Peppercorn

Peppercorn is a grey & white cutie I've seen around the back courtyard for ages without ever knowing what her story was.

I recently asked Leslie, and apparently Peppercorn came to the sanctuary when she was around  five to six months old. She was trapped along with her two siblings near Silvercity Riverport in Richmond. Both of the siblings have since died, but Peppercorn is still a happy resident of the sanctuary. On a sunny day she can often be found luxuriating in the sunshine in the sanctuary's back courtyard.

photo by Barbara D

photo by Barbara D

Number Six

"Number Six" came to the RAPS cat sanctuary along with the cats belonging to volunteer Ruth (Sophie, George, Whiskers, Socks) but, interestingly, he wasn't one of Ruth's cats. Rather, he'd belonged to a friend of Ruth's nephew. At the time, Ruth's cats had numbered five (the fifth died before the group came to the sanctuary). Since nobody knew the name of the additional cat, he was temporarily dubbed Number Six. The name stuck for a time, but I notice that recently someone at the sanctuary has added a new name, Schroder, in brackets next to the name Number Six on the sign outside the cats' room.

Number Six / Schroder can be a bit hard to read when you first meet him, seeming to be enjoying his comfy bed too much to give a clear indication of what kind of cuddles he'd most like to receive.

On our first meeting, I tried to rouse him with the help of a feathery cat toy. This certainly got his attention, but still wasn't enough to make him want to leave the warmth of his bed.

On the second occasion, I went for a chin scratch and behind-the-ears tickle, both of which he liked. He was so pleased, in fact, that he climbed out of bed and onto a nearby cat tree... at least for a moment or two before he decided that I could tickle him just as well in his bed.

He turns out to be less of a fan of having his back stroked, but seems willing to be forgiving if the mistake is quickly rectified. We humans need a little training to get these things right, after all.

Socks

Socks was found as a stray on No. 6 Rd. in Richmond and brought to RAPS in 2009. He was adopted by our volunteer Ruth, who opened her home to him and others (Sophie, George, and Whiskers). When Ruth passed away, all of her cats were brought to the cat sanctuary to be looked after. We hope (as we're sure they do) that they'll meet new people who are looking to adopt wonderful cats just like them.

When I spent some time getting to know Socks earlier this week, he was delighted to interact, but also very keen to show me that he's got his own distinct personality and his own distinct way of expressing himself. It turns out that Socks is a wriggler. All it took was a few quality scratches under his chin and behind his ears, and the wriggling began. Once he really got into it, he didn't even need (or seem to want) me to do anything but watch and admire his happy movements.

A funny, happy, highly entertaining boy.

Whiskers (II)

Whiskers originally came from the Burnaby SPCA. Like Sophie and George, she was adopted from RAPS by Ruth, one of our volunteers. When Ruth passed away not long ago, Whiskers and her housemates were brought back to the cat sanctuary.

Like the other cats with whom Ruth had shared her home, Whiskers is a delightful cat and very adoptable. When I visited with her on Monday, she was purrs and gentle rubs and cuddles.

Capilano

It was just before feeding time when I decided to drop in to one of the back pens and introduce myself to some new-to-me cats. While most of the cats were milling around expecting me to drop some chicken and liver pate, I disappointed them all by offering nothing but affection and the chance to shine in front of the camera. All the while, a large black and white cat who I later learned was called Capilano watched on from a corner of the pen.

 

It would be hard to miss Capilano as he is a rather round cat with a sort of God-father-esque demeanour.  A small collection of cats positioned themselves around him after they finished with their dinners.  One cat Katie seemed particularly attached to Capilano, following him around and sitting next to him when she could.

Athena, Katie and Capilano

Capilano and Katie

Capilano came to the sanctuary approximately two years ago with a group if #5 road cats.  He initially was placed in another part of the sanctuary but refused to come out from behind his towel curtain and hissed ferociously anytime anyone came near.  It seems as though he was having a miserable time.  Evidently, hissing and hiding don't burn many calories as Capilano put a lot of weight on during this time.  Eventually he was moved to the back pens where he begun to come out of his shell and interact with his pen-mates.

Although he still isn't much interested in people he does look quite content with his cat buddies.  It is interesting to see how a change in environment can change a cat's manner.  From ferocious hissing to tolerating a photo-op, I have to wonder how well we think we know cats sometimes and how different they might be in the right circumstances.

George

Like Sophie, George was adopted from RAPS by our wonderful volunteer Ruth. When Ruth passed away, George was brought back to the sanctuary with Sophie and his other former housemates. 

I hear that one of our sanctuary volunteers has really fallen for George, so there's a chance he may have a home of his own again soon. 

The sign on the door to the room where Ruth cats are currently living had a note that George loves to snuggle. Having only met him once so far, I haven't yet had a chance to get too up close and personal, but even a few strokes and a chin tickle showed him to be a cat who likes a cuddle. 

He also likes a good play, something I quickly discovered when he saw me pick up a feather wand.
How about that -- handsome and a great personality too!

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.