Holland in the open

Almost three years ago, a little colony of cats was identified by a couple of our volunteers, and eventually trapped and brought to RAPS. One of the disadvantages for cats living feral (or, for that matter, for tame cats allowed to wander freely) is that they are susceptible to a couple of nasty viruses – in particular, feline leukemia (FeLV) and feline AIDS (FIV). Four of this group ended up with us in the New Aids enclosure; early photos show a very unhappy set of cats hiding in various corners of the cages in which they began their stay.

CF

Holland was the one female in the group. Most of our AIDS cats are male, since it is a virus usually transmitted through blood among cats that fight – and fighting, of course, is inevitable among males when females come into season. We have no way of knowing if Holland had ever borne a litter, and, as with all our cats, she’s safely spayed now.

MW

King George, who seemed to be the leader of this little group, settled down fairly quickly, and has become relaxed around humans; it is possible that he was at one time a tame cat. We don’t think Holland was very old when she came in to us – possibly less than a year – and it’s likely she was a feral kitten and had no chance for socialization in the first key months.  She has remained wary and skittish; sometimes she hovers on the fringe of action, but almost always backs off. Cat-whisperer Phaedra says “When Holland was caged with her sibling Wesley I could pet her and she'd even do the bum rise thing. Her best reaction to me these days is not fleeing in terror. She's absolutely gorgeous and I think she should be my friend but I guess she doesn't agree. She seems to spend more time outdoors and up high during the day time when I'm there”.

CP

She’s such a beautiful girl, though, that she’s become something of a magnet for our photographers, and in the finer weather, it’s lovely to see her moving about the enclosure rather than hiding out in a corner, with her lovely torbie fur, and those delightful ear feathers, ruffled by the breeze.

MW

 

 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Claire Fossey, Chris Peters & Michele Wright

King George: Royalty Lives Among Us

Here’s another one of those cats with a name that makes one wonder how the heck that came about.  After all, King George VI died in 1952 and the future King George is only two years old so that can’t be it.  Well, for starters, King George (the cat) was a stray who was trapped in Surrey, near King George Highway about two years ago, so that partly explains his royal title.   But, there’s more to it than that.  Katrina and Wes, the volunteers who trapped and then named this handsome big orange guy, say that “he was the alpha male cat in the neighbourhood, always starting fights with all of the other neighbourhood cats. You can see the edges of his ears - they are all tattered from the many fights he got into. So ‘King George’ was just perfect for him!”

MM

At the same time and location that they trapped King George, Katrina and Wes also trapped a few of his “subjects” – Zebra, Holland and Wesley.  Katrina had been observing the “little kitty gang” of abandoned strays in the neighbourhood for a while before being able to trap them.  Although King George was the bully who started the fights, he was obviously much tamer than the other three.  Katrina was sure he was once someone’s pet who got left behind.

PH

Unfortunately, once trapped, all four of them tested positive for feline AIDS (FIV) so they went to live in the area of the Cat Sanctuary that is reserved for FIV-positive cats.   Quite unexpectedly, Wesley passed away not long after his arrival but King George, Zebra and Holland are thriving.  Zebra and Holland are both still quite shy but beginning to get braver, especially Zebra. 

MW

Somewhat like the royalty he’s named after, King George doesn’t mingle too much with the other cats in his area, not even the members of his old group of friends.   He’s quite comfortable around his human admirers, although his tolerance for us may vary, according to majestic whim.    Sometimes, he’ll climb onto my lap as soon as I sit down and then, on my next visit, he’ll give me an aloof look, turn his back and regally walk away.   Treats, of course, do improve his decision to accept the attentions of the common folk!  

MW

He’s one of those cats who like to have your complete attention – if I turn around to talk to another person or cat while petting him, he’ll give my hand a little smack as if to say “I didn’t give you permission to ignore me!”.  I suppose that we simply have to accept that he’s a superior being!  Of course, many cats have superiority complexes but King George has the title to prove it!  Get to know him and you can claim to have a royal friend.  

MW

 

Blog by Marianne Moore

Photos by Phaedra Hardman, Marianne Moore & Michele Wright