Proud Alumni XIII
PURSIA
Pursia was lucky enough to be adopted very quickly after arriving at the
shelter. Her family sent us a nice update: "Pursia (now named Porsche)
is doing well in her new home. She's so sweet and gentle, and we're so
glad we adopted her. We're taking really good care of her and love her
very much. She's starting to get used to her new brother, Spike, and settling
in very nicely to her new digs."
Judging from the photo below that her family sent us, Pursia is not
losing any sleep over having ever been homeless. This looks like a cat
with no worries at all! :)
BRIAN and SHAWN
Brian and Shawn arrived as scared feral kittens who had never been inside
a human home before. They were fostered to learn how to be house cats,
and their foster mom fell so in love with them that she had to keep them.
She sent us an update, now that they've grown into young adults: "My 'feral'
boys are such sweeties and sooo big now! Still a bit skittish with
strangers but they now like pets and cuddles from us. That's B-Baby (Brian)
sitting up, Chester in the middle (our male tabby), and Shaunikins (Shaun)
looking backwards. We absolutely love these boys."
Inset at left is a photo of the boys when they arrived
at the shelter as scared feral kittens.
MR. TIBBS
Mr. Tibbs arrived as a long term street cat with FIV.
He was a lovable fellow who found an indoor home with no (FIV-) cats. His
new person sent us the note below which made our day!.
"Dear Katie's Place volunteers, It's the second week of having Mr Tibbs
(or Tibbies Bobosh as we call him) home, and we are both doing very well!
The first week was a bit of an adjustment period, both for Tibbies (although
he handled it remarkably well) and myself (me, not so well: it was as if
I was going through some 'new cat owner' post partum depression or something
as my biggest worry was that I couldn't take care of him the way he needed).
But all that is past and now I can't imagine having my home without Tibbies
lounging around, just waiting for the opportunity to head butt my hands
for pets. He sleeps peacefully on my couch, on his perch, and in my bed,
although I suspect when I'm sleeping in bed he joins me in the middle of
the night and scoots away before I wake up, because he's not ready to go
to sleep when I am! He has his playful times, mostly first thing in the
morning and towards the end of the night, but he seems content to lounge
around and relax on all my furniture.
I took him to the vet today, just for a checkup to make sure all is
still well with him. Overall, he is still healthy, and the vet said he
is at a pretty good weight. He also noted that he is a very nice boy as
he didn't make any fusses at all when he was being examined, and if anything,
was more interested in exploring the new room he was in. I'm very proud
of Tibbies! He makes it very clear that he still does not like car rides;
he cried all the way to the vets and all the way home. But with all that
moving around, who can blame him? :) Thanks again for providing a place
for all the kitties someone has forgotten about; without Katie's Place,
I wouldn't be blessed with Mr. Tibbs."
GREG and MARSHA
Two of our kittens from the summer of '09 are clearly happy in their new
home, judging from the photo their proud new family sent. Their family
says they're doing great.
They have begun life in their forever home with new
names: Cyprus and Macy.
LUNA and SCOOTER
Luna and Scooter are not related. They were both hard-to-place cats who
had been with us for a long time. Both had been adopted before and returned
due to litter box problems. But a cat-savvy lady visited whom we've known
for years and who has adopted hard-to-place cases before. She wanted both
Luna and Scooter. She knew they might have trouble adjusting at first and
she was prepared to work through it with them. She sent us a report on
them and it seems that they've settled in nicely.
Luna was the first to settle in...
"Thank you so much for letting me take Luna and Scooter home. Luna
is doing great, she was following me everywhere, reminding me of one of
my previous cats, same interest in everything around her, her total trust
in me... We stretched on my bed and just had a good time. Scooter scooted
under sofa and has been hiding since. She is eyeing me warily, just like
one of my feral cats. I'm sure she is thinking what ever happened to her
home and what the heck is she doing here. Poor baby, moved again. Put the
food in front of her and she moved away. Will watch to make sure she's
eating."
This message arrived several days later...
"Scooter is a such a clown. She was running one night while I was watching
TV -- first, hallway; next, kitchen; into bathroom; back to bedroom. She
went like this three times when she realized she was here before so she
stopped, looked around, looked at me, went to the hallway, turned back
to the bedroom, looked around, looked at me, went to the hallway, kitchen,
bath, bedroom, stopped, looked.... I was laughing so hard. She is very
nice; skittish, reminding me of my feral ones, so when she stopped to be
petted I was careful but she ran into that touch, so happy. Of course Luna
is just a treasure."
We know them both as affectionate, lovable cats and we're so glad they
have a chance to enjoy a real home.
Luna is on the left and Scooter is on the right. They
both look comfortable in their own real home.
ONYX
Onyx had a run of bad luck when it came to homes. He lost at least three
homes through no fault of his own. He came to us from another shelter when
they had too many cats. He must have had a home before that because he
was so good with people. He was eventually adopted from us. Nearly three
years later he was returned when his person was going away too often to
arrange care for him. He managed to find another new home and enjoyed that
home for a year until the landlord said they couldn't keep him. He has
always been well behaved. gentle and loving. Finally he found another home.
This adoption ought to stick! His new family sent a report three days after
adopting him.
"Benny the Bullmoose is having a grand time at our house although Michaela,
our calico cat, has been making heavy weather of it. However, she is slowly
coming around. He has been chattering away, snoring in his sleep, and we
think he is a great cat. When we went to work yesterday morning, he wasn't
too sure about that, but was thrilled to see our cleaning lady arrive at
8:30 and followed her around all morning. My husband is working at home
today so they have company."
Onyx is a mellow fellow who makes himself at home
very quickly, as the photo from his new home shows.
SMOKEY
Smokey had lived in the same home for eight years, since he was eight months
old. He was an indoor only cat and a single cat in a home with one adult.
His home and his person were his whole world. So shelter life was a tough
adjustment for him. But he managed and eventually found a new home. Now
he's sent us a note letting us know that everything has worked out well
for him...
"Hey Friends! I just wanted to send a quick note and some photos showing
me in my new home. I've put on a few pounds, my fur is silky smooth and
mat free. I enjoy following my mom everywhere she goes and love to cuddle
in bed all night with my warm dad. I drink only the freshest water, straight
from the running tap of course, and am obsessed with Greenie treats. I
like them so much I sometimes wake my mom up for them in the middle of
the night. Life is GOOD! Thank you for keeping me safe and happy and for
letting me go to a family who loves me so very much. purr...purr...purr..."
This photo from home shows Smokey in the ultimate
'relaxed cat' position.
FRIDAY
Friday was born without a human home and she was terrified of humans at
first. But she soon learned about the pleasures of having a human home
and was adopted by her forever family from her Katie's Place foster home.
She's made good friends with their young boy-cat, Twixer, who is delighted
to have a new playmate! Her family says "She's doing great now. The first
few days she was on the leash still, but now she just roams free. She comes
and sees me in the mornings, follows me around, cuddles with me. She and
Twixer love to wrestle around, it's really fun to watch. She's totally
the boss of him though. She even goes up and eats his food, and when he
tries to get to it she'll hiss at him to go away."
Friday is a sassy little thing in her new home.
FLUFFSTER and SNOOPY
Fluffster and Snoopy are best friends who found a home together. Their
new person loves them and proudly sent us photos. It looks like they're
comfortable and happy in their new home as Snoopy grooms her pal's head.
VIENNA
We have to tell Vienna's story. He was turned over to
us by someone who said he came with the house when they moved in five years
ago. He had probably been left behind by the former home owners. He must
have been confused when his home was no longer his home somehow. He couldn't
live inside because the new owner was allergic. But he was allowed to live
on the porch. At least he wasn't alone. He had a little, skinny, one-eyed
cat friend. Then one day his friend disappeared. Vienna too suffered from
being outside. He came back one day with his ear injured. It looks like
it's missing but it's actually folded close to his head. Between the cold,
the dangers and being alone with no friend anymore, the home owner felt
it was best for him to come to Katie's Place. When he arrived, from the
moment he was lifted out of the parrot cage he'd been transported in, he
proved to be a calm, gentle, trusting, friendly, affectionate cat. His
vet check determined that his crumpled ear was probably due to vigorous
scratching. We had his ears cleaned and treated for mites. He was estimated
as about 7 yrs old. So the poor guy had nobody to cuddle him for most of
his life. Then x-rays showed a BB pellet embedded in his flank. So this
gentle, trusting cat was shot by someone once.
Vienna found a new home. Now he can live indoors
with his family like a true family member. He's enjoying the life that
a gentle, loving soul like him deserves.
Vienna's photo from home shows him sitting, confident
and handsome, in his own home.
SUZANNE
Suzanne lost her home at the age of thirteen years when the family structure
changed. It was a dark day for this little cat. But she found a new home.
Her new family sent us a note and photos.
"I just wanted to send a quick update about our tiny girl. Suzie (also
affectionately called Snoozie) is doing wonderfully. We moved into our
new home two weeks ago and Suzie is very happy having the entire house
to herself, as our last home was shared with two small dogs... although
on occasion they were caught napping together. She truly stole our hearts
from the first night she stayed with us when she decided to snuggle between
us after sniffing our foreheads, sharing kisses and getting cozy under
the blankets. It was apparent she missed having all the attention! I will
admit, we did have a bit of a scare the first night when she slipped through
an unknown hole in the screen door. What an experience it was to search
for an hour and a half by flashlight through thick shrubs in the complex
common ground! It's been smooth sailing since then. What a pleasure she
is. She greets me when I get home (unless napping under the duvet of course)
and meows her adorable, quiet, squeaky, senior meow in hopes of goodies."
It's apparent from her photos that Suzanne is happy
to have a home and family again.
KOJAK
Seven-year-old Kojak was homeless long enough that his luxuriant coat became
matted and fell out in large patches from an untreated flea allergy, and
he became infected with FIV. Yet he
was a trusting, affectionate cat. If you sat down in his pen, Kojak would
be on your lap within seconds and he'd nuzzle and roll blissfully, hungry
for affection. He was lucky enough to find a wonderful home in November
2005. Now, exactly four years later, we had a note from his family which
makes us rejoice for Kojak and wish that others like him could be as lucky.
"I just wanted to send you a quick email and pass along a loooong overdue
update on one of your former feline residents, Kojak :) I adopted Kojak
back in 2005 when he was a special needs kitty with FIV. In the beginning,
Kojak battled severe stomatitis and overall poor health due to his FIV.
Kojak and I tried everything to get his stomatitis under control to no
avail... About a year after adoption, Kojak and I were referred to a dentist
at Canada West Veterinary Hospital, Dr. Legendre. The staff at Canada West
Veterinary Hospital were AMAZING and Dr. Legendre performed a very successful
surgery removing all of Kojak's teeth! [This is a treatment our KP vets
have done on our cats at Katie's Place too.] The results were immediate
and Kojak has never looked back! Kojak had no trouble adjusting to life
without teeth. He gained weight, grew a beautiful coat and his overall
health improved by leaps and bounds. Kojak is a very special cat and this
journey together has made us inseparable! I am forever thankful to all
the volunteers at Katie's Place for giving Kojak the chance to come into
my life :)"
And we are grateful to caring people who give them loving homes!
Inset at top is a photo of Kojak when he arrived at
Katie's Place with patches of fur missing from his haunches and a Mohawk
haircut where his mats had been shaved off.
Below is a photo from home of Kojak, now gorgeous
and obviously loved and happy!
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