A Friday Update

I've been in a "wait and see" position regarding rescuing for the majority of the week. I'm hoping that things will be back to normal on Monday, because I have foster homes asking for cats! The viral problems in the shelter seem to have abated, so it's time to get back to business.

I just got off the phone with someone interested in adopting "Arbie":

Typical of the majority of the population, they don't quite understand why a cat who is already neutered, declawed and VERY sweet would be scheduled for euthanasia. They don't get it. I'm hoping they'll call me back and will want to meet him tomorrow. I don't usually like going to the shelter on Saturdays, but I'd like to see this cutie get into a home.

I have another favourite. Her name is "Betty":

Betty is SWEET! She's already been spayed and declawed. She definitely didn't seem too thrilled with other cats, but it's hard to say in the shelter. She hissed, but didn't go bizerk. She's a butterball and has a VERY kissable tortie face.

If you like "Headbutts"...there's always Leroy:

Some of the staff at the shelter doesn't like Leroy, because he tries so hard to get your attention that he gives little "love swipes." I love him. He's personality ++++. He loves to give headbutts and has the sweetest face!

If you like big headed Tom cats, "Humble" is your man:

He's such a gentle, sweet soul. I really hope he makes it out of the shelter.

Whenever I start feeling sorry for myself that I'm the only woman in the house, I think about this Mom with FOUR male kittens - locked in a small double cage:

They're a cute little family. I wonder if Daddy was the same buff colour?

The lady interested in "Arbie" just called me back and cancelled. Her voicemail said she wasn't ready for a commitment yet. Maybe I could get her to foster Arbie!

Regardless, I'm looking forward to getting some cats out of that place next week. Let's hope everybody stays healthy...

A United Front

I had to take two of my own cats to the vets today and ran into a woman who is on the board from my Former Rescue . The conversation went something like this:

ME: HEY you! Good to see you!!!! (Enthusiastic smile)

HER: Hello.

ME: How the heck are ya??? How's the family?? (Bigger smile)

HER: fine, thanks. (Brrrrr....)

I tried engaging her while the vet was dealing with a difficult cat. Nada. Negatory.

Really.

I don't have time for this shit stuff. Be a grown up or go home. We're all trying to save some cats. I've heard of this kind of thing with other animal rescues. "So-and-so doesn't like so-and-so. Holy crap....what grade are we in?" Grade 3? Grade 6?

One thing I've learned is that the rescue world is a small world. The Golden Rule applies here too. We're doing the same thing for the same purpose, so stop behaving like an idiot.

(Insert ***Deep Breath*** Here)

Things at the shelter are OK. I can't figure out why there are still so many kittens coming in. I had a lady contact me about adopting two orange kittens she saw on Kim's website:

I called her immediately. I had already planned on bringing the little black one home with me. I would just tell David *something*. I was already planning on telling him to suck it up. There was no way I would let the little black one stay there by himself!!

She had already stopped at Petsmart and adopted 2 orange kittens from the SPCA. The adoption fee was $120.00 which didn't include their spay or neuter. She sounded so nice.

I'm happy for the SPCA adopting their two little orange ones. Yes, I'm going to be happy for them. They needed a home too.

I'm going to fake it through and smile, because that's what adults do.

"Fonzy"

Back to the shelter again today! I rescued a really cute little guy named "Fonzy" for a new foster home:

Fonzy originally came in with his twin brother a few weeks ago. As you can tell by the picture, they both came in quite sick with an Upper Respiratory Infection. Poor little lambs - they were about 5 weeks old and the brother didn't make it. In fact, a staff member found Fonzy snuggled up to his dying brother. They really wanted to save Fonzy after that pitiful moment.

Fonzy looks great now....his foster Mom was thrilled to have him despite his few remaining sniffles. I wish I had brought my camera with me when I delivered him. The foster Mom has a huge headed older black lab. That kitten BOLTED towards the dog..."HEY! WHO ARE YOU???"

I don't know who was more thrilled - the kitten or the dog! That big ol' lab was SO happy to see the kitten! I guess the foster home had a cat that recently passed away. So it was extra sweet to see that kitten (who was about the size of the lab's nose) run up to him and the dog truly enamoured with the kitten.

Truly a missed Kodak Moment.

Have fun little man and welcome to the beginning of your new life.

"Maggie Sue"

First, I want to thank you all for the support and understanding regarding my recent post, Politically Speaking . I still had mixed feelings about not going to the city meeting and had changed my mind at about 10 a.m. this morning. I was going to go!

My phone rang at 11:30 as I was dressing. It was a woman with whom I had been corresponding via email about a cute little calico named "Maggie Sue". Lori has 4 kids and lives not too far from me. She sounded SO nice and wanted to meet Maggie Sue right away, before her older kids came home from school.

I don't know if y'all believe in "omens", but I do believe everything happens for a reason. The only time Lori could meet me at the shelter was 1 p.m. - the time the meeting started. When I arrived at the shelter, a few of the staff members were surprised to see me. "I thought you'd be at the meeting!" I shrugged.

Lori brought 3 of the adorable kids into the cat area of the shelter and met Maggie Sue. It was love at first site! Despite the fact that Maggie Sue had a shelter cold, Lori was determined to nurse her back to health.

So. No - I didn't make it to the meeting. Maybe I'm not political. Maybe I'm a "short-term thinker". But because I showed up at the shelter today a little girl named "Maggie Sue" is safe and in a home with 4 children loving her to pieces tonight:

Have a wonderful life, Maggie Sue

Too Much Thinking, Not Enough *Doing*

My phone hasn't been ringing lately. I don't know if this is good news or bad news. I suppose it's good news that foster homes aren't calling with emergencies, but that also means foster homes aren't calling and saying that they're ready for another cat. There's been some sickness at the shelter and the staff has been diligently vaccinating and trying to ward off any future outbreaks.

In the meantime....I wait until things are better over there.

I received an email today from a very nice woman that adopted a ridiculously cute cat from the shelter. She keeps me updated and it always makes me smile when I hear from her:

"Hi Beth, I thought you'd get a chuckle out of this. Whenever I complain/rant or whine to my significant other via email, this is what he replies with. It's Cider and according to him, she's good medicine. She is an incredibly sweet girl and we certainly can't imagine life without her. Thanks for bringing her to us."

She attaches the following picture:

How wonderful is it to be having a really crummy day and receive THAT face in an email? Heck, she's not even my cat and the picture made me grin from ear to ear.

Her email made me think how much TRUE joy our pets give us. When all else fails, they're always here for me. They're here through relationships that can't be fixed, and some have sat next to the toilet while I threw up. (Sometimes on the same day!)

I talk a lot about cleaning up cat poop and mopping cat pee. I've stepped in cat barf more times than I can count. But I'm grateful for every day that I wake up to see their little faces asking me for their breakfast. I have one cat that meows at my bedroom door at 6 a.m., then throws his hip against my closed door: "Meow!" BAM! "Meoooow" BAM!! There have been Sunday mornings where I could kill him. But I know in my heart that I would miss that little orange booger if he wasn't waking me up.

I've had evenings where I mope in bed praying for the day to be over, only to hear the bedroom door crrreak open. All I see is the cautious face of my dog Maggie. What would I have done without Maggie when I went through the breakup of my 20 year marriage?

I was married for 20 years to a man that only tolerated my love of animals. He "permitted me" to have cats and dogs as long as they didn't act like animals. You can see where this went...

Sooooooooo.....I've rambled long enough. I have no clue where this blog post is going, but it felt good to write down my thoughts tonight. I'm hoping to be back at the shelter in a few days. In the meantime, I've had FAR too much time on my hands.

A Sunday Funny

Thought this looked a little too much like me and David:

(P.S. Please accept my apology if you sent this to me and I'm not giving you credit. I was clearing out some of my old pictures and found this and it was too cute not to share!)

Politically Speaking...

I've had a lot of people ask me if I'm going to a Planning Committee Meeting on November 17th, specifically related to the shelter in which I rescue.

Considering that I'm at the shelter 3 or 4 days per week rescuing, you'd think I might have some worthwhile input at that meeting. If you want to speak at the meeting, you need to register ahead of time.

I honestly don't know if I'm going and I'll tell you why.

One of my biggest fears of attending a meeting like this is being pooled with other "nutty rescue activists." I've considered myself the voice of reason, where rescue is concerned. I've tried to stay sane and supportive with the shelter staff. What's the point of giving the staff at the shelter a hard time regarding euthanasia numbers when it's not their fault?

Anyway....I know there are going to be some "rescue big mouths" at this meeting. Do I really want to be associated with these people? I may feel the way they do on some issues, but why create a ruckus? There are people on Craigslist and other local activist sites that embarrass me by what they post. I'm sure some think that it's me, since I'm at the shelter all the time.

I assure you - it's not me.

One rescue person - who shall remain nameless - thinks that her way of solving the overcrowding at this shelter is to "rescue" several cats, then dump them on another rescue when she couldn't handle it. Helloooooooooooo.....that isn't "rescue".

Other rescues think that by NOT rescuing at this shelter, the problems will go away. Maybe if they stop looking at the pictures of the cats who are about to die, there isn't really a problem.

I've been (strategically) placing cute pictures of "Bucky" on this post with hope it can be a smoke screen on what I really feel. Maybe I don't have the guts to go to the meeting because I feel like my one voice won't change anything.

Truthfully. No matter what tidbits of wisdom that I have, the problem won't change overnight. No matter what I say, it won't save the cats that died in there this week, or the next. What would it take to get everyone in that city to understand the importance of spaying and neutering?

I'm afraid if I'm rejected, I'll be so pissed off I won't want to help anymore...and that would really kill me.

I really hate politics.