Garrus

Garrus  (KN)

Garrus came to us earlier this summer as a stray, to be homed at the Sanctuary. Initially he was pretty well-behaved, and we moved him to the Adoption Centre, hoping to find him a home. However, once he had fully decompressed and settled down there, his true colours came out, and we discovered that  the Sanctuary was the right place for him after all. 

Garrus (LBF)

We don’t know if he’d been turned out by his original owners for peeing, or if he was an indoor-outdoor cat who took his outside habits indoors – but it was very apparent that he was not happy about being caged, because though he (mostly) used his litterbox, he also got himself a reputation for unprovoked attacks on staff and volunteers.  This is not uncommon – cage aggression is an issue that the Adoption Centre often sees, and cats who show it can be very grateful they are at RAPS. Other shelters cannot always afford the time or space to deal with an aggressive animal, and adopters are wary when they hear that a cat may be reactive. 

Garrus being wary  (BC)

Thankfully, no-kill is at the heart of RAPS philosophy, and stressed cats who show aggression are able to be transferred to the Sanctuary. With us, they will sometimes remain reactive and bite-y, and they will sometimes calm down and become friendly and approachable.  Transfers in the last year include cats like Peaches and Sam, who have spent their summer wearing collars as a warning to visitors that they are better not touched, and who have learned that they don’t need to be constantly on their guard. Collars have been removed now that visiting hours have ended, and both cats are more relaxed.

Peaches & Sam (KN)

Garrus spent his first couple of weeks with us in the Tea-Room cage, and earned his warning-collar; he’s a handsome boy and it’s tempting to offer caresses, but approaches were not appreciated.  When he was released, he moved into the back pens, and can usually be found in the back area of Pen 5, where he encounters fewer cats and fewer humans.  He doesn’t exhibit feral behaviour, but he doesn’t appreciate much attention, and though he will occasionally do a little finger-sniffing and allow neck- and ear-rubs, his patience is limited, and he signals the end of a session with a smart swat.

Not too close, please!  (KN)

Sadly, he’s also something of a loner, and doesn’t appreciate the close presence of other cats; he’s not actively aggressive with them (as Gizmo is), but his body language is pretty clear when he tells them to leave him alone.

Garrus - playful (LBF)

But it's still early days – he’s only been with us a few months, and perhaps as the days grow colder he will learn that warmth and company in the cabins is not altogether a bad thing.  Take your time, Garrus – even though you don’t much love anyone yet, you’ll find that there’s a lot of love to be found at the Sanctuary!

Blog by Brigid Coult

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

Wylee

 This shy grey boy came to us in 2018 as a hissy, swatty teenager from Port Hardy.  

Wylee   (MW)

At the time, he had been diagnosed with Feline Leukemia (FeLV). However, testing is still an imperfect science, and we usually isolate potential FeLV cats until they can have a second test to confirm or disprove the diagnosis. Luckily, Wylee turned out to be one of those cats to show a false positive, and we were very pleased when his second test cleared him.

Wylee exploring in Pen 6  (KN)

Because he was so shy, it was decided that he wouldn’t be let out in the general population just, and he was relocated to Pen 6 with the Candy Cats. He never really became part of their “colony”, though he gradually developed a liking for spending time with visiting humans.  I remember visiting with them and being surprised when this friendly grey cat suddenly arrived on my lap. When the Candy Cats were turned out to make way for the McLeod cats, Wylee relocated to the Newcomers area, and mostly disappeared from view.

NOT Wylee - this is bad boy Gizmo!  (KN)

Having said that, I suspect that occasional glimpses of Wylee may have been mislabelled as Gizmo. The two boys are very similar at first glance, though Wylee is the bigger of the two, and their face shapes are very different. But we’re used to seeing Gizmo wandering around and making trouble with other cats, so some of the quieter sightings may have been our non-troublemaker.

Wylee considering a visit  (KN)

Wylee prefers to keep out of the way; he has places on both the Newcomers Deck and in the main room where he tucks himself up, and we often don’t see him except early morning and late evening.  If there’s a carefully distanced human group enjoying an evening break around the courtyard table, Wylee will often emerge. He has some people that he really loves, and with them he will leap up for a hug, and a good bread-making session. He doesn’t seem to be a fan of other cats – he’s not nasty with them, like Gizmo; he just keeps himself to himself.

Having a deep conversation with Louise,
who he loves    (BC)

When the right person is around, so is Wylee - and in that situation, he's brave enough to follow into the Tea-Room and share in the preparation of coffee

Coffee time! - LP

He’s not an adoptable boy, at first glance; he would need someone with whom he had already made a strong bond, and someone who was ready to allow a shy cat to take his time in settling.  Probably, like so many of our other Sanctuary cats, he is best in these surroundings where there is no pressure to adapt to a new place, and where there are people who love him.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Karen Nicholson, Michele Wright

Video by Louise Parris

Shy Winston

This big boy came to us late fall of last year.  He was brought in to the City Shelter as a stray, but acted pretty aggressive, and was transferred to our care.  It was noted that he had not been neutered, so that was quickly taken care of, and Winston’s tomcat days were done.

During his cage-stay he was visited by the Kitty Comforters, who found that rather than being aggressive with us, he was very shy, but not feral-reactive. Many ferals don’t like contact with humans, and react with aggression. A stray who has known human attention but lived as a feral may shrink from contact, but the reaction tends to be fear rather than aggression; something in them knows that humans can mean good things.  Winston hid in his box, but allowed touch, and eventually emerged to permit some petting.

It’s always a hard decision for the med staff to know when to release a cat. We don’t want to keep them caged indefinitely, but there have been many cats who were touchable in a cage, and then hid from contact. One of my sponsor cats, Sylar, is like that – caged, he hisses, but allows contact (and enjoys it, from the bum-in-air reaction) – out of the cage, he doesn’t want to get closer than ten feet or so. So we were concerned about how Winston would react to freedom.

Winston quickly managed to make his way out of the Double-Wide trailer and into the courtyard, mostly basing himself in the Newcomers area. We call it Newcomers because it’s quieter, and offers less chance of dealing with scary humans, so many of the newly-released cats spend some time there.  Sadly, Winston is one of those cats who really is a pussycat – he carried a big label around that said “Bully Me!”. And our resident bullies – Jasper, Chester and Gizmo (particularly the latter) did just that.  Winston found a few hidey-holes where he could retreat, and occasionally vanished down to the bushes at the back of Pen 2, but he preferred to be in warmth and comfort.

KN

In the late spring, the decision was made to open pen 8, the pen where Smithy, Splotch and their feral buddies lived. A procession of cats visited in and out of the gate; interestingly the ferals relaxed quite noticeably with all this new company, and dared to venture outside, though maintaining their base there.  At some stage, Winston discovered this area, and now he can often be found in “his” box, still shy, but approachable and ready to accept petting. I'm never sure whether it's the name or the voice, but like Skittles and Bossanova, Winston is a cat who will often come when I call, and he's now starting to put paws on my lap (though not yet ready to sit and relax there).

The corner he has chosen was largely the territory of feral Magpie, who is not entirely happy with human attention, but who obviously enjoys the company of his new buddy enough that he will tolerate us in the vicinity.

Magpie & Winston

If you’re at the Sanctuary, please come and introduce yourself to this gentle boy with the muscular body and broad cheeks of a former tomcat, and the wariness of a cat who has not always had gentle handling from humans. Gradually we’re changing his mind.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult & Karen Nicholson

Cattitude!

HoneyBear is known for his wonderful eyes and his neurological problems
- but he has social problems too, with other cats - MW

Most of our Sanctuary cats are ferals, semi-ferals, owner-surrenders and health problems.
The third category – the owner-surrenders – are often surrendered for their bad bathroom habits (which are sometimes a result of human-caused stress), but we also have several cats who have come to us with an “aggressive” label on them. In fact it’s rare to find a truly aggressive cat – we see it more as “cattitude”, resulting from the owner’s unwillingness to let the cat set the pace in being handled - and many of these quirky felines are very truly loved at the Sanctuary.

Bentley looks cute - but is not entirely to be trusted! - LP

We probably all know a person who shies away from much in the way of physical contact, who pulls away from hugs. Cats can be like that – though unfortunately many people tend to expect them to conform to “cute and cuddly” norms of behaviour.

Licorice's "cattitude" is mostly with other cats - CF

Once a cat has been returned to the Shelter for “aggression”, it is not easily re-adoptable. It comes to the Sanctuary where the staff and voluteers around it know that we need to allow it to move at its own speed in interacting, and where, if there is to be any hope of a final home, we can take our time to make sure that a potential owner is truly cat-savvy and understands the quirks of the cat they’re choosing.
When an "aggressive" cat comes to the Sanctuary, we will give it the time it needs to feel safe – fear is often the primary cause of a cat lashing out.  We allow the cat to choose its time to come for petting or to jump up in a lap – and we warn Sunday visitors that picking up a cat is never a good idea.

Jobie can appear very suspicious of a visitor! - MW

Jobie is our resident Grouchy cat – she never got the memo about how cats should (theoretically) be cute and cuddly, and her initial time with us was punctuated with growls and swats.  We let Jobie know that she could have time alone, or she could be near humans, as she pleased; she has discovered that she has favourite people who let her sit with them, and let her go with no pressure; when she’s in a good mood she will reach out for petting, and when she isn’t, she’ll go and hide somewhere until she's ready to cuddle again.

What IS it about cross-eyed cats?  - MW

Eli was surrendered for aggression – like Jobie, he is very beautiful, and it’s easy to see that people might have reached out to pet him or pick him up when he wasn’t ready for it. He lounges around elegantly, with a “you will worship me” attitude, and he’s not afraid to let other cats know that he’s boss.  We’ve actually seen very little real aggression from him.

Puffin is king! - MD

Puffin is a cat that we always have to warn Sunday visitors about. In fact, in the right mood, he can be very affectionate (especially if the cat-fan is a female teen!) but when he hasn’t asked for petting, he’s not slow to say “Stop! Now!” He is exactly the sort of cat that is behind our closing the gates to under-six children and requiring careful supervision of older ones – he’s not nasty, but he’s quick to react when he’s not ready for contact. Like many of our reactive cats, he actually has quite a fan-club!

Cher - KN

The same is true for pretty Cher, who loves attention, and then gets overwhelmed by it. Cher’s favourite people know that to allow her to sit on a lap, with moderate touch, also requires an awareness of her body language, so that you know when she’s about to be overcome by sensation and has to react.

Sophie - MW

In recognition of her extreme cattitude, Sophie wears a collar. She is another girl who will be affectionate with her chosen people, but can suddenly feel she’s had too much. Gentle petting around the head and ears is often appreciated, and she will leap into laps when she’s in the mood, but you will also sometimes encounter Sophie in serious grumble mode.

Gizmo in ambush - MD

Grey Gizmo has kept the attack aspects of his feral origins.  We tend to think about Gizmo as a brattish teen, because he’s so small, but he is actually a mature adult, and just likes acting the brat – both with humans and with other cats. He has recently come up against another cat as sparky as he is – Jasper has been moved from the front courtyard into the back, where he has more room to roam, and more cats that will stand up to his bullying ways. He’s discovering that he is no longer the big fish in a small pool.  Jasper likes human attention and has his fan-club – but we all know that teeth and claws are only a whisker away.

Jasper - looking for trouble - KN

These are all cats who would not show well at the Shelter, and who would need someone who was very cat-savvy, and ready to make them The Only Cat. Sadly, most of our experienced adopters have established cat-families already, and these furry over-reacters just have to learn to make their own space at the Sanctuary. Most of them are so full of purrr-sonality that their cattitude only endears them to us even more!

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Melanie Draper, Chelzea Freeman, 

Karen Nicholson, Lisa Parker, Michele Wright, 

Love you.. love you... HATE you...

Many of the cats at the Sanctuary are here for behavioural reasons.  For the most part, that means that they have been surrendered because they pee and poop in the wrong places; the third common behavioural category is aggression.

Smithy warns us off - BC

I’m not including ferals in this category; ferals are by nature fearful, and frequently believe that attack is the best defence. For the most part their “attack” consists of hissing, and trying to look as fearsome as they can. You can’t walk into Pen 8 without a display of teeth from Smithy – but it’s interesting that he hangs around while I scoop the back litter-box, and listens while I talk to him. As long as I don’t make eye contact and don’t make obvious moves towards him, he’s ready to listen (though not to be touched).

When I think of aggressive cats, I’m thinking more of the ones who have been surrendered to us because their aggression has been unmanageable in a home. And it’s interesting that very often those same aggressive cats calm down at the Sanctuary and show little sign of the reason they were surrendered.

A relaxed and happy Eli - MD

Handsome Eli was apparently adopted out twice, and returned because of his behaviour. With us, he appears pretty calm – he’s not always friendly with other cats, but with humans he shows no signs of aggression (other than assertively wanting to get into the med cage!). I think it’s likely that he was mis-handled in some way;  as cat-people know, some cats just don’t like being picked up, or are over-sensitive to petting, and it becomes very important to read their body-language.

Cole - MW

Big black Cole was very aggressive in his home, and when he first came to us, his cage was labelled “med staff only” because he was an angry boy.  Since being released, he has calmly made himself at home in the front courtyard, and solicits attention from people. Like Leland and Tigger, he will occasionally ask to be picked up, and his only fault is that he really wants to be on the other side of every door.

Puffin has great presence - MW

For a good while we’ve had Puffin labelled as a dangerous cat for visitors; he asks for petting and then suddenly changes his mind – probably when the petting over-stimulates him. Though we still warn new visitors, Puffin has his fan-club; he is particularly fond of attention from young women, and absolutely adores Anne’s daughter Selena, who lets him cuddle with no sign of aggression.  Selena’s a very calm person, and Puffin obviously relaxes and feels at ease with her.

Grey Gizmo would rather be exploring - MW

But on the flip side, we have our share of cats who have not settled in like this.  Gray Gizmo persists in being erratically aggressive with both cats and humans; for the most part, he’s The Cat Who Walks By Himself, but occasionally he will allow a little petting. It’s rather like living with some teenagers – a perfectly nice person suddenly has a mood swing, and Dr Jekyll becomes Mr Hyde.  Gizmo is young, so hormones may still be at play.  That’s also true of his lookalike in the SingleWide – gray Jax (Jackie) will sit quietly with Marty for ten minutes of petting, and then suddenly attack.  I suspect that with both Jax and Gizmo, the sensation of petting builds up to the point where it is no longer calming; we all need to be really aware of tensions and twitches.

Deceptively elegant - that's Lumi - MW

Age and hormones are no longer a factor for Lumi – this pretty girl has her mood swings just for the sake of it. For a while she wore a red collar as a warning for people around; she’s a little calmer these days, but we all have to be aware that she may not be in a petting space.

Sophie looking innocent - MW

Tubby Sophie is one of the cats that has come out of Pen 2.  While the pen was closed, Sophie was often the greeter at the gate, and visitors quickly discovered that it was necessary to restrict petting to Sophie’s head, and not touch her back at all.  Now that she’s out and about we’ve found it necessary to put a collar on her to distinguish her from all the other tabbies. She has become even more sensitive about being touched – and yet she’s often the first to leap onto someone’s lap in the tea-room.  And with Sophie, it’s not just claws, it’s also teeth.  The collar alone may not be enough – she may need a warning bell as well!

Cher on guard - BC

The cat who wins the prize for mood swings is pretty Cher in the front courtyard. She is anxious for attention, weaving around legs and quick to jump into laps. With male visitors in particular she is very affectionate – until with no warning, she suddenly swats. The presence of other cats doesn’t help, but anything can set Cher off!

These are all cats that under other circumstances would probably be “euthanised” (a term I object to, in this context). I am so thankful that here at the Sanctuary they are allowed to have their mood swings, just like humans sometimes do, and that, other than the occasional “time out for bad behaviour”, they can just get on with the business of living with a bunch of other cats.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Melanie Draper, Michele Wright

Moody, but Cute - CHER

Cher - guard-cat at the gate - BC

Visitors to the Sanctuary are quickly accosted in the front courtyard by a very pretty little grey tabby. Cher came to the City Shelter a few months ago, stuffed in a bag with her friend, and surrendered by someone who said they’d been hanging around his home.  Both Cher and Christina were transferred to us when it was obvious that they were not socialized, and they lived in adjacent cages in the Connor building.

Cher loves to play - MD

For the first while there were warning signs over both cages, and a fair amount of growling and swatting.  In Cher’s case, the growling eased off as the curiosity increased, and she spent more and more time at the front of the cage.  Christina still prefers the safety of her cage, even though it’s open now; Cher took very little time to venture out and explore the big wide world.

A first encounter with bubbles - MW

Cher’s mood swings are pretty marked – she’s obviously prone to over-stimulation, and she transitions from cuddle-kitty to killer without much warning. We’re used to warning visitors about Puffin, who also has mood swings – now we need alarm bells for Cher!

Where did it go? - MW

Puffin typically sidles up to people and demand petting – he is particularly susceptible to young women! But you have to watch his body language carefully – he’s nice till suddenly he isn’t, and the twitching tail doesn’t give much warning.  Similarly with Cher – she will launch herself at a male visitor and demand attention, and then suddenly turn on him.

Who's the next victim? - BC

Part of it may just be her age and upbringing (or lack thereof) – we see similar behaviour from grey Gizmo in the back, who can be a very brattish teenager when he chooses.  Part of it may just be that she has never learned how to interact with humans – when Chimo came to us it was because his usual mode of interaction was attack - especially when human hands and feet were within reach. With a lot of patience from the Kitty Comforters, he's now a pretty mellow fellow.

Chimo at his most cute! - MW

But I suspect that it’s a bit more than that with Cher; she’s more in the Lumi mode. For a long time we had white Lumi wear a collar as a warning that this cat was cute but would bite. And as with Cher and Puffin, there’s little or no warning.  Orange Buster-Baby, who we lost a couple of years ago, used to have to be caged when visitors were around because something in his brain just made him attack for no reason.

Such a pretty face - but not to be trusted! - MW

Visitors very often forget that cats are carnivores who are hardwired to hunt, and moving fingers are irresistible. It’s up to us to provide cats like Cher and Gizmo with interactive toys to exercise their hunting instincts, and not offer them fingers to practice on.  And we hope that as they mature, they do so, not into the Baby/Lumi mode, but into the Chimo one of being lovable and loved.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Brigid Coult, Melanie Draper, Michele Wright

Tiny Cats

Silky - MD

Visitors to the Sanctuary often notice one of the small cats like Little Mama in the Single-wide trailer or Tricia in the Double-wide trailer and assume that they’re kittens.  It’s true that they do look like kittens but both of these cats are fully-grown and, in fact, quite mature.  There are a few other small ones around, like Sara Lee, Gizmo, and newly-arrived Bengal Jinx but none of them are kittens either.  So why are these adult cats still kitten-size?

Sara Lee - MM

In the case of the females, like Little Mama, Tricia, and Sara Lee, there’s a simple but somewhat sad explanation for their being so petite.  They all had litters of kittens when they weren’t much more than kittens themselves.  As any human female who’s been pregnant can testify, pregnancy takes a lot out of the body!  Humans are generally aware of the nutritional care required during pregnancy and are able to supplement those elements and calories that the growing baby takes from them.  Sadly, homeless female kittens don’t have that luxury. Cats can become pregnant when they’re as young as four to six months old.

Tricia - MM

At that age, their own bodies have certainly not fully developed and having a litter will most likely result in them never attaining full size.  For a young feral cat, their intake of nutritional food is erratic at best, and almost certainly insufficient to support a litter of growing kittens in utero.  They often have small litters of only two or three kittens, have difficulty giving birth, and may lose some or all of their tiny offspring shortly after birth.  Then they have to feed the voracious little babies, again at the expense of their own nutritional needs.

Little Mama - MM

Little Mama, Tricia and Sara Lee were all young and pregnant when trapped, which most likely explains their petite dimensions.  As a cat from a Bengal breeder, Jinx was unlikely to have been a teenage mom, but, despite being eleven years old, she still looks like a kitten.

Jinx - DW

There are, of course, other possible reasons besides early pregnancy for a cat being on the small side. Gizmo, known as “Gizmo the Grey”, is not nearly as large as the average adult cat but, since he’s a male, early pregnancy doesn’t explain his size.  He’s a feisty young ex-stray so probably didn’t get enough food to help his little body grow to a normal size.

Gizmo - MW

There are several other diminutive female cats at the Sanctuary, such as Jax (Jacky) in the Single-wide and Marilee in the front courtyard, but the reasons they’re small aren’t always known.

Tiny Merilee likes to snuggle with Little Orange
- who is not as small as his name implies!  - MM

Like humans, cats do just come in different sizes as a result of genetics and/or nutrition.   The “runt” of a litter or one who was ill or poorly nourished as a kitten has a decreased likelihood of reaching normal mature cat size.  Or, a small cat may simply be a member of a small breed or have parents of a small breed.  As they become elderly, cats who were normal sized or even large in their salad days lose muscle mass and begin to look as if they’re much younger.  Cheetah and Taboo in the front courtyard, and Booster in the Double-wide are all examples of cats who, as humans also do, have become smaller since they became "senior citizen cats".

Cheetah sunning his old bones - MW

So, when you visit the Sanctuary and see cats that are smaller than the others, it’s not because they’re kittens.  They’re fully grown but for some reason don’t look it.  But they do look especially cute!  

Blog by Marianne Moore

Pictures by Melanie Draper, Marianne Moore, Debbie Wolanski, Michele Wright