Spring Losses

Celeste (MK)

We usually talk of our 400+ cats at the Sanctuary (plus all the ones in fosterage and at the Adoption Centre) but those numbers are always changing. Older cats pass, health conditions deteriorate, new cats arrive from other shelters or from trapping – the Sanctuary population is continually fluctuating. You would think that the weather would be a factor; that cold, wet weather or scorching summer days would bring more cats to crisis point – but all too often it seems that we have a surge of losses at a time when we’re seeing new life all around.

Drake (KC)

Back in 2021, I remember a month in which we lost a whole bunch of our beloved friends: Puffin, Skittles, Shadrack, Fable, Ninja and half a dozen more – we dreaded arriving and checking the calendar, only to see that someone else had passed. Five years later, and we’re having a similar spring. Now that I’m part of the Kitty Comforter team, we are warned of losses with a little email tribute from coordinator Anne, often accompanied by a photo of the cat in question.

Taffy (MW)

Mid-March to mid-April has seen the passing of more than twelve cats. Occasionally it comes out of the blue; sometimes it’s a cat that the med-staff have been watching; in some cases we know it’s coming, and the cat has been with us for comfort care until they know it’s time.

Louie, the head-bonk boy (KN)

The first two were from New Aids. FIV+ cats aren’t inherently “sick”, but their compromised immune systems do make it harder for them to fight off anything that’s going on. Shy hissy Drake had been unwell for some time; he roomed with handsome Boston, and would occasionally allow petting when in company with his buddy. A week later we lost Louie suddenly; the vets think he threw an embolism, and we found him unable to use his back legs. He was another shy boy who would duck his head to receive and give head-bops; in the last year he had become more confident about being around people and cats. I had the privilege of being with him for his crossing.

Booty - member of the boys' club  (MW)

The following weekend saw the passing of two of our older cats. Booty had been with us nearly ten years and we think he was around 16 years old; he arrived with a group of cats from the No 5 Rd Shelter who had been considered unadoptable. Booty liked to live in the Tea-Room and was very social with people. At the opposite end of the spectrum was Smithy who preferred to swear at us – though he would also accept treats. He was more than 18 when he passed, and a particular favourite of Karen’s; “tame” was not in his repertoire with most humans, but he had lots of cat friends.

Hissy Smithy - loving only with other cats  (KN)

Lindor’s passing was a surprise to many, though the med staff knew that he was not in great shape. Lindor was a tubby, floofy boy who never saw a treat he didn’t love, and raided the table at coffee-time. He’d recently gone in for tests, and was shaved while they had him sedated; he was one of very few cats who seemed to like wearing a sweater. His appetite had increased while his weight went down, and it’s likely he had a tumour.

Lindor exerting mind-control:
"You will give me that treat NOW!"  (KN)

We all knew about Jade’s skin cancer on her nose, though it didn’t seem to bother her. Jade was one of the collared “reactive” cats, but much calmer in the last year or so, and she was frequently one of the cats waiting at the gate to greet visitors. Med-staff monitored her carefully, and she was released when she started to feel uncomfortable. Better a day too soon than a day too late...

Jade playing cute - but we always remembered the collar...  (KN)

The next to pass was a quiet cat who had a fan-club. Sweet Loki (DoubleWide and deck) had a rough coat and twisted whiskers. He had the ability to produce an amazing amount of pee - mostly outside the litter-box, which is why he had come to us originally.  The boy who loved to play had become an old man who was happier sleeping and sometimes had to be coaxed to eat. He will be especially missed by Kitty Comforter Karrie.

Shy sweet Loki, with his twisty eyebrows  (JC)

His passing on March 1 marked the beginning of a brutal week for the med-staff, who are always the ones most impacted when we lose a cat. In every case, the cat is taken to the hospital by someone they know and love, and that person stays through to the end. On March 2 both Celeste and Honeydew were helped to pass. Celeste was our beloved receptionist for Back Courtyard visitors, and missed perfection only because of her lack of litterbox discipline. What we thought was an eye infection turned out to be a tumour. She was followed across the Bridge by Honeydew, one of the calico sisters from the Front Courtyard – only her sister Melon is left.

Honeydew (MW)

In subsequent days we lost Summit, (one of the Commuter Cats) and River, Sakura (from the Adoption Centre), sweet Taffy (like Celeste, one of the former Pen 2 cats) and then Kin. We don’t know whether Kin was a feral, or just a very scared stray; he lived on the DW Deck for much of his time with us, generally hiding out under something. The Kitty Comforters – particularly Brad – worked hard on coaxing him into trusting us a bit better, but life was scary for Kin. When the DoubleWide renovations began, and Kin needed caging for medical care, he was brought over to the Newcomers area, which is quieter than the Deck had become. There, Kin found he could stay just out of reach, but was still able to access a tube of Churu at arms-length. He had a faithful team of visitors, and once his cage was opened, he opted to remain there, and share it with Careen.

Kin, braving the great outdoors  (KN)

A few days of respite, and then sweet Vesper passed on Wednesday. Vesper had arrived in the winter of 2017 with his bonded buddy Fable. When we lost Fable five years ago, Vesper showed himself to be one of those guys who needed a Relationship, and moved in with dark calico Kiwi, and then when she passed two years later, with tabby Dominique and calico Butterfinger (possibly on the principle of “one is fun, so two should be better!”). In his last years, Vesper became very vocal, probably because he became deaf and couldn’t hear himself – he was quick to spot treats being passed out, and noisy in his insistence that he wanted some too!

Vesper (KN)

We hoped that would be the end for a while, but Sunday brought two more losses: Bronx, one of the Newton cats that have been under medical care for upper respiratory conditions, and our beloved Chance, one of the New Aids cats.  Chance changed slowly from a scared feral three years ago into a lap-loving cuddle monster who loved the humans who tended New Aids. He had gone downhill quite rapidly in the last week, and as so many sick cats do, preferred to be in hiding in his last days - volunteer Marty said his farewells to Chance under the chair where he had hidden as a new cat with us.

Chance in his safe space  (BC)

They have been much loved - and they leave big spaces in our hearts when they pass. But each passing means we have space for another cat – feral, stray, problem pet, or cat in need of medical care and love. And much as we miss them, we still have lots of love in our hearts for the new ones who come to the Sanctuary. 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Jackie Chapple, Katy Cobb,

Brigid Coult, Mike Kossey, Karen Nicholson, Michele Wright

Promises Kept

Nugget  (KN)

I have often mentioned in earlier blogs that RAPS Cat Sanctuary does not work in isolation, and that we have strong ties with other rescues around the province. The most consistent one is probably with Sammy’s Forgotten Felines in Kamloops, with whom our Manager, Valerie, was associated, and we have a number of cats who have originated from there – but we also work with rescues on the Kootenays and on Vancouver Island.  Most of these are grass-roots organizations, funded by local donations and made possible by the devoted work of volunteers. Many have very little space, and rely heavily on those volunteers to foster the rescues they take in until a more permanent home can be found for them.

Thistle  (KN)

Our visitors this past Saturday afternoon included a small group from Broken Promises Rescue near Victoria. Over the past year, we have taken some of their cats, and they were anxious to see how they were doing, and that they had settled safely into a new life with us.  We had a heads-together with Karen, to identify them all, and to establish the ones whose names had been changed, and where they might be found, and then I abandoned the regular visitors to the care of Kate and Brad, and became their exclusive tour guide.  

Chance  (BC)

We began in the New Aids pen, with a visit to Chance. Chance had come to us from Broken Promises last year because he was FIV+ and could not be released to a feral colony after neutering; he had loving care from a fosterer, but was still very hissy-swatty when he arrived into our care. Quiet, and lots of patience from the Kitty Comforters helped him to relax, and he now is one of the established lap-claimers in the cabin.  It’s hard to know if his happy reaction to the visitors was because he recognized voices or just appreciated company, but he was quick to jump up and ask for petting and treats.  It will be interesting to see if he decides to explore outside as the weather warms; he’s been almost exclusively an indoor cat since he arrived.  We introduced some of the other cats as well – both the very social ones like Biggie and Obelix, but also with a quick visit to shy Boston, as well.

Nothing Nugget loves more than a box!   (KN)

Returning to the back pens, we did a little hunting round to see if we could ID any of the more recent Broken Promises cats, and to let the visitors see the space available to our resident cats.  At least one of the BP cats is in Pen 4, and most of the Pen 4 cats are expert hiders; that afternoon Ranger (from Haida Gwaii) and Annie were the only ones basking on the path, and everyone else was safely tucked out of sight. A return to the main courtyard and the TeaRoom gave us an encounter with Nugget, enjoying his under-the-chair bed.  Nugget wears a collar as an indication of his tendency to be reactive, which is the reason he’s with us; when he began getting aggressive with the other cats with whom he was fostered, it was clear that he couldn’t remain in a standard home.  Like Chance, Nugget also seemed to recognize his visitors, and wriggle-squirmed in an effort to get more attention.

Aster  (BC)

The Double-Wide is off-limits to visitors usually, but under these circumstances I was able to take just one person in, while we hunted for a couple of the newer cats who had joined us.  I was pretty sure I knew where Aster hung out, and there she was!  She had come in with the name of Daisy, but for us there is only one Daisy, and the name was retired after her passing. Keeping the flower theme, this little one became Aster, and her buddy became Thistle. 

Thistle  (BC)

Both are still pretty shy, and divide their time between the Double-Wide and the courtyard, but with visitors around, I guessed that they might well be indoors. I think Aster recognized the voice calling her, but she was still nervous enough that she preferred to remain on the cage-top in her safe zone; she was interested, but not brave enough to approach.  I hoped Thistle might be on the back deck, but at that point he was hiding, and didn’t appear until later.

Gwen hoping for goodies   (BC)

A couple of other Broken Promises cats were around; poofy tortie Gwen hovered anxiously, hoping for chicken handouts and quite unmoved by the presence of her rescuer.  Blond Tucker was sound asleep in bed and not to be disturbed. We returned to the courtyard and more joyful interactions with Nugget.

Tucker - Do Not Disturb!   (KN)

Broken Promises takes its name as a reminder that we make commitments to the animals in our lives.  And when those promises are broken, when we don’t spay/neuter, when we hoard, when we act without compassion, it is the animals that suffer. The team at Broken Promises is there to pick up the slack, to try to remedy some of the carelessness and cruelty.  And their commitment goes beyond taking in animals and finding homes for them.  Even when handing them over to another organization for care, they want to follow through and make sure that all is well.  Truly, promises kept...

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult & Karen Nicholson

Another FIV Sweetheart

Chance (KN)

In the last few months we’ve had the addition of some very special cats to our FIV colony. I introduced Trooper in August, and Hank and Goose last month. As we’ve got to know them, we’ve also had another special boy in the background – and he is starting to blossom.  His name is Chance - a name he shares with one of the first cats I met at the Sanctuary, and who Claire Fossey described as "a furry disaster"

The battered boy - a picture from his Victoria foster

This second Chance came to us last July from Broken Promises rescue on Vancouver Island – we think he’s about 5 years old.  Even more than Hank, he’s a poster boy for an FIV stray – a big blocky cat with the musculature and large jowls of a late-neutered feline. He has the crumpled “cauliflower” ears of a long-time boxer; in his case, fighting may not be so much the cause as ear-mites leading to haematomas that never received any care. He reminds me of our beloved Bossanova – the ears are part of that, but the sad eyes and the hissy fearfulness that gradually gave way to trust complete the picture. When he was trapped there were obvious signs of fighting wounds, and he had care from a loving foster before he was transferred to RAPS.

Still wary, but hopeful  (BC)

He spent the first six weeks in a cage – initially with a drape in place, and some aggressive hissing coming from behind it. Many newer volunteers, in this situation, quietly pull the litter box out for scooping and place food and water for him without disturbing him.  The Kitty Comforters push the boundaries a bit, and several of us would climb into his cage with him, even if only to talk.  We discovered that a back-scratcher was a useful tool to allow him to experience touch at a remove, and found that he adored scritches round his head and ears – what he didn’t enjoy was having his drape moved, but once it was out of the way, he became quicker to settle down to enjoying caresses and melted into the petting hand.

Under the chair  (BC)

In the usual way, once the med staff decided it was time, Chance’s cage was opened, and having lived for a few days pretending the barrier was in place, he ventured out and went to ground under the adjacent chair. This presented a little more challenge – entry to the cabin usually meant discovering a Kitty Comforter lying on the ground, and coaxing Chance to emerge – all the while gently dissuading the other FIV cats who felt that humans lay on the ground for their benefit, and gathered around for attention.  Occasionally Chance would take some human-free time to climb the cat-tree and find a place in the cage-top beds, but he really preferred being at floor-level, and where he could retreat to a hidden place.

Chance thinks Henrie is a great cuddler

It’s wonderful that we have so many friendly cats in this pen – cats that are just longing to have someone with whom they can cuddle. Trooper, Biggie, Simon, Hank, Boomer, Angus – they all want attention, and the first four at least would do really well in their own homes (Goose went to his new family last week!) - but the fact that they all want attention means that Chance is very wary about emerging from hiding. 

Cuddles with Marty - and Trooper wants in...   (VE)

Our regular NewAids volunteers have proved to be most successful – they may not be labelled Kitty Comforters, but they sure have the gift!  Once the dinner plates are out and the cats otherwise occupied, Chance is more willing to risk himself and climb up for a cuddle – and the worried face relaxes to the point where you can see the smile emerging.

Look at that smile!  (KC)

Chance’s life has probably been a series of battles with other tomcats, and at the moment he’s actually happier with humans than he is with the other felines.  But he’s come so far from the fearful boy of the past summer; once he becomes fully comfortable with the largely non-aggressive encounters with a testosterone-free community of cats, we hope his growing confidence will make him an active member of our FIV family.

Hey Hank - can I share the lap?   (BC)

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Katy Cobb, Brigid Coult, Vince Edwards,

Henrie Morgan, Karen Nicholson