Month: March 2014

Anyone who knows me knows that my fur children are very important to me. I have three that I’ve had for 11 years for two, and 9 years for the third. Last summer I got it into my head to foster, because I wanted another cat but knew I didn’t need one. I thought fostering would be a good way to add to my little family without actually adding to it. I figured I’d never have one for more than a couple months before they found their forever home. My first foster last summer, Mushu, a gorgeous little boy with long grey fur and bright yellow eyes, reinforced that idea in my head since he was only with me for two weeks before getting adopted… not long enough to get too attached to let him go. A week after I got him, I brought his sister Molly home as well to foster her. While she is just as precious as can be, I didn’t get a single call about people wanting to meet her. So she stayed, ad stayed some more. When I took her back down to the rescue place in December to get her fixed, she spent a week there. I really thought that she’d find someone during that time to fall in love with her and take her home. It would have been hard, as she’d been with me at least 4 months at that point, but I’d manage to say good bye. So imagine my pleasure and surprise that she still came home with me after her week’s vacation. Fast forward a few months to last Sunday, March 23. I got a call that they wanted to talk to me about Molly and to please call them back. So, I thought, with mixed emotions, this was the end of our time together. Someone chose her to join their family. I was surprised when they said they asked me if I’d be interested in adopting her since I’d had her so long. They just hadn’t gotten any queries about this sweetheart. I admit, the thought had crossed my mind, but I was thinking summer, when she’d have been with me for a year, I’d make ours a permanent arrangement. I had to schedule an appointment to take her to their vet anyhow, since she seems to have some severe skin allergies. So on Thursday I drove her down there to leave her overnight for her appointment Friday.

When I arrived, they asked me if I’d decided whether or not to keep her. I told them I’d been considering it as an option this summer. I do love that little girl and it would be so hard to give her up, but knowing she was going to a good home would help ease my sorrow at saying good bye. I also told them if I did adopt her, I couldn’t foster again for a while. I would be hesitant to bring another cat into the home, even temporarily, in my apartment but I’m hoping to buy my own home this summer and at that time I could foster again. I told them my biggest concern though was I didn’t have adoption fees right now due to unexpected expenses (i.e. taxes due). That is a non-issue. Since I’ve had her so long, the fees are waived. Part of the reason they asked me to adopt her was because if I didn’t, she’d be going to another rescue organization to see if they would have better luck finding her a home. She wouldn’t be leaving me for a family, she’d be leaving me for a rescue group, possibly not even a foster home. Well that clinched it for me! I couldn’t allow for her to be taken away from a loving home only to sit somewhere else, alone and scared and feeling abandoned while we hoped someone would keep her.

So it’s official. Molly will be living with me permanently! I had even settled on a new name for her for if I did adopt her later this year. Now, little Miss Molly is Cleopatra, Cleo for short, in keeping with my theme of Egyptian or Egyptian sounding names for my babies. Also, as you can see in the photos, she’s a brown tabby/white. I love the shapes of her coloring and her little white face that goes up to a point, as if she’s got her fur parted in the middle. But she also has stripes that run right up to the corner of her eyes and line the lower lid, as if she’s wearing eye makeup.

Now, this is where I am going to give my public service announcement for the week. You had to know this was coming if you’re still reading.  PLEASE please PLEASE, if you are considering adding furry children to your home, consider a rescue. There are SOOO many homeless animals out there with every bit as much love to give, if not more, as any store bought or breeder bought animal. These homeless fur babies deserve love too. Many of them had homes of their own for a while but were then abandoned, for any number of reasons (none of which are good if you ask me). Some have never known what it feels like to be loved, and that is just plain sad. There are so many organizations out there who can tell you all the ways rescuing IS better.

All of my children are rescues and they couldn’t be more wonderful. So the below message is from Queen Sheba, scaredy-cat but mellow Aker, wild man Amun, and now darling Cleo, and me…

Remember…

If you can’t adopt – foster…
If you can’t foster – sponsor…
If you can’t sponsor – volunteer…
If you can’t volunteer – donate…
If you can’t donate – educate, network, and cross post…
Everyone can do something, large or small, to help save a life…

It’s been a while since I was able to get in here. I had a family emergency that took me out of town for three weeks and I’ve been trying to play catch up. But I’ll save that story for another time. I’ll also try to get back on schedule with posting on the proper day. For this week, I thought I’d go for the comedic factor. My cats are very good at providing entertainment with their antics. And on that note… Take it away Amun!

A Day in the Life… of the Fur Kids

Saturday 3/15

Amun here reporting in. I’m not real happy with mommy right now. She stuck me in a cage as soon as she got up from her all night nap, after leaving me and my brother and sisters home alone ALL day yesterday when she knows my toe hurts so much. As if that wasn’t bad enough, she took me in a big noisy machine to that place I hate more than anything. It smells yucky there and scares me. She STILL was not done! We won’t even talk about the indignity of what those mean and scary people call “checking my temperature!” Then they stuck these fuzzy things inside my ears knowing they hurt me too! THEN they take me away from mommy to shoot watery stuff in my ears and stick more fuzzy things in them. Still not enough torturing of me today. They shaved all the fur off my toe, messed with my claw, and made me cry it hurt sooo much! Then they put all this cold wet stuff on it that burns.

Mommy still wouldn’t take me away from them! They stabbed me with sharp pointy metal things in three different places (Supposed to keep me “from getting sick” and my “toe from hurting”, they said). FINALLY she saves me and puts me back in the cage. This time it was ok though because she was taking me home. But she was just teasing me, how cruel! We get home and she tried to make me eat a really yucky food she called “medicine” to “make me feel better.” She wouldn’t even let me bathe my toe since I know that is always the best way to make boo boos feel better. All I wanted to do in stay safe in a box sleeping and she kept taking me out to “check and make sure my toe isn’t yucky and to keep me close to “watch me and make sure I’m ok.”

Mommy is SOOO mean to me! It’s a hard life being a proud kitty like me. Even harder when I hurt and don’t feel well and she won’t leave me alone the ONE time I keep crying and begging her to just leave me be! Then she went and left me AGAIN for the night! We had SOOO much water pouring from the sky, bright flashes of light, and terrible sky booms! I was already scared and hurting then that happened! I was terrified! Can’t I just have some peace and quiet and alone time? I’m traumatized for NINE lives after today’s torture!!!!!

Mommy Kelley’s Response: Geez Amun! Dramatic much? I was just trying to be a good mother and keep you healthy and if you weren’t complaining you were pouting. Sometimes I have to do something that hurts you or scares you to keep you from hurting more or making you sick later. Haven’t I made it up to you by giving you 5 times as many treats as usual and all the snuggles you are always asking for, going so far as to nip my ear, chin, nose, or finger when you think I’m neglecting you? Such a drama queen!

Tuesday 3/18

Amun here again. If you ever tell my mommy about this I’ll say you’re lying, but I am feeling a lot better now though I’m still not quite myself yet. My ears aren’t bothering me anymore and those three places they stabbed me are better again. My toe still hurts but not as bad as it did. I don’t even feel like I need to clean it all the time anymore. I still won’t let mommy touch it though. She keeps trying and I keep fighting. I even halfway forgive her for taking me to that terrible scary smelling place and torturing me like she did. I only needed my box the first day when I came home. I even was playing with my baby sister Molly the other night chasing the red dot. She did all the running, I just stayed where I was until the red dot got close, then I pounced! I’m back to sleeping with mommy again and have been for a couple days. I like stealing her pillow though to pay her back for torturing me. I still get mad if my brother and sisters get too close to my sore paw and I smack them HARD. I like to pretend I still hurt a lot though so mommy will give me more treats and attention. But she STILL keeps leaving me for long times. Doesn’t she know it’s all about ME? I need all her time and attention!

But guess what? My brother Aker isn’t feeling too well either! His ears are yucky and hurting like mine were. Now he’s the one getting tortured! Mommy stuck those fuzzy things in his ears tonight. She also put cold wet stuff in his ears that she calls “medicine.” (Did you notice that she keeps using that word? I don’t know what it means, but it must be bad because we ONLY get it when we don’t feel good.) This “medicine” is left from when Molly came to live with us last summer and her ears were all yucky like ours are now. So now Aker is mad at mommy too! He usually sleeps next to her but he won’t get very close tonight so she can’t touch his ears. He keeps shaking his head really hard trying to get that cold wet stuff out. Mommy says it will make him feel better but he doesn’t believe her either! I don’t feel bad for him at all! His torture isn’t nearly as bad as mine was. We’re both jealous of Sheba though because mommy isn’t doing anything to her like she is to us. Sheba is so lucky she’s not getting tortured too! Molly is safe also. Aker and I are planning a revolt!