Skouch

Skouch is a regular in the team of dedicated moochers who hang around when dinner gets dished out in the doublewide.

A cheerful, friendly cat (particularly at feeding time), Skouch has been a sanctuary resident since he was around six months old. Along with a sibling, he'd originally been brought in to the SPCA. The two youngsters were too skittish to be likely adoption candidates, so, through an arrangement made that year between that shelter and ours, they were able to come and live at the sanctuary.

Skouch (left) and Shadow (right)

Anyone who's seen Skouch dive into food that's barely had a chance to make it out of the can with a gusto that rivals even Shadow's can attest that he's a shy boy no longer.

Angelo

Believe it or not, this scrawny little fluffer used to be a real Persian... and will be again once his fur grows out and we fatten him up a bit.

Angelo, as he's now called, was recently found as a stray near the airport. Leslie thinks he may have escaped from the cargo hold of a plane, as sometimes happens.

When he was found, he was emaciated and his coat was all in matts. As if this wasn't enough, when he was brought to the RAPS vet, he tested positive for FIV and has diabetes.

In spite of all this, Angelo remains a total sweetheart. Sitting right by the cage door where he's ready to cuddle with anyone who might happen to stop by, he purred and purred while I stroked him and scratched under his chin. Far from hiding or hissing like some newcomers, Angelo actually seems happy and grateful to be with us.

Update October 18, 2010: Unfortunately, the combination of FIV, diabetes and malnourishment after having to fend for himself for who knows how long proved more than Angelo's little body could handle. His heart started to fail at the end of last week, necessitating a final trip to the vet to avoid prolonging the inevitable.

Cinder

Cinder and his sister Ella were brought to RAPS when the sanctuary was in its second or third year. They were feral and skittish. Leslie says they had one or two long-haired siblings, one of whom was adopted by a volunteer.

Leslie quickly took to Cinder, "so handsome that he reminded [her] of purebred Russian Blue cats." She really made an effort to work with the youngster, hoping to tame him enough that he could be adopted. But it never really took, at least not as much as she'd hoped.

"He'd purr when I'd stroke him, but remained pretty uptight and standoffish. Ella, on the other hand, warmed up beautifully and would clamber onto my lap."

Even now, while Ella is love-me-love-me friendly and will readily purr and pose for attention, Cinder requires a quieter, more cautious approach if you want to make more contact than a fingertip to tail tip as he scoots away just out of reach. Take it slow, though, and you'll be able to get close enough to stroke his head and scratch behind his ears while he looks up at you with those large, expressive eyes.

Update: Morresy (and too many kittens)

Remember poor, bedraggled Morresy from back in June? If not, go here for a few photos of when he first came in.

By later in the summer, his ears had healed and his fur grown in enough that he could be sent to the No. 5 Rd. shelter for adoption. I was sorry to see him go, but looked forward to writing a post-adoption, RAPS Alumni post on him.

And then on Monday night, who should I find installed back in the doublewide but Morresy.

No, no sudden behavioral problems cropped up at the other shelter. The problem turned out to be nothing to do with Morresy, but still pretty much ruined his chance of getting adopted for now.

Three words: Too. Many. Kittens.

Kitten season is apparently rather late this year and local shelters, 5 Rd. included, are finding themselves overwhelmed. The CBC even ran a story yesterday about how the Surrey SPCA is "overrun with cats." Go to www.cbc.ca for the video story.

RAPS currently has many kittens at the 5 Rd. shelter plus a few at the sanctuary and even at Carol's home. Here are a few of the ones currently at the sanctuary, where staff are working with them to tame them up a bit so they can eventually be adopted.

Unfortunately, with all these kittens it can be hard to get people interested in seriously considering one of the adult cats waiting for a forever home. And of those who are interested, there are also a whole lot of adult cats to choose from.

And so Morresy waited and waited at 5 Rd., but nobody really looked at him. Getting consistently passed over and missing the human fan club he'd enjoyed at the sanctuary too, he wasn't the happiest boy.

Now he's back at the sanctuary and couldn't be more pleased. Anyone who remembers the quivering ball of patheticness he was when he was first brought in and worked with him then can't help treating him as a special boy. Which, of course, he doesn't mind in the slightest.

He'll be sent back to 5 Rd. for another chance at adoption later on, but until then, we'll just enjoy keeping those happy purrs and paw stretches coming.

Colin

Meet Colin:

An unneutered stray, he'd been hanging around the sanctuary for a while. When he was trapped and brought in at the beginning of the month, he was agitated by his new surroundings like many new strays, so it was hard to tell how he'd be.

With a couple of weeks to settle in, it's now clear that Colin does have some experience with people. Leslie thinks he may well have come from a farm.

He dances and rubs any visitor to his cage and enthusiastically meows for his dinner. He's still working out the finer points of the proper way to respond to the hand that pets him though, so that as much as he might court a touch of the hand, you may still get the odd experimental swat for your trouble.

It's hard to hold the odd clawing against him - he so clearly doesn't mean it. During my visit with him this evening, he tried giving me a little nip on the finger, thought better of it, and proceeded to lick the spot to make up to me.

Over the course of a single visit, he went from hiding under a chair to peering at me from the corner to a comfortable lounging on his blanket, paws contentedly outstretched. He seems to be well on the way to getting the hang of this being cuddled business.

Bellatrix

Bellatrix came to the sanctuary on Monday after spending two weeks at the vet following "surgical repair." Why? She'd been found as a stray with one of her front legs stuck in her collar. She now has a collar of the "cone" variety and is getting cage rest while she heals. As the sign on her door says, she's a little cranky right now.

Shayla, who I posted about back in April, was in the same predicament when she came to RAPS. In her case though, the leg must have been stuck a lot longer as the tissue damage was extensive enough to require a great deal of attention from animal care staff at the sanctuary. With Bellatrix, Lisa tells me, the vet did not indicate the need for this much cleaning.

Updated October 4, 2010: Sadly, Bellatrix's wound did not progress in healing as it should have. It was just too far along and, with terrible mouth ulcers on top of this, there was nothing our vet could do for her but to end her pain.
Even knowing intellectually we can't ever save them all, it never gets easier for the heart to know it.
Bellatrix, we're sorry you couldn't have come to us earlier.

Lilo & Noel

8 year old Lilo and 2 year old came to RAPS as a pair, surrendered by a young woman whose circumstances were such that she could no longer afford to keep them. I hear she originally adopted the two girls from the No. 5 Road Shelter, so they are in a sense coming back to RAPS. The sanctuary is entirely new to them though, so they will take some time to adjust.

Noel, the younger of the two, is an alert, purring, wriggling ball of happy who is settling in remarkably quickly when you consider they only arrived last Saturday.

Lilo has a quieter sort of sweetness about her at the moment. She was willing engage me and allowed me to stroke her at length... but only from the inside of her carrier. I've heard she's also taking out some of her frustration on Noel, so that both cats had to be given their own sets of dry food and water dishes in different parts of the cage or Lilo wouldn't let Noel get at the food. It takes time for an 8 year old cat who's just lost her home and her human.

Updated November 23, 2010: I'm delighted to report that Lilo and Noel have been adopted by one of our volunteers!