When the adoptive family (Nik & Jaime) came to pick up Jeffrey, I ask the same things that I ask of every adopter: "Take the cat quickly and call me later."
It hurts too badly to linger around saying goodbye with the cat in the crate. I kissed Jeffrey quickly, told him he was a WONDERFUL little house guest and put him in the crate. The family already had the Heath Record and I bid them adieu.
I was extra worried about this adoption, because Nik and Jaime already had a cat at home who had never been exposed to another cat. Would he hurt my little Jeffies?
Much to my relief, they wrote me an hour after they came home with this email:
"Hi Beth,
Well, we have been home for about an hour, and i have to say that the introduction has gone very well! No drama! Dexter was very interested in seeing him - no hissing on his part at all! Jeffrey seems very confident and comfortable here as well - he has taken over Dexter's toys, and apparently Dexter doesn't mind...so far... I give these two a day or so before they are napping together :) Hopefully everything will stay about the same when the lights turn off tonight - haha!"
Well, we have been home for about an hour, and i have to say that the introduction has gone very well! No drama! Dexter was very interested in seeing him - no hissing on his part at all! Jeffrey seems very confident and comfortable here as well - he has taken over Dexter's toys, and apparently Dexter doesn't mind...so far... I give these two a day or so before they are napping together :) Hopefully everything will stay about the same when the lights turn off tonight - haha!"
I went to bed smiling and happy that my little boy was going to be OK. My "uh oh meter" went off when I woke up to a second email that was sent an hour after the first one....at least until I opened the email:
"Hi Beth,
This is Dexter and Jeffrey becoming buddies. I don't think we could
have paired him up with a better kitty."
So another happy ending for one of my foster cats. I hope this post gives testimony to anyone who says, "It would hurt too much to let them go." Sure it stings to let them go...
...but look how happy he is! :)
6 comments:
Khool!
BUT letting one go let's woo have one more!
Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra
That's wonderful they are already making friends. They must both be sweet kitties.
Yay! Glad your little man Jeffrey was able to find himself in a good home and with a great older sibling. ;-)
Thanks for this post. My friend and I rescued three kittens this summer from a backyard momma. One he's keeping and the other two are up for adoption on the TCR website (I joined the owner-foster program).
I got a call from a nice woman at TCR with a head's up that someone is interested in adopting one of the little guys. I couldn't ask for a better home for him - a mom and dad with three kids and two other cats who have always had rescued animals, and whose last two cats both lived to be 19! But still, I'm going to miss him.
This post reminded me that that is the job of a foster parent - house and love them, care for them ... but only until someone else is ready to take on the job foever.
Amen! If I had a nickel for every happy tear I've shed when my foster kitties go off to their new home.......well I would simply foster even more cats!
Keep up the good work Beth. You changed Jeffrey's whole world for the better.
I had a phonecall last weekend with Bart & Emmet's new mom, and she e-mailed me some pictures of them too. They were my first kitties - I still miss them! - but oh lord, hearing how much she loved them, and seeing how happy they are in their new home really made me so happy.
I wish I could reconcile that image with how I feel now - I'm off to Montreal for the weekend, and not 2 minutes after dropping off Chai & her babies at my dad's, I was telling him "I miss them already!!!". I told Heather on the phone this evening too, that "aaah, are Cloud and Chico ok?!?!". I wish it got easier, or more logical! :P
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