Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Slow Down the Roller Coaster - I Want To Get Off!

I can tell that it's kitten season when I'm feeling overwhelmed and angry when I go into the shelter. The little faces haunt me long after I leave the building. I rescued 5 darling cats today and placed them with excited new foster parents. I also met a nice couple at the shelter that wanted to rescue "Luie" and I found myself becoming increasingly more impatient with them as their questions became harder for me to answer:

"Can you guarantee me that our cats won't get sick if we bring Luie home and he gets a shelter cold?" (No. )

David and I just listed our big house for sale. As the kids are leaving the nest (thank god), we're finding the empty rooms and space too much for us. So we're selling the house and buying a slightly smaller house nearby. Needless to say, I'm not rescuing any new foster cats for myself because we'll have people parading in and out. Lord only knows what I'm going to do with the cats that I have when people are viewing the house!

It sucks to go into the shelter and know that you can't take someone home. Oh, the desperate little faces!

My friend Kathleen had to say goodbye to her senior girl "Rita" today. I remember when Kathleen rescued Rita from the shelter several years ago. She was such a scrawny, matted little thing that turned into a gorgeous cat. Kathleen loved that little old lady so much. Saying goodbye is so hard. In an odd way, it was nice to grieve with Kathleen. I was grateful that Rita had people who loved her enough to "mortgage the farm" to save her life. But no amount of money would make things better and it was time to lovingly say good bye.

Can you tell it's been an emotional roller coaster kind of day? I am really looking forward to writing something amusing and whimsical. (I don't even have a good "cat poop story" to tell!) I think I'm going to have to really search long and hard for something funny, because right now I keep thinking of this little guy that I thought I had rescued during the last rescue:
It turns out that I rescued a DIFFERENT cat. This poor guy is still there!! Now I feel responsible for him because I published his cute little tabby face on my blog.

Dammit.

8 comments:

ctinz said...

I can't handle how many more cats are at the shelter; I can't even look at the site anymore. I wish I had more rooms in my house =(.

RHz said...

You're doing wonderful things... just remember the starfish story, and that you made a difference to the ones you are able to help.

And, for laughs, I will share my own personal cat poop story with you. I have taken in my four brothers to raise (long story). The middle child, Michael, had some serious behavior issues a few years ago. We’re still working through some, but for the most part, he’s much better these days. Anyway, we live in a townhome community and I came home from work one day and on my way to the door, I stepped in something. I look down and see cat crap (covered in litter) all over the lawn and walkway. I am completely confused at this point, but clean off my shoe and head inside. I proceed to ask everyone about the cat poo, and finally Michael confesses. Here, some of the kids in the neighborhood were throwing acorns up at the windows and he told them to stop, but they wouldn’t. To retaliate, he used the pooper scooper as a sling shot and flung cat crap from the cat boxes down at the kids to peg them with it. I couldn’t even yell at him because I couldn’t keep a straight face.

Dave said...

Poop stories? I love it - don't read on if you have a weak stomach..

One of my foster cats often sleeps in my bathroom sink which has a leaky tap, so I'm quite used to picking him up when his fur is damp. A couple of weeks ago, I picked him up and felt my arm get wet - but looked down to discover that he hadn't just come from the sink, he'd come from the litter box and I had a big smear on my arm. This happened when he'd just started an antibiotic that the vet warned me could cause diarrhea, and it wasn't his only incident as a result of starting the meds. The other time, I can only imagine that he was digging in his litter box with his hind legs up on the edge of the litter box - because he somehow managed to splatter quite high up the wall. Seriously -this is a small cat, but it was at least 2 feet up the wall. Fortunately - it was just for a day or two that he had trouble and everything is back to normal.

House of the Discarded said...

RHz and Dave: Thank you both for the good laugh today. I needed it! Nothing like a good cat poop story to lighten the mood. hahaha!

Anonymous said...

I have to share my poop story. One of my dearest cats - Bubba Louie, at the age of 2 started pooping in my bathtub. I thought I would cure him of that little shananagan and put water in the tub. Well then he pooped in the kitchen sink - YUCK! So I let the water out and for the next 13 years he pooped in the bathtub. I tried my best to keep on top of it but the odd time a guest would use that bathroom and whisper or yell - What's with the cat poop in the tub! God I loved my Bubba boy!!

Anonymous said...

and another poop story.... was fostering a kitten who for some reason wasn't as good at using the litter box as her brother, despite trying all the fancy litters and pheromone sprays: she insisted on POOPING IN HER FOOD DISH after eating! (an offering to the gods of food?) Nothing I tried worked. Then she got adopted (I had warned the adopter about this). When I checked later - "Oh no troubles at all, uses the litterbox no problem"... must have been ME! lol

Anonymous said...

Poop story du jour....
Poop coated in litter aka "poopsicles". I could sell these as dog delicacies and use the money for cat rescue.

Anonymous said...

Was this cat ever rescued???? I see his face and it haunts me?