Moustache managed well with communal life at the shelter (left photo). When he returned, he had to adjust all over again (top left photo). But he settled in well and enjoys attention in small doses.
Moustache can't catch a break. We first met him at the SPCA when he
arrived on April 20/06. But that wasn't the beginning of his shelter life.
He was transferred to Maple Ridge from the Shuswap SPCA. All we know of
his former home is that he had been expected to live outdoors. He's a bright,
dapper little cat but he sometimes had attitude. In a world with too many
cats, they have to be perfect to compete. Moustache couldn't find a home
so on January 8/07 he came to Katie's Place. He settled in and was an amiable
fellow if he wasn't pestered. His lucky break came on February 2/08 when
he and another of our black and white fellows found a home together. The
pair was happy in their new home. Both boys slept on the bed with their
new humans as of that first night. Moustache was finally able to live down
his reputation for having attitude. His family said he didn't scratch and
was not aggressive. All he had needed was a real home. But his back luck
wasn't over. Within a year he developed crystals in his urine and began
peeing outside the litter pan. It seems the problem was addressed too late
to prevent the behaviour from becoming a habit and Moustache was returned
to the shelter on March 29/09. Again we see flashes of attitude as Moustache
copes with the bustle of shelter life and all the strangers that pass through.
He's about eight years old now. Nearly half his life has been spent moving
around. We hope he'll find his permanent home. But if he's always passed
over for less imperfect cats, we'll do our best to make a home for him
here.
May/09
When Moustache isn't stressed by the unfamiliar or by too much activity,
so common in shelter life, he's a very friendly little guy. When you go
into his communal room, he's glad to see you and he'll follow you around
or he might stand on his hind legs to reach up your legs in welcome and
acknowledgment. He enjoys human company and would enjoy it so much more
in a real home where he doesn't have to keep one eye open for what's going
on in his peripheral vision. This little guy has a lot of personality and
would be fine in a new home as long as his diet is a good one to prevent
the urine crystals that set off his litter pan problems.
Sept/09
Moustache was moved to a different communal room when a physically
compromised cat in his old room started showing signs of anxiety. Moustache
is a matter-of-fact little guy who makes his opinion plain, and if Dizzy
got on his nerves with his palsied head nodding, Moustache would have let
him know. He fit nicely into his new communal room. Fewer visitors seem
to go there, so he doesn't get a lot of human company. But he doesn't appear
to crave it. He simply enjoys it when he gets it. He passed his summer
in solitary pursuits, chasing bugs on the porch, meditating, or napping.
He's not a cat who seeks the company of other cats. In the right home,
he would bond with his human.