Hal was scared at first (the top left photo was taken when he arrived. But he settled in very quickly. He makes his home in the common areas of the shelter these days.

Hal was hanging around someone's house for about a month trying to get in. Rescuers scooped him and had him altered but a tumour on his shoulder needed attention. That's when he came to Katie's Place. Our vet removed the tumour and found it was benign. So after a stint in a collar, Hal was as good as new. He had been scared after his long journey to Katie's Place and he kept to himself for the first week or two. Then he relaxed and showed us his true nature. Hal proved to be an exceptionally cheerful, affectionate, bubbly little character. But he was still a plain, black, adult male among dozens of attractive cats who were equally affectionate and eager to meet people. Spring turned to summer and 2008 became 2009. Nobody wanted Hal. He was such an energetic and sociable cat that we had to give him 'hallway' privileges. Hal now more or less makes his home in Katie's Place's common areas where he amuses himself snooping around -- and leaving the occasional calling card. He's begun scent-marking. He's probably reacting to the dozens of cats that come and go, and it's very unlikely he'd do it in a home of his own. But we can't absolutely promise people that he'll stop right away when they get him home. We've also been treating him for a sore mouth. So even though Hal is one of the most lovable cats you could ever hope to meet, it looks like he'll be hard-to-place.

Watch Hal's video below to see Hal's Great Escape, and watch him hobnob once he's out among people. Soon after this, the hallway became his home rather than a place for him to visit when he escaped his communal room.

April 18/09
Hal's sense of adventure and curiosity have been piqued by the warmer weather of spring. Now he's intent on checking out the front yard. We hope to allow our long term cats outside access once the landscaping is complete. But right now it's bare dirt and mud, and there are still gaps around the bottom of the fence. None of that matters to Hal though. He only smells the warm spring outside and he wants to see it. Over the last week, he's kept the volunteers hopping. First he darted out and disappeared under the building. He was lured out with some smelly food and he emerged covered in cobwebs. Then he dashed out again as another volunteer was bringing in bags of litter. She was horrified and was so relieved to catch up with him and nab him. But he did it to the same volunteer again and he led her on a merry chase right around the building. She gave up the chase and ran back to get a plate of smelly food. When she opened the door to go out with the smelly food, Hal was right there. Another relieved moment! He's a dickens. But now that he's accustomed to hallway privileges, he's impossible to confine in a communal room. Our highest priority now is to get the landscaping finished so they can go outside as planned. The fence is there. The doors from select porches are there. We only have to get top soil and grass laid and ensure all gaps around the fence are blocked and that they can't get underneath the building.

May 11/09
    Hal isn't very happy right now. His usual cheerful disposition has been dampened by a couple of problems. First, he has stomatitis (gum inflammation). Although it's painless much of the time, it's very painful if a cat bites down the wrong way. He was on Prednisone. Then when he went to the vet for a check up, it turned out that the prednisone wasn't doing any good. So he's having a full mouth extraction. Often cats with chronic oral inflammation can be helped by having all their teeth removed. It seems to relieve the pain and they're able to eat and groom as always. They still enjoy their crunchies. In fact, they enjoy them more without the risk of a tooth pang.
    His second (and bigger) problem is Brady, the other cat with whom he shares the hallway. Brady has hallway privileges because he's such a rambunctious character that he was making life miserable for the other cats in his communal room. There's lots of room for both Hal and Brady in the hallway but if Brady crosses paths with Hal, he'll put the run on the poor fellow. Hal is not a dominant cat while Brady is an in-your-face kind of guy, not malicious but strong-willed. Poor Hal is intimidated and must watch his step in order to avoid Brady. There's not much we can do to make life easier for Hal. He doesn't like being confined to a communal room. The lesser evil is to live in the hall and keep an eye open for Brady. Once we've got the outside finished, they can both go out to enjoy more space and new diversions.

Sept/09
    Hal has lost the ebullience he once had. He was so lively and loving, we were sure he'd find a home. But he's just a plain, black boy; nobody chose him. Meanwhile, he's not a dominant cat and he has to dodge cats who are. He began scent-marking and peeing outside the pan, a sign of mental conflict. Unfortunately, that only makes it harder for him to get out. People don't want to take the chance that he'd stop in a different environment. In a compatible place, he would certainly be as well behaved as he ever was. For now, he's voluntarily given up his hallway privileges. He couldn't handle sharing the hall with rambunctious Brady. If Hal showed any inclination to run, that triggered Brady to chase him. And Hall always ran. Now he passes his time by himself in a communal room. We just pray that someone will take the chance that he'll used his litter pan and recover his lovable nature in a home of his own. Such miracles have occurred for our critters.
    We put the word out to all the volunteers that Hall needed a little extra TLC. When one of us went out to the porch to visit with him, he climbed right into her arms for a cuddle. The attention seems to be making him feel a bit better.
 

Sept 30/09
Hal's nemesis, Brady, was adopted. So Hal resumed Hall Cat privileges with delight. He now trots around, snooping into everything and hopping into laps at any opportunity. He's a happy guy again and it's a relief to see.

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