Supper on the Deck

Happy anticipation! - Bodhi, Luke & Denzel  (BC)

The back Deck of the Double-Wide building is both a home for a colony of semi-ferals, and a transition area for felines expanding their comfort-zone to include the back courtyard.  In the winter the residents snuggle together on a mattress under the comfort of a heat-lamp, while the rest of the “room” is protected from the elements only by plastic screens.  The “red light area” is the home to the core-group, and every other cat-bed around the upper area is occupied.  Now that warmer weather is with us, natural body-heat replaces the need for the heat-lamp, and more cats pop in and out of the cat-door in the corner.

Classic tabbies Ziggy and Hickory  (LBF)

One of my regular shifts for the past fourteen years has been to feed in the Double-Wide building on Saturday evenings – usually working with Molly, who began as a volunteer, then a staff cleaner, and is now the med-staff person on Saturdays, mixing up the necessary medications and delivering them all across the Sanctuary.  Operating from the Laundry Room sink, I plate up wet food for the building, including smaller dishes for caged cats. And usually I do the clean-up and wash the cans before I take the last three plates through to the Deck, so that, with a clear conscience, I can sit for a little while with the cats there.

Lotsa tabbies on the mattress   (LBF)

One plate gets delivered to the upper level in front of the mattress; one to the main area inside the door, and one to the back of the deck, where the shyer cats can eat without feeling too close to a human.  I will usually sit on the steps inside the door, and am quickly surrounded by feline friends who are so certain that I have something even tastier than the assortment of cat food flavours being offered.   

Gwen says "Gimme!"  (BC)

At my feet, Gwen hovers hopefully, smacking any other cat within reach. 

Crinkle looking hopeful (BC)

Crinkle comes down to the shelf beside me; she is still inclined to swat food from my hand rather than accept it, but the swat now comes without claws. The other tabbies prefer to get first dibs at the plate before coming to beg for tidbits; Hickory, Mitzi and Ziggy wait at the top, while the black boys, Denzel, Luke and Bodhi swarm closer. Bodhi doesn’t actually care much for the chicken tidbits, but he wants to be part of the crowd.

Nootka remains in loaf-pose  (BC)

Other cats hover at a distance; they are still wary around humans, but visits like this can help them to learn that we don’t need to be feared, and that if their companions can approach easily, they may do so as well. Little Nootka remained comfortably on her chair without feeling she had to hide; she came to us with black and white Tofino who prefers to wander the back courtyard;  Nootka prefers to stay indoors.

Madonna (BC)

Pretty Madonna has moved from hiding on the upper-level shelves to remaining on the other side of the room; she is cautious but no longer feels she has to hide.

Two little oranges  (BC)

I had two small orange tabbies hovering hopefully. They’re from a quartet that came into our care a few months ago, and were named Mandarin, Tangelo, Valencia and Tangerine. Mandarin is the single male and the only one I can identify from a little white patch on his chest; he is also the bravest of the four and the most food-motivated.  

Mandarin   (BC)

He has made himself at home in the Double-Wide, preferring to roam the cage-tops, but has also begun to explore the back courtyard. The three girls are much shyer, but at least one of them has become more confident in being around people on the back deck. I will look forward to getting to know them better in the next few months.

Ivy  (BC)

At another time, I will come to the deck without food, but with a wand toy or something to chase, and spend time to coax the shyer cats to interact with me. Pretty Ivy is getting braver all the time, and Marshmallow will accept petting and gentle grooming if there’s not too much action around.  Food is a useful motivator, but we need not rely on it.

Marshmallow prefers cat-food to treats  (BC)

The cat radar is working outside the deck – they know when tidbits are being offered. Before long Fletcher and Fonzie have joined up; Fonzie prefers the plated food, but Fletcher is watching the chicken bag with full attention. And then of course Lindor and Jasper arrive  – Lindor in particular doesn’t need more food; he’s been accepting treats from visitors all afternoon. Jasper and Gwen get into a swearing match, and then Jasper moves into “cute” mode and offers a high-five as incentive for something tasty, while Gwen retires under the stairs to lurk and mutter darkly.

Supper-time (BC)

Once the feline sharks gather, it’s time to wind up the treats visit, and return to the rest of my shift – checking and changing water-bowls as needed, and topping up kibble.  I need to visit the DW deck again on one of my Kitty Comforter shifts and take quiet time for some one-on-one with these delightful cats without food being too much of a factor! 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen & Brigid Coult

DoubleWide Divas - Act 2

A bundle of Gwen  (KN)

It’s interesting how specific areas of the Sanctuary develop concentrations of specific personalities. I don’t think there’s any other area where there are so many temperamental cats – and of course their temperamental outbursts feed off each other. Of course, there are many semi-ferals who prefer not to be touched, and who wear a collar as a warning to unwary visitors – Little Cat in the SingleWide, Cuddles in the YellowDoor shed, Nyla in the Connor House – but in the DoubleWide there are so many more of them. Last week I introduced Jade, Darcy, JJ and Sophie;  there are more divas, and divas-in-training.

Parker guarding the entrance to the DoubleWide  (MW)

There’s a very beautiful blonde girl who prefers the upper shelves of the laundry room, but has been venturing out onto the step to coax unwary weekend visitors within reach. Like the others, Parker wears a collar, but her long hair disguises it, and cries of “Oh, she’s so pretty!” are generally followed by “Ow!” Parker used to be exclusively a laundry room cat, but increasingly we see her surveying the courtyard and claiming more territory. When she's in the laundry room, she claims the most comfortable pile of clean bedding - and you take your life in your hands to put further laundry away in her vicinity. Occasionally she will constitute herself the quality control manager at dinner time, if she can claim the space before Cole gets there. With Parker “helping”, the feeder learns to dish up quickly, keeping hands out of her reach.  She has her moments of being sweet – but they are well outweighed by the spicy ones.

laundry only - and one particular cat!  (JK)

A lot of people will never meet tuxedo Comet, who rarely ventures outside the doors of the DoubleWide. She's not collared, because her reactivity is not tested by strangers reaching for her.  She’s not really fond of most humans, but she keeps her strongest antipathy for other cats, who have learned to avoid her. The cage-tops are her primary territory, and she will ambush unsuspecting victims, chasing them off “her” space. If Comet claims a cage, other cats stay away!  Even Delilah, who has her spicy moments, gets out of the way when Comet is looking for a victim.

Comet says "No closer!"   (KN)

Gwen aspires to be a diva. Most of her temperament centres around her love for food, and her certainty that everyone she meets is withholding tasty treats from her; she follows volunteers and staff around the building, swatting at ankles, getting underfoot and taking sideswipes at every cat she thinks is in her way. She really needs some grooming, but doesn’t like it; she can occasionally be touched when there is food to distract her. So far, I don’t think she’s ventured outside, either through the laundry room, or from the back deck cat-door. I suspect most of it is FOMO – missing out on food, that is. Other back deck cats enjoy the gardens and fresh air; Gwen’s afraid she might be cheated out of something tasty.

Watching for treats and competition   (KN)

I am including Bugle in the diva list, only because she might be a diva-in-training.  “Diva” is a Latin word for a goddess; it has also become a pejorative term for a temperamental female – which covers most of the cats in these two blog entries. But it’s a term that’s applied mostly to singers – and that’s certainly our Bugle. This feisty little girl has learned who the people are who carry tasty tidbits, and she sings for her supper – a high-pitched and surprisingly long-lasting wail of longing for the next offering  of chicken or tuna. She’s still at least semi-feral, and wary of new things; her buddies Velma and Ryan (Ryanne?) have long since found their way outdoors and explored the back courtyard, but Bugle prefers to stay inside, though she’s doing some interior exploration, and has discovered the joys of the upper levels. But in spite of her feral roots, she takes food gently from the hand without snapping, and then she waits and sings for the next taste.

Bugle - "Anything for me?"  (SM)

There are other cats in the DoubleWide who will shed blood if you come too close; unlike the ferals who just get out of the way, cats like Mitzi and Crinkle, on the back deck, DO want the attention and the treats – just not enough to tolerate any physical contact.  But that’s not diva-behaviour – it’s just an  “I’m not ready yet” signal, and they enjoy each other’s company (as Bugle does with her friends).  Most of the divas I’ve introduced here are anti-social with cats as well as with humans. They might be OK as a solo cat in their own home – but it’s quite likely that in other circumstances their aggression would have them being put down. Living at the Sanctuary, we can allow for the occasional psychotic episode, the preference for isolation – and be grateful when a cat like JJ or Sophie trusts us enough to ask for gentle attention. 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Jennine Kariya, Selena Marchetti, Karen Nicholson, Michele Wright

Crinkle

 Meet Crinkle.

Crinkle  (KN)

We don’t always know where the names of cats who come into our care come from – but there’s no question with this girl – her left ear is crinkled, and sometimes turns back on itself, displaying a good showing of fuzzy ear-hair. It may be a birth thing, or something like the haematoma ears that Bossanova and Little Orange have – but it’s enough that it makes her easily identifiable, and more than just yet another little tabby!

Crinkle mooches with the best  (BC)

Crinkle came to us from the Kamloops area; she was gathered in by Sammy’s Forgotten Felines, who do a stellar job with minimal resources, rescuing and rehoming feral colonies. I wrote about them briefly last May, when I introduced Len and Lloyd in Pen 4; what I didn’t realize was that Crinkle had arrived from the same colony, though a little later. It's pretty obvious that they're likely related.

Lloyd & Len  (LBF)

But there was a hitch; all cats coming in to us are tested for both FIV and FeLV – and Crinkle tested positive for the latter, and was sent to the Leukemia House to join the other cats there. She settled quite well, buddying up with equally shy Pewter (who came with her from Kamloops).  But when we heard that her kittens had all tested negative at six months old, the med staff suspected that her test might have been a false positive, and Crinkle was taken away from the leukemia area and brought to the Double Wide trailer, where she tested negative, and spent the next three months in quarantine in one of the large cages, before the final SNAP test confirmed her leukemia-negative in spring. 

Crinkle snuggling with sidekick Pewter  (LBF)

So where to put her? She could have gone to Len and Lloyd in Pen 4, but she’s not as feral as they are, and was used to humans around her, having had daily visits from the med staff and then from volunteers.  Catherine put her in a transfer cage out on the back deck, which gave her the chance to smell the inhabitants there, and to be investigated in return – and once released, she settled down very well with all the other tabbies.  Occasionally she would investigate outside, but as the weather has become colder, indoors is the place to be, negotiating for space on the mattress under the heat lamp.

Crinkle & Sooke, begging for chicken  (BC)

Crinkle has also joined the “gimme chicken” group.  The dominant males – Denzel, Hamlet, Luke and Bodhi, have already decided that they’re up for treats, and Pancake hurries through to join in begging. But the littles are not going to be overlooked. Fargo is getting ever braver about coming forward to ask; little Sooke dashes down to be in position on the floor, and Crinkle is getting closer and closer on the shelf by the stairs. She’s not ready to be petted yet, and her version of “taking food” is to smack it out of your hand, but she’s less afraid, and her appetite will bring her to us in the end!

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen, Brigid Coult & Karen Nicholson