Butch

Butch and his brother Foxy came to the sanctuary in May of 2001 as wild 4 or 5 month old kittens. Neither ever truly tamed up.

Butch lives in the same shed that Panther likes to call home. RAPS staff sometimes have to move cats from one location to another within the sanctuary, but they avoid moving Butch and Panther from their own little sanctuary-within-a-sanctuary. The two cats just feel safest there.

Like Panther, Butch doesn't have any special human friend who tries to spend time with him and teach him to like people, or at least to not be quite so afraid of us. This is really too bad - they both seem like they could be nice cats.

If anyone's up for putting in some time, it might be possible to make two new friends at once!

Panther (II)

After spending some time getting to know siblings Owl, Pussycat, and Tiger, I've been keen to meet their brother, Panther. I was even more keen after Leslie showed me this 2001 photo of the four when they were kittens being fostered by volunteers Barbara and Waldi:

Clockwise from the bottom left: Owl, Panther, Tiger, Pussycat 

Unlike some siblings who remain very close, these four all went their separate ways as they grew up at the sanctuary. Owl can often be seen and heard campaigning for attention and treats in the doublewide, Pussycat favours a shed in the first back pen on the right, Tiger likes hanging out in the first back pen on the left, and Panther has laid claim to a shelf or two in the shed in the third pen on the left.

For some reason, Panther never really got comfortable with people like his siblings did. Now, since he's decided to spend all his time hiding out in his shed, he unfortunately doesn't get the kind of interaction with passersby that might help him change his mind. Anyone wanting to make friends with Panther will need to go seek him out in his shed, bring him treats of chicken or tuna, and just spend time sitting near him.

Fortunately, at the cat sanctuary we have people who are willing to do just this sort of thing.

So, anyone who doesn't mind spending some time and some treats on winning over a winning over a shy kitty, please consider including Panther in your rounds.

Panther

Fantastic, friendly Panther is the third member of the Jeremy/Jasper/Panther lap-occupying gang in the Old AIDS building at the sanctuary.

At 14 years old, Panther's not a young guy. What I find amazing, though, is that it was 2002 when he came to RAPS as an FIV positive cat - which means he's been living with FIV for at least 9 years! And in all this time, says Leslie, he's never had any major illnesses.

Proof (for anyone who needed convincing) that cats with FIV should not automatically be seen as not long for this world. Some can still go on to live long and happy lives.

Panther and Bella

Updated January 20, 2013: 
I learned today that after living for more than 10 years at the sanctuary, Panther has at last left for the rainbow bridge. Here are a few words from Ed, who was very fond of this sweet and gentle soul:

RIP my beautiful Panther. I sponsored him since 2011. I'm glad that he spent his final years at the sanctuary and the final minutes surrounded by people who loved him. 

When I last saw Panther a week and a half ago, I brought my laser pen. He was chasing the light. I'm glad that we got to play chase the red dot one last time.

photo by Ed