Adopted Cats: All I Want For Christmas Is Mew

Some of our Sanctuary cats DO get adopted!

Goose (FIV+) is king in his new home  (KN)

We have a steady flow of kittens and occasionally older cats who pass through the doors of rhe RAPS Adoption Centre – in from a rescue situation or from the loving hands of a fosterer – and out into the warm world of a new home.  The Adoption Centre is the first building a visitor will encounter as they approach the Sanctuary – and there are a whole lot more cats in the Sanctuary itself who may never find a home.

Front Courtyard Alvin has a new home   (KN)

There are many reasons this may be so. The most usual is that a cat is feral – ranging from the ones that are so scared that they will not allow humans to approach them, to the cats who will only accept careful attention: treats and a little petting. These are all cats who, without a no-kill policy, would probably be put down. In this situation, I hate the term “euthanasia” – this is killing for human convenience’s sake, and no amount of gentleness in the procedure makes it anything but unnecessary. 

One-eyed Willi's first adoption failed,
but he is very happy in his new home   (BC)

Many of the volunteers have at some time had a cat who began as a feral, and over time, adjusted to human company – but equally, we’ve had many cats at the Sanctuary who have never tamed, and continue to show fear to the end. For those cats, there will always be a place with us where they can hide, there will be shelter and food, and medical attention when needed.

Riker loved nothing better than lap-time  (BC)

We had multiple cats in merged cages this time last year - the three Dumpling cats, and long-haired Riker and Kramer;  Riker's adoption was facilitated with a visit to a local pet-store, where he was available to the public;  the Dumplings were all taken together, and we were delighted.  Kramer decided that he really wasn't bonded to Riker, and that though he quite like humans, he was not going to bond with them either; he is still with us, mostly playing the role of the Cat Who Walks By Himself.

Little tripod Jelly settled quickly into our hearts
and then into the hearts of her adopters.  (BC)

The other group of cats who will likely never live anywhere but at the Sanctuary are the bathroom baddies – the cats who have usually been surrendered for litterbox problems, and who express themselves in pee and poop. Two other reasons for surrendering do not necessarily preclude potential adoption: cats brought in “for aggression” can often learn with us that they do not need to react so quickly when there are humans around who read their body language and move gently around them. 

Hank, from New Aids, loved nothing more than lap-time
and human attention - he got his wish  (KN)

Of the cats who are here for health reasons, some are better where they can get medical attention, but others are actually adoptable as long as the adopter is aware of the flags to watch for.  Many of our FIV+ cats are adoptable, and of those who are not, with most of them it’s for reasons other than the FIV+ diagnosis – generally that they’ve joined the club and become pee-ers. Some of our younger FeLV cats have also been adopted as well, though many FeLV cats do have shorter lifespans, and you adopt, knowing that you many not have many years.

Audi was shy but sweet;  she spent a long time in a cage
for medical care, but it gave her time to become fully socialized  (BC)

When I first came to volunteer at the Sanctuary, very few of the cats were adopted out – but we have learned so much in the last years about behavioural issues, and about conditions like FIV and FeLV. Now we can name a number of cats who are potentially adoptable, and in the last year alone, at least a dozen have left to find a new home. 

Picasso's adoption ended with travel when his new person
moved back east. He's very happy!  (KN)

Some of them have gone to volunteers, to a person that they have come to know and love, and felt comfortable with even before they left. Some have found a connection out of the blue – I will never forget watching Strike meet his human, jump into her lap and just settle, back in 2023 – or watching Elvis meet his human soul-mate.

Gordo looked like trouble, but was a true pussy-cat,
and was adopted by one of our volunteers   (AG)

Sweet Misto began fearful and then became a cuddle machine
who would dance around wanting non-stop pets.
She would often forget to put her tongue back in... (KH)

Gordo and Misto are now living happily together  (AA)

Next week, I’ll be remembering the cats we’ve lost over the course of the last year – but I felt this Christmas week was the time to think about the cats who have come as gifts into their people’s lives over the course of the year, and who have in turn found the gift of a loving home.  In a time of gifting and goodwill, let’s remember some of our 2024 adopted cats

McCormick came to me for fostering while we adjusted 
his meds and his diet for allergies;
the move is permanent, and he gets on well with my older cat, Scout.

 

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Alicia Almeida, Brigid Coult, Akira Graham,
Kim Howe, Karen Nicholson

Hunter

Hunter  (KN)

 For many years, people entering the Sanctuary were greeted by a charming long-haired tabby boy, who would bustle over to inspect, claim a lap if one was offered, and gobble any treats.  We lost our Jake about five years ago, but I still have a sense of deja vu when I am met at the gate by Hunter.

Jake - loved and missed  (MW)

Hunter came to us last spring, having been surrendered to RAPS Adoption Centre in March by his owner, due to his extreme aggression towards her. She’d had Hunter since he was a kitten and he was always quite mouthy, however it escalated to the point where he would attack her multiple times throughout the day. Time in the Adoption Centre didn’t work for him;  many cats are stressed by being caged and by close proximity to other cats, and Hunter was transferred to Sanctuary in the summer. 

At least, the Sanctuary cage is roomy - 
but I still don't like it!    (BC)

Once released into the front courtyard, he settled pretty easily. Cats who don’t fare well at the Adoption Centre often do much better with a sense of freedom, and with the ability to find space apart from other cats. Hunter is not shy about interaction with cats; with humans he’s a little more erratic.

Sweet, when he chooses...   (BC)

He’s still quite young and has aspects of less-desirable “teen” behaviour, but our staff think that in fact he is adoptable and trainable – insofar as one is ever able to “train” a cat. We have seen that former (and now part-time) brat Jasper is ready to be challenged by learning little tricks, and keeping his brain busy makes him less brattish. We’ll have to see if that will work with Hunter. 

Some bribes are appreciated (LBF)

Unfortunately, whenever the staff find a potential adopter for him, Hunter decides that he wants nothing to do with people, and goes off to hide somewhere.  He likes who he likes, on his own terms, he’s not interested in an “arranged marriage” and his person will need to be pretty cat-savvy!

Picasso & Hunter  (GA)

Hunter gets on best with his buddy Picasso, and the two of them can often be found in the lobby outside the SingleWide, or chasing and tumbling with each other in the courtyard. He will occasionally play with a wand toy, but seems to like solo play and cat play more than interaction with humans, though he has his favourites. Assistant Manager Valerie can hold and cuddle him like a baby, but he won’t allow that privilege to everyone. 

Cuddles with his favourite person   (VW)

He’s not interested in my bribes, and gives me that slitty-eyed disdainful look that cats can do so effectively, before he turns his back on me and shoots up his leg to wash.  He’s on the “potentially adoptable” list, and can be found sporting a very dashing bandana at weekends when visitors are around – though he’s more likely to tuck himself and his bandana away until the visitors are gone, and dinner is served by the evening volunteers.

Hunter - dressed to appeal  (KN)

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Graham Akira, Lisa Brill-Friesen, 

Brigid Coult, Karen Nicholson, Valerie Wilson & Michele Wright

We Are Siamese, If You Please...

Jasmine & Strike  (BC)

We have two newcomers to the DoubleWide trailer.
Strike was the first to arrive – very scared at first, spending all his time hiding behind a drape.  But he quickly discovered that food might arrive at certain times, and became vocal as only a Siamese can.  Strike is bob-tailed – what is sometimes called a “stumpy” manx. This is a reminder to us all that Manx is a breed name, with certain physical characteristics in addition to the lack of tail, but it is also a generic (and not entirely accurate) term for any tailless cat. Sometimes the genes that produce taillessness breed true (several of Percival Snugglebutt’s offspring are tailless, like dad), and sometimes it’s just a random mutation.  We don’t know Strike’s history, but his lack of tail doesn’t seem to bother him in any way.

Strike  (LBF)

What we do know is that he was one of a number of cats who lived in a home. Their caregiver passed and they were kicked out, but were lucky enough to be accepted into a colony that was being fed and monitored.  Strike, with his buddies Butternut and Puddin’ (introductions to come) were brought into our care. They may well be adoptable, but with so many kittens taking space in the adoption centre, they are better off with us for now. 

Jasmine  (KN)

Jasmine arrived a few weeks after Strike from the same Manitoba rescue that sent frostbitten Picasso to us.  Rather more blonde than her fellow-Siamese, she is totally tailless, but not for the same reason as Picasso; Jasmine has the characteristic Manx syndrome that often appears in tailless cats. Plum, Lil and many other beloved Sanctuary cats like PeeWee and SweetPea have also suffered from Manx syndrome, and need regular baths to deal with the aftermath of incontinence.  Jasmine loves people and attention, but it’s a really good idea to have a towel or other padding on your lap – she’s pretty leaky.

Jasmine exploring outside  (LBF)

When I met Strike, and later, Jasmine, I wondered whether they would have any affinity for each other – would we have a pair, like the Siamese cats who appear in the original version of Disney’s Lady and the Tramp? And then I checked the song from that movie, and realised what I’d not known as a kid – it’s pretty racist – probably accurate enough for the early 1900s, when the film is set, and even smile-provoking when it was produced in 1955, but no longer acceptable.  So in the 2019 remake, Si and Am are replaced with a pair called Devon and Rex, singing the blues.

Strike  (KN)

Strike and Jasmine don’t seem to be particularly drawn to each other – they’re both pretty easy-going with other cats, and live their separate lives. Strike is more of a loner than Jasmine, who really loves to be petted.  He prefers to hang out on the back deck of the Double-Wide where he can chose to mingle or find his own space; he’s no longer as scared as when he first came in, and is willing to approach for touch and treats.  Food is very important;  I was late to feed this week, and was met at the door by a very vocal complaint in fluent Siamese.

Jasmine asking for attention  (BC)

Jasmine is more adventurous, and can often be found exploring in the back courtyard; she will leap up on the table to be fussed and told she’s a lovely girl. Like Lil and Plum, you just need to be a bit wary of her rear end.  We are a permanent home for her; sweet as she is, there are not many people who will deliberately take on the adoption of an incontinent cat.  Here at the Sanctuary, Jasmine’s not the only messy one, and doesn’t add significantly to the laundry load.

Welcome to the Sanctuary, sweet ones – it’s good to see you settling in!

Blog by Brigid Coult

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

Fall 2023  Jasmine's manx incontinence proved too much of a problem for her, with constant uncontrollable infections, and we couldn't see her in pain any longer.

Strike encountered a visitor and it was love at first sight for both; he's gone to a new home.

Picasso

(KN)

Picasso is a relative newcomer (should we call him a mewcomer?) to the Sanctuary, but he is already showing himself ready to make it his home.

"Can I come out?" (KN)

He has come to us all the way from Winnipeg, thanks to a rescuer there, and her friendship with one of our volunteers. We hear that he was found living in a garbage dump in the middle of a Manitoba winter, and it sounds as if he was lucky to be alive. Both his ears were badly frostbitten, as well as his tail, and he had a nasty genital infection. The frostbitten ears lost their tips, the tail had to be amputated, and the infection treated, though one of the consequences of the infection was that he became incontinent, and therefore unadoptable.

Watching from the edge  (LBF)

His rescuer got him on a plane with another cat making the journey to a new home, and our volunteer picked him up at the airport and brought him to us.  As usual, he was vet-checked and popped into a cage, giving him time to settle.

"Come play with me!" (KN)

Within days his fan-club was building. His face is absurdly cute, after all – those rounded ears give him a real teddy-bear quality. But for a newbie, he was quick to welcome visitors – those who cleaned his cage or fed him, the staff, and gradually a procession of volunteers, all came in to sit with him for a bit and be charmed.  When the cage was opened he was a little spooked for a few days, and then settled down to explore the Front Courtyard and make it his own. 

Loving the climbing frame (BC)

Visiting time is sometimes hard on new cats – all these strangers standing around, not all cat-savvy... but Picasso took it all in stride. When he’d had a bit too much he’d vanish into the Hill House, and half an hour later, he’d emerge and start flirting again.  He's a friendly, sweet cat, who loves to be loved. He’s one of the few cats who likes to be picked up by the people he trusts, and he relaxes completely – perhaps a little ragdoll in there? But he also likes to explore and to play - and he might never settle down as an indoor cat.

King of all he surveys (BC)

We’re still waiting to see if his former incontinence has ceased – nobody has reported damp patches after holding him, so it’s possible that his recovery has solved that problem and he might end up being adoptable. But till we’re a lot more certain of that status, he can take the opportunity of cultivating the fine art of being a Sanctuary Cat.

Blog by Brigid Coult

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