the gate and demands attention. Sophie is a tubby-tabby, and not afraid to indulge in leg-rubs; she solicits petting, but really wants it to consist mainly of head-rubbing, and she is quick to object when the hand moves too far down her back.

Calvin - MW

Insofar as a tabby can be elegant, it’s personified (?catified) in Calvin.  He is leggy and streamlined; his facial markings are the easiest to distinguish, because the outer strokes of his M marking are brown smudges rather than black lines. Both he and his buddy Chase have yellow eyes; Chase has the clearer M marking, and his cheek lines are slightly divergent, where Calvin’s are more convergent.  Chase is a bit more wary of human contact than Calvin, who, like Sophie, solicits petting.

Chase says "I'm not ready for contact!" - MW

Calvin is photographer Michele Wright’s favourite of the Pen 2 cats, and her affection is clear in the beautiful pictures she takes of him.

Calvin - MW

The other tabby that is easy to distinguish is Celeste, who has the most beautiful big round green eyes  – they remind me of the eyes of our recently departed Sophie’s, in the Moore House.

Celeste - MW

Celeste is a bit smaller than the others, and her M marking has a strong dark strokes on the outside. She has dark under-eye shading and convergent cheek-lines

Zivko - BC

Looking very like Sophie, but much less outgoing is Zivko.  His tabby M markings are much darker, the outer strokes being black smudges, and his cheek markings are more varied than Sophie’s clear lines. He also has a small white chest-spot. He does not want to be petted – he would rather stay away from humans, but when approached, regards the finger offered for sniffing with great disdain; his expression says “You expect me to bunt against THAT?”

Zivko - MW

A challenge to volunteers to get to know these five!  When pen 2 is opened in a month or so, they’ll be venturing out – and then we have to be able to distinguish them from Stella and LouLou and Jody and the many other back-courtyard tabbies in our care.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Derya Aydede, Brigid Coult & Michele Wright