Remembering Friends

Back Pens - everyone loved  Chatter - MW

At the end of each December, we wish each other a Happy New Year – but we also look back at the year just past and remember the triumphs we've won and the trials we’ve survived.  And especially at the Cat Sanctuary, we’ll remember the cats we’ve lost.

SW - Georgie & her Christmas Mouse - MW

We actually memorialize them in the summer at a pot-luck event held at the Sanctuary and attended by humans and cats alike (it can be a little hard to keep them off the tables!)  And part of the event always includes the reading of the names of the cats who have passed in the previous year – a moment that is named for raggedy Chance who got a second chance of life when he came to us. We are reminded of the legend of the Rainbow Bridge, and the cats who are waiting for us to cross as well – and there are always tears and fond memories.

Front - Gilbert, much loved - MW

But remembering Big Personalities who have passed is more common in the media at the turn of the year – so here are just a few of the beloved cats who have been in our care, and have gone on to the Rainbow Bridge.

Moore - Spicer, missed by her buddy Shaggy - MW

In the Moore House, established by and named for our beloved Marianne Moore, most of the cats are seniors (it’s affectionately known as “geriCATrics”), and though we grieve their passing, we know that these are cats who have had their final days with much love from us

Moore - PomPom (BC) & Fluffy (MW) -   both came to us
when they were already seniors

Moore - Jack went from being a cranky aggressive cat
to one who loved being petted - MW

Our FIV+ cats may not ever develop full-blown AIDS, but many of them have lived feral, rough lives before they came to us, and their bodies are more fragile than in the general population

NewAids - Mr Moochie - BC

NewAids - Achilles - MW

The FeLV (feline leukemia) cats’ fragile immune systems mean that we tend them with great care for cleanliness. Of the cats we’ve lost this year, two stand out for me:

OA - Zanda loved to come and cuddle - PH

OA - Cleo was disabled, but gutsy! - MW

Those of us who work in the SingleWide quickly develop our favourites

SW - Zoe was a member of the Dryer Gang - MW

SW - Tammy hated other cats - but loved Shelter Manager Lisa - MW

Some really significant cats in the front courtyard have passed

Brothers Tommy & Pogo were well-loved by everyone - MW

We lost Daniel in 2018; Cloverleaf has gone to be with his buddy - MW

Many of the Double-wide cats who have gone are either seniors (Binky, Deenie) or the cage-top shy ferals (Pixie, Peanut, Mary). The cat that I still subconciously look for is Sativa, whose Manx-Syndrome incontinence brought her to us, and whose human family faithfully visited her every Sunday.

DW - we all got used to cleaning up after Sativa - MW

So many big personalities in small furry bodies in the back courtyard have passed.

PawPaw happily made the transition from an outside pen
to live inside with his buddy Chimo - MW

B/w WobblyBob and his grey buddy Yogi went
within weeks of each other - VL

Terry never let his disability stop him! - PH

And I can’t pass up the chance to memorialize the two I adopted from the Moore house, and had in my care for all too short a time – much loved and not forgotten.

Mr Bojangles and Madame Hooch - MW

Many of these cats came in to us as ferals, and as ferals they would have had short, hard lives. In our care they were loved by staff, volunteers and visitors. Their passing was grieved – but it also left space to accept other homeless cats – ferals, strays, rejects – all of whom are now discovering that life can be good at the Cat Sanctuary.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Phaedra Hardman, Vicki Lo, Michele Wright

Ears!

A few months ago I blogged about the variety we find in cats’ eyes, and I’ve been looking round the Sanctuary at the similar variety found in feline ears.

The primary differential is whether the basic shape is rounded or more pointed. There are a lot of rounded ears to be seen, and the proportion of ear to skull shape can make that more or less obvious.

Careen - MW

Other ears are more pointed, and in many cases, the point is emphasized by a little tuft of hair at the apex – a lynx-tip.  Sometimes the tuft is the same colour as the cat, which enhances the point;

Chatter & Colin (MW)

in others, the lynx-tip provides colour-contrast.

Emery (MW) & Faline (BC)

Ears are a part of body-language; we all recognize the flattened airplane-ears of a fearful or angry cat

Ringo  (BC) and Janine (MW) in hiding

Presley  (AL)

though in some cases flattened ears are just the way that cat is made

Emo Pickles relaxed & happy (PH)

When doing TNR (Trap-Neuter-Release) it is common to notch or snip the ear of a neutered cat so that it is clear that it doesn’t need to be trapped again when the colony is checked.  Most of our cats have unmarked ears because they come to us from having been spayed/neutered.  Little Marilee is one of the exceptions; when she was first TNR’d she was returned to her colony with the common clipped ear; it was only when her tail became injured and had to be amputated that it was decided that she needed to remain with us rather than return to her colony.

Marilee (MW)

Haematoma ear is seen in a number of cats. An infection or a bruise can cause painful swelling between the skin and cartilage of the ear. Untreated, it fills with blood and then easily bursts, causing the ear to crumple. If it can be caught early enough, it is possible to minimize the damage.

Little Orange (MW)

Little Orange’s ear swelling was discovered early enough that just the top of the ear flap was affected. He was not the most cooperative of patients!

Bossanova (MW)

Bossanova came to us as a feral with his ear already well crumpled. Left to itself the haematoma will heal, but unevenly, leaving the feline equivalent of a “cauliflower ear”

Cara (CF)

Long-time volunteers will remember double-haematoma cat Cara, who had both ears affected – it never seemed to bother her!

Especially among the formerly unneutered male cats (many of them inhabitants of the New Aids pen) we see evidence of a life that involved fighting for their lives – and battered ears are definitely a common casualty.

Sweet battered Zimmer  (MW)

It is interesting that ear-hair, something that is SO aesthetically displeasing in humans, can be so pretty in cats.
Here are some of our feather-iest ears!

OJ  (MW)

Holland (MW)

Princess Diva (MW)

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Claire Fossey, Phaedra Hardman, 
Ari Lioznyansky, Michele Wright

What's In A Name?

One of the questions often asked by Sunday visitors is “Who chooses the cats’ names?”  Usually the answer to that is that the med-staff do it – sometimes to a theme, sometimes focusing on an alphabetical series, sometimes because it just suits the cat.

Chatter - MW

Occasionally the vets get in on it – when Gaye took a spunky orange boy to the vet for the first time and introduced him as “Cheddar”, the vet heard “Chatter” and that’s what he’s remained.

Cagney

The cats that manage to find their way here by themselves are all named for TV detectives – we had Magnum and Colombo in the back pens, and Kojak in Old Aids and there’s Cagney in the front courtyard and Watson in the back.

Dell

One fairly new girl was named for where she was trapped: she’s Keira Knightstreet.  When she came in, her next-door neighbor, a fighter of the spit-and-lunge variety, was Xena, to give us an “X” in the alphabetical series. Our handsome Dell is also named for his source – he was found on Blundell Road.

Nasty Sandra - CP

Rarely, a name will get changed – we had a cat brought in and given the name of Loco, and I protested:  I felt he was too shy and old-fashioned to be labelled like that. I was allowed to change his name to Dickens and loved him dearly till we lost him a couple of years ago.  Sometimes the name is a behaviour descriptor; Nasty Sandra (above) lives up to her label.

Mocha- MW

Some cats seem to have more than one name: Mocha, in the Val Jones pen, is also known as Brownie to some of her fans. Mocha came in with her brother Pekoe (orange, of course) and her sister Cappucino (both passed on).

MW

In the Single-Wide we have Jarrod, also known as Yap and Charlie, also known as Tuna.

Two Lucy-cats - MW

Sometimes there are duplications – usually because a cat has come in as an owner-surrender with a name.  We have two Lucy cats, affectionately known as fat-Lucy – both are ladies of size, though Laundry Room Lucy probably outweighs Tea-Room Lucy.  There are two Hannahs – the delightful little orange-and-white girl and the leggy tabby who like to leap on people from behind. Orange Lucky in the front yard will never come face-to-face with Bengal Lucky in the back.

Chip 'n' Dale - CF & PH

And there are family pairs: Chip (in the Val Jones) is brother of Dale (in the Double-Wide); Cinder and Ella were our back courtyard greys (till we lost Ella recently); and a pair of front-courtyard orange cats just begged to be named Henrick and Daniel, for the Canuck Sedin twins.

Front-courtyard Bobby - MW

Who would think that Bobby would be a popular name for a cat? Bobby in the front courtyard is also known as Belly-Rub Bobby, for his favourite occupation; there was a double-wide cat known as Snotty Bobby, for his permanent cold; we used to have Orange Bobby (for his bob-tail) in Old Aids, and let’s not forget Wobbly-Bob in the back – he has some sort of neurological disorder and can’t always keep his legs under control, especially when startled.

Lincoln (MW) and Cinnamon Bun Lincoln (PH)

And then there are our two Lincolns in the double-wide – beautiful tawny Lincoln, so regal and affectionate to people (though not really a cat-loving boy), and Cinnamon Bun Lincoln, named for his tail formation.

But above and beyond there's still one name left over,
And that is the name that you never will guess;
The name that no human research can discover--
But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess.
When you notice a cat in profound meditation,
The reason, I tell you, is always the same:
His mind is engaged in a rapt contemplation
Of the thought, of the thought, of the thought of his name:
His ineffable effable
Effanineffable
Deep and inscrutable singular Name.                                         

             T.S. Eliot – The Naming of Cats

 

Blog by Brigid Coult
Photos by Claire Fossey, Phaedra Hardman, Chris Peters, Michele Wright

That little pink tip...

We tend to think of cats as serene, elegant creatures – and for the most part, they are. At the Cat Sanctuary, we do have our raggedy, battered-looking favourites, and we know that when a cat starts looking unkempt it’s usually a sign of ill-health, and a quick trip to the vet follows. But for the most part, the cats do their own grooming, and lounge around looking picturesque.
Until you look closer...

Star
Yes, that’s a tongue sticking out. Sometimes it’s deliberate

Cappuccino - BIG yawn

Or a sign of concentration

Sara Lee - waiting to sample the first can of food

But for the most part it’s a signal to us that this is a cat that has had more than a few visits to the dentist, and has lost the front teeth that keep the tongue in place – so when the cat is relaxed, that cute little pink tip peeps out.

Chickadee sleeping (by Phaedra)

As humans, we’re aware that we have to look after our teeth – and sometimes that necessitates a dentist visit. But many non-cat people (and some cat-owners as well) don’t always realise that the same is true for their feline friends. And just like humans, some cats have naturally good teeth that never seem to need attention, others require a little care from time to time, and a few always have trouble with their teeth.
So we watch for a cat that is drooling a bit, or shows signs of being uncomfortable eating, and a vet visit quickly follows. There are several cats in the Sanctuary with no teeth at all. Surprisingly, it doesn’t seem to make any difference to their liking for crunchy treats!

Chatter - "Treats, please!"

There are vets that recommend brushing your cat’s teeth. The thought of trying to do this with some of our feral cats is more than a little frightening – we rely mainly on good food and daily attention. It is noticeable that with our aging cat population, the dental bills have increased – but that’s just part of what goes with running the Sanctuary. 

Emily (by Phaedra)
But some cats just stick their tongues out because they like to!  Most of them have the ability to curl them way forward to get every tasty bit off the nose

Dusty
And like humans, some have the ability to curl them inwards

Minky
But for most of them, they do it just because it’s a sign of contentment, or that’s what’s most comfortable!

Rob Zombie

 

Marmalade

And the prize for the best tongue must go to a cat who is much shyer than he looks…

Dino

 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Michele Wright and Phaedra Hardman