Click on Our Adoptable Pet List in our Petfinder page to see animals currently available for adoption.
Maggie on the left found a quiet corner to hide in when she arrived
at the shelter in April '03. A few months later she and her sister were
adopted. Judging from the photo of Maggie in her new home on the right,
she's very content and comfortable with home life.
Losing an animal to illness or injury is only bearable because we know we've done everything we could for them.
Hutch was one of our first cats. He tested positive for FeLV
and became a permanent resident at Katie's Place. He evolved from a frightened,
cowering street cat into a loving and beloved friend. He enjoyed a good
life with us. He never lacked for company and he was able to enjoy the
warmth of blanketed nests and the coolness of spring breezes on his porch.
When he finally succumbed to his illness, we wrote the tribute below to
honour him.
We have lost our beloved
Hutch. He came to us almost two years ago lonely and afraid. Inside and
out, Hutch had strength; he came to trust and love us. We became his family
and his home. He continually graced our lives, patiently waiting each day
to greet us at his door. He nurtured the young, frightened, FIV/FeLV+ cats.
He played with them and protected them. Hutch was the king of his castle.
He held the power among the adult cats and few would challenge his authority.
For the last few weeks, his illness had been wearing him down, he had developed
cancer in his kidneys. He no longer waited for us. He took very little
interest in life. He was not eating or drinking and he was fading before
our eyes. The time had come to let him go with dignity. We will miss him,
but we are grateful to have loved him. Farewell, dear friend.
Hutch died at 2:30 p.m.
at home and surrounded by family on Monday December 23, 2002.
We won't list each animal here that we've lost. We treasure their memory
and they live in our hearts. But we will mention Solo here because Solo
was the first resident of the FeLV/FIV
Boys' Pen, even before Hutch. He ruled the Boys' Pen as its patriarch until
the day he died on December 24, 2005. He was at least 14 years old. He
arrived in January 2001 as a grubby, tattered street cat with a belligerent
glint in his eye. We were as scared of him as he was of us. Time passed
and we came to know him. He proved to be gentle, kind, patient, strong
and brave. Once or twice a cat with attitude tried to make a name for himself
in the Boys' Pen. Solo would never be intimidated. The other cats looked
up to him. We often saw them creep into the basket in which he was lying
and stretch out beside him. He let them lie there. This big cat, who never
backed down from a challenger, watched over them until they awoke. We'll
miss him.
We who choose to surround ourselves
with lives even more temporary than
our own live within a fragile circle,
easily and often breached.
Unable to accept its awful gaps,
we still would live no other way.
We cherish memory as the only certain
immortality, never fully understanding
the necessary plan....
"The Once Again Prince" Irving Townsend