Sophie

Sophie first came to RAPS as a stray, trapped along with her pregnant wild daughter and several five-month-old kittens. When she was taken to the vet, Sophie was discovered to have swollen breasts and an enlarged uterus - a sure sign that she had very recently given birth. RAPS staff raced back to the area where Sophie had been trapped to look for the kittens who would be too young to survive long without their mother. It must have been a combination of experience and intuition that quickly led Carol to look under a couch inside an abandoned, burned-out house two doors down from the back yard where Sophie and her daughter had been going for food. There Carol found seven tiny, cold and barely alive babies with umbilical cords still attached.

Back at RAPS, volunteers acted fast with warm towels and warm milk from tiny bottles. Within a couple of hours, the babies had regained enough strength to be able to nurse on Sophie. All survived.

photo originally published in RAPS newsletter

Sophie was later adopted by volunteer Ruth, in whose home she by all accounts lived very contentedly. Very sadly, Ruth has now passed away. Sophie, along with the other cats Ruth had adopted from RAPS, have returned to the shelter. They're living at the sanctuary, but all are highly adoptable.

Sophie is bright-eyed, interested in her surroundings, and responsive without coming across as the needy type. She's instantly recognizable as a completely lovely cat.

Timmy

Timmy arrived at the sanctuary in the first week of October. He'd been adopted from RAPS several years ago, but was returned when a relative with allergies moved into the home.

He may remain at the sanctuary or be moved to the No. 5 Rd. shelter when there's space so he can meet lots of people and have another chance at finding a forever home.

When I met him last Monday evening, he'd only been at the sanctuary for a few days. While he opted to stay on his safe and comfy perch rather than come to the cage door for a sniff or cuddle, his expression and movements as he peered at me showed a sort of cheerful curiosity. He looks like he'll be a nice boy.

Selma

When I came across this tuxedo girl in the Connor building on Monday, I wasn't quite sure what reaction to expect when I reached up to her perch to make contact. We peered at each other for a moment, and then were suddenly friends.

With all the purring, blanket kneading, and head rubbing Selma was happy to share with me, I was a little surprised to learn that she'd come to RAPS as a feral kitten. Thanks to staff like Leslie spending lots of time with her when she was young and to volunteers like Bonnie who became good friends with her, she grew up into a very nice girl.

Twinkie

Twinkie came to the RAPS sanctuary from the same place that brought us Mooshie, Cara and others.

Twinkie can come across as a bit stand-offish, and not a lot of people pay attention to her as a result. This is really too bad, since it doesn't take much time with her to see that she's a sweetheart.

While she gets along well enough with other cats, Twinkie used to be really close friends with a cat named Dottie, who has since passed away. She must have felt the loss of her friend very deeply, as the two were apparently inseparable. Leslie says that Twinkie was friendlier with people when Dottie was around.

So don't take Twinkie's stand-offishness at face value. She's more interested in making friends than she lets on.

Cagney

Despite the feminine name, Cagney is actually a male cat who found his own way to RAPS in search of a reliable meal ticket. Cagney hung out in the parking lot by the food bowls and eventually allowed himself to be caught and brought inside the chain link walls of the sanctuary. He seemed to understand that by sticking close to people there just might be something to gain, so he tried his luck at RAPS. Smart kitty; he hit the jackpot when he found the sanctuary was chock-a-block full of adoring people and food bowls every three feet.

 

Although Cagney has been a resident for a while now, he has yet to lose his feral ways. Refusing to allow me within 10 feet of him, he would scamper away if I got too close safely maintaining his comfort barrier. When the treats arrived however, he decided to close that comfort barrier to finger sniffing distance, but that was about it. Although still a shy guy, Leslie tells me that Cagney appears to be very happy to be a resident of our kitty paradise and has adjusted well to life at the sanctuary.

 

So where did the female name come from? Leslie told me an interesting fact about cats that come on their own accord seeking shelter and food from us - they are all named after detectives owing to their excellent sleuthing skills. Cagney of course, is named after the 80's TV show Cagney and Lacey. How he ended up with a female name I do not know but I'm guessing that Cagney wasn't likely going to let us check under the hood to confirm such matters without at least a few romantic dinners first.

As I watched Cagney, Doug pulled out his laser and Cagney got busy chasing the quick green light across the pavement. He had almost forgotten his wary and watchful self and allowed Leslie one quick pet until Tom Cat came along and smacked Cagney in the head which of course sent him running for cover, guard back up as usual.

 



Priscilla

Priscilla owes her name to a bit of mistaken identity with her sister. Our vet's files have Lisa Marie as an all black kitty and Priscilla as a black & white, but somewhere along the way, people at the sanctuary had reversed the names.

Fortunately, Priscilla doesn't seem offended by this in this least. She's much too busy being totally adorable.

I first noticed Priscilla because she was having a fit of kitty giggles, happily scampering up and down a plank running along the wall outside one of the buildings in the front courtyard. When I introduced myself, she was more than happy to include me in her game and then to have a good cuddle afterward. A darling, darling girl.

Autumn's babies

RAPS was asked to come and trap Autumn and her 4- to 5-month-old kittens, who'd been living on the grounds of a composting facility on No. 8 Rd. in Richmond. If I understand correctly, I believe they'd been holed up in a brick pile.

None of the staff at the facility were aware of anyone having handled the kittens, and so they were presumed to be wild. Thinking them too old at this point to be easily tamable, Carol began trapping the kittens and bringing them to the sanctuary where they can safely live out their wild lives... only it's turned out that they're not so wild after all.

The four kittens who've been brought to the sanctuary so far are hardly the hissy hiders that one would expect feral kittens to be. Instead, they're playful, wide-eyed and curious about their surroundings, human inhabitants and all. It seems that someone must have spent at least some time with them after all. And so they'll be able to go to the No. 5 Rd. shelter for adoption.

Pancake

Waffle

Ariel

Lief and Pancake

With their mama, Autumn, it's harder to tell if she's feral or a frightened stray. Fortunately, at the sanctuary she can take as much time as she needs to decide if she's interested in accepting any human friends.

Autumn