Paws and Effect is teaming up with Petfinder and a bunch of other awesome cat blogs for Adopt The Internet Day on March 15. In celebration of Petfinder’s 15th anniversary, we cat bloggers are going to take over the internets with our stories about adoption and happy endings.
We want to share lots of happy ending stories, so we’re asking you to participate! Please write a comment to this post and tell us your adoption story. Three commenters will be picked at random to win a Purr More, Hiss Less coffee mug from the Paws and Effect Boutique at Zazzle.com! And on March 15, we’ll write a post featuring some of your stories.
To kick off the celebration, we’ve got a special treat for you! We found Mama’s diary and we’re going to share some of her entries about Thomas and his adoption. His adoption anniversary is March 12, so the timing is just purrfect!
Feb. 4, 2004: I’m going to be temporarily boarding a sweet boy cat named Tom for one of the local animal shelters. It’ll be a couple of weeks before I get to take him, though, because he’s sick with an upper respiratory infection right now. I hope I’ll be able to go over and visit him on Friday, but I called the shelter today and they said Tom is still in isolation and I probably wouldn’t be able to see him because of that. I’ll still go over there and fill out the fostering paperwork and stuff, and maybe I’ll at least catch a glimpse of him so I have an image to share with Sinéad and Siouxsie. Meanwhile, I’ll send him some Reiki in hopes of helping him heal.
Feb. 6, 2004: The high point of my day was a trip to the animal shelter to visit with Tom. He’s a really sweet boy, but he’s still pretty sick. He’s got a serious upper respiratory infection, and he snots all over the place, but he still knows how to cry and purr and be a loving kitty. I think he may have an abscess somewhere, too, because I smelled pus when I was in his enclosure. Well … he’s on antibiotics, and they’ll help with any abscess, too. He’s a tabby-and-white kitty, with a cute little tan spot on his chin. I borrowed a digital camera from work and took a few pictures of him while I was there.
Feb. 7, 2004: I went to visit Tom at the animal shelter after work today, and I found out that they took him to the vet this morning because he’d gotten a lot sicker and wouldn’t eat. So he’s on IVs and major antibiotics in hopes of getting him better.
But Tom’s core problem, in my opinion, is that he has a broken heart. And his broken heart is keeping him from healing. Tom’s original human had to go to a nursing home, so he and his two sisters were given up to the animal shelter. All three of them got sick, but the sisters recovered more quickly, so they were moved back into “regular” cat quarters, while Tom remained in isolation. So not only was he “abandoned” by his first human, but now he’s all alone without his two littermates, who he’s been with since the day he was born. Even the people at the shelter believe there’s a connection between these traumas and Tom’s failure to recover.
Of course, I fell in love with the little guy the moment I saw him, and I’m so sad to hear that he’s gotten sicker. I communicated with him and asked him to hang in there. I did say that if he really felt he needed to die at this time, I’d let him go, but if even a little part of him wants to hang on, I’d be there for him.
Feb. 9, 2004: I called the animal shelter today to see how Tom is doing. They told me he’s still at the vet and they still have him on IVs. The lady I talked to agrees that Tom’s depression is making it hard for him to get over this infection.
Thomas at the shelter, rubbing on a cage and purring with joy. You can't see it here, but his nose is covered with snot and crusties.
Feb. 19, 2004: I stopped at the shelter to pay a visit to Thomas the Cat. I’m glad I did, because I found out he’s been adopted! A really wonderful family adopted him and his two sisters, which is the best possible outcome for this kitty. I got to visit with him a little bit and say goodbye and congratulations. He’s completely recovered from his respiratory infection, and he’s raring to go live with his new family. Although the Ladies and I won’t get to foster him, we’re so glad we had the chance to get to know him and send him love and healing energy and prayers and Reiki so that he could heal not only his respiratory infection but his broken heart as well. Now he and his sisters are on their way to a new chapter in life, full of love and joy. Good for them!
Feb. 27, 2004: The shelter called and asked me if I was still interested in Thomas. “Of course!” I said. “What happened?” Apparently the little guy was fighting with his sisters and the owners couldn’t deal with the constant hostilities. I think they had just been separated for so long that they’d forgotten they used to be siblings.
March 4, 2004: I brought Thomas home today. He’s hiding in his “safe room,” a.k.a. my office. I’ve only seen him twice all day — and that was just his tail as he went flying behind the bookcase. I sure hope the poor little guy comes around soon!
March 6, 2004: Thomas is slowly coming out of his shell. I dosed all the cats with Rescue Remedy again last night, and then I got to thinking about homeopathic remedies. I’ve learned a lot about homeopathy from a good friend who’s a veterinary homeopath, and I started recalling our discussions and listening for a whisper from my intuition. As I started going through the homeopathic apothecary I have here in my cabinet, I came across a packet of remedies I got from my vet homeopath friend the last time I visited her in England. One of these was Ignatia 200C–as soon as I picked it up, my intuition went dingdingdingding, so I took one pillule out of the packet and gave it to Thomas, who was very good about taking his medicine.
Once I’d dosed him, I went to look up Ignatia in a basic homeopathy book to see what the Ignatia constitutional type is and what it’s used to treat. And there it was in black and white — Ignatia is used to treat grief and depression resulting from a major emotional shock.
An hour later I was in the kitchen refilling my water glass, and there was Thomas, sitting right by the French door that leads from the office to the kitchen, looking out curiously at me and the Ladies. Two hours later I went to bed, and as I was falling asleep, I heard Thomas scratching in his litterbox. When I went to give him breakfast this morning, I saw that he’d eaten every kibble in his dish.
It wasn't too long before Thomas and Sinéad started snuggling together.
March 13, 2004: The sweet little stripey-guy, Thomas, is officially a member of the family. I signed his adoption papers yesterday. He seems to know it, too; now he’s venturing into the living room and even sitting on Sinéad and Siouxsie’s kitty condo (with their permission, of course).
Awwwwww! Isn’t that sweet? *purrrrr*
JaneA Kelley is a punk rock cat mom and award-winning blogger. She is a regular columnist for Catster Magazine, and she and the Paws and Effect Gang share a home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
My story is of adopting Kismet almost three years ago now. My little girl, Psyche, a black and white tuxedo, had cancer.. and I had to put her to sleep a month shy of her 6 birthday. I was heartbroken and so was her older brother Karma, who was 17 at the time and had never been an only cat. At my vets suggestion I went to one of our local shelters to look for a new addition. As I walked in the door, there was a cat room to my left and on the cat condo was a beautiful black and white tuxedo with a white bindi in the middle of her forehead. She looked at me with these amazing yellow eyes. I told her I couldn’t take her, she looked too much like my Psyche and I just didn’t think I could handle that.
I went to the desk and after they checked things out they said I could go and look around to pick out a cat. I went into the three other rooms first, looking at each cat but none of them had the “spark” or the recognition that I was looking for. I went finally to the room this little tuxedo girl with the bindi was in and as I opened the door she licked my hand and started purring loudly. I started to pet her and she couldn’t get enough. Another woman came in, this little furry lady let her get one gentle pet before she moved far away from her and came back to me. She then jumped off the cat condo, twined around my feet, raced over took a bite of food, then came to twine around my feet again. At that point I knew I had lost this battle and been chosen to be this little lady’s mom. Her name had been Chubbs.. she had double paws on both front feet and white whiskers and eyebrows. As we left the shelter and I put her carrier in my car I said out loud.. “Well you were fated to be my baby.. so I’ll name you Kismet.”
Within 24 hours.. Kismet and Karma were friends. I’m not sure which of my babies has come back.. but obviously one of them did.
Most of my “adoptions” have been foster failures. The best might be Tim and Tom. I don’t know why they were originally brought to the shelter but they were put in one of two community housing places with some other cats. Tom was outgoing, but his brother Tim was very shy. After a couple of months, they were adopted. YEAH!! And then brought back as the guy who adopted them gave them a week and they wouldn’t come out of the bedroom. Sigh….
After about 2 weeks back, they were gone again. I got excited presuming they had been adopted. Nope – a huge fight had broken out and the boys were back in medical. Tim’s nose had taken a beating and Tommy was being blamed for starting everything. To this day, I suspect another cat went after Tim and Tommy stepped in to protect his brother, but I can’t prove it. At that point, the shelter refused to put them back in community housing and they were to be split up. I suggested putting them in the “special adoptable” program and putting them in foster care. I was given a form the next day and told I could pick them up that Saturday. WHAT?? I said foster care, not MY care.
So they came to live with my 3 other cats and they were part of the general population within a couple of days – out and about and everything. I fostered them for several months and when someone called to potentially adopt them, I panicked and finalized their adoptions. They have been a permanent part of the family since 2006.
My first “adoption” I guess was a senior cat (we figured about 15) whose human was sick and having to move into a home. None of his family wanted the cat so I took her in. I had “Sweetipie” for 6 years before I had to put her down at the age of 21. During that time I took in a cat (Smokey) that my father was feeding outside as a friend for Sweetie as her doggy buddy had to be put down and she was lonely. There were adjustments but they eventually got along.
During this time I decided to become a foster momma and waited patiently for my first fosters to be caught and brought to me. I failed my first fostering as I ended up adopting one of the kittens that would have been hard to place. My cat smokey was lonely when “Sweetie” died but wasn’t sure if she liked this new boy here without his brother to keep him occupied.
I have continued to foster and have had some very interesting experiences and could have easily adopted a whole slew of the cats/kittens that have gone through my home.
I was a dog lover until the minute I met Rocky. He was four years old, he had long black hair, and he hated my guts (temporarily). I had the pleasure of caring for him for nine years, and after I put him down I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to get another cat right away. But one week later, my mom dragged me to an adoption day at Pet Smart, and I saw this huge pair of green eyes in a cage. And he was black! I knew right away that I had found my next cat. Pepper was 2 years old at the time, and he’s a short hair black cat. His human was forced to go into a nursing home after a stroke. My heart was broken for him. The woman from the SPCA took him out of his cage and handed him to me, and he was all love and purrs. I couldn’t not go home with him.
I’ve had Pepper for two years, and he is the happiest cat I’ve ever seen. He’s always purring! One of his very favorite things to do is sit on my lap and cuddle, while purring of course. (He’s sitting on my leg as I type this right now). He loves to play with toy mice, and he gets into anything and everything because he’s also the most curious cat I’ve ever seen. He has such an enthusiasm for life never ceases to amaze me–and it’s contagious! I adopted three year old Zoozey eight months after I adopted Pepper, and Zoozey is absolutely devoted to him. (Right now Pepper is snuggling with my leg, and Zoozey is snuggling with him).
If I had it do all over again, I would adopt more adult cats. Both Pepper and Zoozey had sad stories (he was given up by his elderly owners who couldn’t afford the pet deposit at their assisted living facility), and I’m so glad I could give them a good home. They are the most loving and sweet cats, and I can tell that they’re both so glad to have a home. Every day I’m grateful that they’re in my life.
I have quite a few adoption stories but I will tell you about my cat now, Heidi, and maybe about one other very special kitty story,
I knew I wanted a cat, so when my boyfriend and I were making plans to move in together part of that process involved trips to the SPCA to look at cats. We were both newly out of very bad situations in life, and maybe that’s why Heidi appealed to us so much. Or maybe it was because when we walked into the cat room, she saw us coming and stuck her paws out of the cage like she was trying to wave us over, as though she was saying, Hey guys, I’m over here! Heidi is a medium-fur grey tabby and I have always preferred shorthaired cats, but when we got her into the “interview” room she was so affectionate and friendly, we both really liked her. She did this tail-quivering thing that I had never seen before, but which I have since read is a special greeting reserved for special people like family members.
Heidi was a mess. She had evidently been a stray for a very long time and was underweight. She had a URI, conjunctivitis, ear mites, fleas, open sores all over her head and shoulder area, abscesses, just all sorts of things wrong with her. But we thought she was spunky and cute, and having not long before come out of bad circumstances ourselves, we thought it was fitting that we should get a cat who’d been through a hard time.
We visited Heidi in the pound again a few days later and they had her in the sick room. She looked miserable and was hiding in the back of her cage. Honestly, I had wanted a black cat, not a longhaired cat. But looking at her, I realized that nobody was going to want to adopt this cat who was all scrunched up at the back of her cage and covered with sores and snot. And we had both really liked her. We took her home.
We didn’t even know Heidi was shy when we adopted her – she loved us so much right away. The first time we ever left the house after we brought her home, when we got back there was no sign of her anywhere. We finally found her all flattened out under the bedcovers, hiding. It soon became apparent that she would hide every time we left, and not come out until we were home again. That’s how she got her name – I made a joke and said, “She’s really hide-y, we could call her Heidi!” And as soon as i called her Heidi she came running to me, she was just so ready for us to call her something.
Not long after we adopted Heidi, I ended up sitting on an airplane next to the volunteer who showed her to us. She remembered Heidi and told me that she was due to be euthanized that week. They thought she was too shy to be socialized to humans, and she had all those health issues so they thought she was unadoptable. Really? Unsocialized? Heidi rides around on my shoulder giving me nose rubs. She is incredibly smart, and almost always does what I ask her to. She is one of the most socialized cats I’ve ever lived with – in fact I could swear she understands English! The first time I ever asked her to “get down” from the counter, she immediately jumped down. And so on. She is truly a great cat.
Heidi is gorgeous now. I wish I had before and after pictures but my early pictures of her are all blurry because as soon as I tried to get her attention for the camera, she would run to me. So I have a bunch of blurry, out-of-focus pictures of a cat face right in the camera lens. After about five or six years Heidi finally decided strangers might be okay, sometimes. She has relaxed a lot and trusts us absolutely. Of course, she did that from the start. I think that adopting her was one of the best things I ever did – she is the best cat I’ve ever had!
This is the story of how I brought Nancy home with me. My boyfriend and I had already adopted a male cat, a tabby we named Sid. We wanted a female to keep him company and we were going to name her Nancy. I wanted a black cat, so we pretty much had a specific idea of what we were looking for. But Nancy proved to be hard to find. At one point I even put up wanted posters, but still no Nancy.
One night I was walking to the store, which was located on a busy street some distance from my house. I caught movement out of the corner of my eye, in the shadows of a parking lot. And there was a tiny black kitten. I knew right away that this was Nancy. I went over there and started talking to her. She was very small and scruffy looking, and was quite fearful. Behind that parking lot was a trailer park where the people let their cats breed indiscriminately, so that there were masses of half-wild cats roaming around the place. Clearly this kitten must have come from there, and was possibly exploring to see if she could find a better place. Only she had ended up in a parking lot next to a busy street.
I talked to the kitten quietly and gained her trust to the point that she let me touch her. I was debating the idea of bringing her home, since I am not in the habit of just picking up cats from anywhere and taking them. After all, what if she was someone’s precious pet? It seemed doubtful but I had to think about it. Just then, a car full of drunk teenagers pulled up and parked right near where I was sitting. They sat there, drinking and blaring music, and then one of the girls saw the kitten and said, “Hey look, a kitten! Get it for me!” And one of the boys quickly snatched up the kitten and handed her to the girl. This was not acceptable. I stood up and said, “That’s my cat! Give her back!” I insisted, and finally they handed over Nancy to me. Clearly I had to take her home.
I started walking back to my house with Nancy. It was a distance of about a quarter mile, and there was a lot of traffic going by. I got about a third of the way and Nancy started to panic and do the “exploding cat” thing. I knew there was a good chance I wouldn’t be able to hold onto her, and she could run into an empty lot or into the street. So I thought fast and did the best thing I could think of – I grabbed her by the scuff of her neck with my teeth and carried her that way. (Of course I also supported her by her hind feet.) I carried her most of the way home that way, while making momma cat noises to her. It worked – Nancy went into passive hanging kitten mode, and I was able to get her home. She and Sid ended up being the best of friends!
p.s. Of course, I also did the responsible thing and asked at the trailer park if anybody was missing a black kitten. They weren’t, so I kept her.
2 weeks before Christmas a security guard at work heard noises coming from a pipe in the ground and when investigating found a 4-5 week old kitten. They called me to come look at it obviously the second I picked him up he was mine (or more like I was his!!). I took him straight to the vets to be checked over and thankfully everything was okay. A few hours later I got another call a second and third kitten were found in the Skip, they had new homes before I managed to get downstairs.
The next day we had severe snow storms so they were found just in time. However a week after the find 2 more kittens were found in the Skip how they managed to survive the snow and freezing weather I don’t know, all I can say is their mum must have been a very good mother. My friend adopted these 2 babies.
As the last 2 kittens were found I was adopting a friend for my rescued little boy (Eddie). When I got to the house where the kittens were I found a litter of 7, an elderly cat of 18, another litter of older kittens (about 5 of them) and 2 other mature cats. I can’t say they were being treated badly but they were not being looked after aswell as could be. The owner could not afford so many cats. Upon discussing with her the 18 year old he so obviously had kidney problems and I was also certain he had a thyroid problem (having cared for 2 cats with these problems the signs are quite obvious).
The litter of 7 just didn’t seem right to me, upon one of the kittens picking me as his owner I took him straight to the vets. The vet immediately told me he had the flu (which wasn’t that obvious no runny nose etc.).
I immediately telephoned the woman and convinced her that they all needed vet treatment immediately including the 18 year old. She agreed to contact the local animal resucue centre and have them all taken into care so they could get the correct treatment.
It has been about 9 weeks since I was adopted by the kitten from this house (Denis) and he still isn’t right, his chest is wheezy, and he was sneezing again this morning. Obviously extra care has to be given to Denis to try and make him stronger. But with him getting fresh chicken, fish, beef, turkey and ham (he wont touch cat food) but he has now started eating Comlete Crunchies too. He is still put to bed with his fleece blankets and his water bottle. He is so demanding and has terrible temper tantrums but what can I do I can’t tell him off because he still isn’t out of danger.
Eddie and Denis from the second they were introduced have been inseperable, it’s amazing within 30 minutes of being introduced they were cuddled up together. The only thing is Eddie is about twice the size of Denis now although they are roughly the same age. Eddie is the psycho of the family he never tires out, normal kittens sleep a lot but not Eddie. I get him out of his room about 5am and except for short naps he doesn’t stop until bedtime about 9.30 at night. I have had 9 kittens before Eddie and this one is so different to them all, mad as a hatter (but so adorable). Denis is so much slower than Eddie and obviously being so small he can’t jump the way Eddie does or go as fast. Denis is a plodder who make take longer to get there but enjoys himself on the journey.
Sadly his siblings who were all taken into care along with their mother all died from complications of the flu, it turns out mum was interbred and has obviously passed on something to all the kittens, they think Denis has survived due to being fed on fresh meat and being kept nice and warm at all times. So all of my friends who said I was spoiling Denis too much and was making a rod for my own back by letting his temper trantrums go unpunished, I don’t care he is still alive and kicking and if it means I have 15 – 20 years of being disctated to by Denis at least he has survived. So I have my fingers crossed for a long, healthy and happy future for Eddie and Denis.
my adoption story for the litter of kittens that were born in my Home on November 27, 2010. Marie, Louisa, and Burlios. I received Babe the momma cat from a friend a good few weeks before ThanksGiving in 2010 and we didn’t she was pregnant at the time as she was and still is so petite. Her appetite was finicky and she just seemed so playful. With some vet training I have I started to notice her acting wierld, she would pace about the house and mew and search out places along the house and lay there,, needless to say she was restless. I then knew she had to of been pregnant after watching her that ThanksGiving night. I hurried up and collected towels and things in case she needed help. Her labor lasted for three days and on the night of the 27th she had her kittens, 4 were born but sadly the first one a dark gray kitten had a birth defect and was not breathing after momma cleaned him off. I tried to revive Him but I couldn’t. She quickly had three other kittens two females and a male. a white and gray lil girl who i named Marie, A black and white kitten named Burlios and then the smallest one who had orange, black, tan and white named Louisa. * Over the weeks they grew like weeds, tumbling when taking their first steps and falling head first into the water bowl and litter box. I had a few scares with the smallese Louisa but The director from the Purrfect Haven Cat rescue she helped me get her back on track. I went to the Purrfect Haven Cat rescue which is a local non kill cat rescue here in the state of Delaware for help in finding homes from the kittens. They are an amazing group and worked very hard and I was finially able to once the kittens were ready to leave momma take them to the local PetSmart store and they found a spot with all the other wonderful kittes at the adoption center. On Feb 20, 2011 The kittens finally went to their furrever Home. I was able to go to the Petsmart here in Dover, Delaware and actually meet the new family. They were at first only going to adopt two of the three , but after a while and a little coxing from their Sons, they took Marie as well. This was a wonderful but emotional day for me. I am so happy to see all of the kittens go to one family. I was told that since Purr-fect Haven Cat Rescue has been opened this was only the 2nd time since 2002 since a whole litter of kittens have been adopted by one family at one time. Kinda made History. I only pray that the kittens will grow to be happy and healthy in their new home. I will forever miss them. I still have babe with me. She is a calico and a sweet lil girl who loves to play. I would love to find her a furrever Home.
I wanted a second cat, but my husband thought one was enough. So I volunteered for a local shelter to clean cages and snuggle kitties at Pet
Smart. After several months of doing this every Saturday, a mature kitty named Sophia was in the large cage with some adorable kittens. She’d groom the kittens, and take care of them. I’d take her out of the cage and she was a snugglebug. She purred and headbutted and loved the attention. The next Saturday, Sophia was still in the cage with a new set of kittens. Same story. She’d groom and take care of the kittens. The third Saturday, a third set of kittens. I couldn’t stand it any longer. That day I adopted Sophia, estimated to be 5 years of age, with very few teeth. She lived with us and was a fabulous cat until she crossed the rainbow bridge. It’s been a year now, and I still miss her. I’m glad I was chosen to give her 3 years of love.
My husband and I had been wanting to adopt a cat for quite some time. I had just moved to New York City and he joined me a few months later. Every weekend for a few months we would say “Let’s go to the ASPCA today and look at kitties!” but every weekend we chickened out. There were lots of considerations! Could we afford a cat? Would we have time to spend with it? Would I be able to handle it (I had always been a little afraid of animals growing up)? Finally, we went. Because we are not the richest of folks, we had decided to get a cat that was over three years old because of the waived adoption fee. The ASPCA in East Manhattan was HUGE and seemed like a very, very nice home for the hopefully-soon-to-be-adopted kitties. We had to fill out a personality survey and then we looked around at the different cats. There weren’t very many older than three years old though… and the ones that were that old had health problems that, at this point, we were not prepared to deal with. In one of the habitats, I noticed a small kitty chilling in his litter box. I said, “What’s this one called?” and read on his collar that his name was… Dopey! But he was six months old so we ruled him out. The ASPCA employee kept showing us around… but all I could think about was Dopey! We bit the bullet, paid the $75 adoption fee, and took him home! He was very shy at first but now he is the sweetest kitty ever! We love him so much and are so happy we adopted him :)
We were already owned by two cats (collectively named “the Pooses”) when we bought a house last summer. We’d been talking about rescuing a dog when we had more space, but adding a third cat was still an option. Our new township was holding a free-adoption weekend, so Hubs and I decided to go take a look.
“No commitments,” he warned.
We walked into the kitty room, full of kittens and older cats. One in particular, Donald, was spinning in a tizzy in his cage, food and water flying everywhere as he threw himself at the cage door in excitement.
“Do not pick that one,” he warned.
We checked out other cats, even headed to the dog room (Hubs immediately recoiled at all the barking; I knew a dog was out of the question then). We went back to the cat room, where I pulled out Donald, a four-year-old beautiful blue-tipped tabby. A volunteer mentioned he’d been there a while. He’d been rescued from a hoarder’s house, one of 25 cats. He snuggled, he meowed, he looked at me, I fell in love.
“If you want him, get him,” he sighed.
We brought Donald home, where he was renamed Ben (the Pooses’ full names are Woodward and Bernstein, Woody and Bernie for short, after the Watergate reporters; Ben Bradlee was their editor). Benny is the most loving cat I’ve ever known, and that’s a miracle considering the Pooses love attention. He’s a snuggler, very active and loves unconditionally. The Pooses have been slow to accept him but they’re coming around.
I woke up the other night to find all three in a tight little pile between my feet at the end of the bed.
We adopted two kitties after our 2nd of 3 elderly cats had passed away. One came from kijiji.com and the other from PetSmart. My heart was broken and I was leary to adopt again but I decided to look. I was surfing the internet and came across a wide-eyed little tortie, so darn cute. I wanted her so badly, I was hoping that no-one had adopted her yet. I emailed as fast as I could and the reply came back that someone would drop her off. I had asked for help to name the kitty. I called to my last cat who had passed away. I loved her so dearly and I said what should I call her. The first word that came to mind was Meeshoo. I had no idea what it meant but that would be her name. She arrived at the door in a small black blanket. The young girl handed her to me and I was thrilled. I took her to the bedroom with her blanket and laid her down on my chest. She was a little scared. We laid there all afternoon and I had fallen asleep. I woke up to my own snoring and looked at Meeshoo and she started to kiss my nose. My heart melted. What a wonderful kitty she has been.
Our oldest cat was dying and Meeshoo stood by her side every day. She passed with the help of the vet and Meeshoo and the rest of the family were crushed. 20 days later, we called PetSmart and asked if they had any kittens. They had one left so we raced to go and see. She was a tortie just like Meeshoo and they were the same age. We held her and she was so affectionate. It was love at first sight. Jazzy came home 2 days before Christmas. Poor Jazzy had been wandering the streets. Thank goodness she was rescued. She came home and Meeshoo took to her right away. They were pals! Jazzy scoped the rooms out and Meeshoo followed behind. They have slept together almost every night since. We have adorable pictures of Meeshoo with her paws around Jazzy and vice versa. Both of them have been adorable kitties. They are full of snuggles and kisses.
A curious thing happened regarding Meeshoo’s name. As the months went by, we commented on how much Meeshoo had looked like a little teddy bear. I looked up her name on the internet but found nothing. One day while at my doctor’s office, the assistant had asked what I had named the kitties. A gentleman I had been talking to while both of us were waiting for our appointments solved the mystery and I was mystified. Meeshoo was the Polish name for a small teddy bear. Things are just meant to be.
My name is William and I was born on death row with my brother and two sisters, all four of us are black and white just like mum. When we were just four weeks old we went to the hospital to get something fixed and they put this chip thing in near our necks. Mum however did not because it turns out she was expecting more kittens already. When we were six weeks old a man in a white coat took mum away and we never saw her again.
The next day a lady named Niki took all four of us and a lot of other kittens to a small quiet place a long way away. Every week end we would go to different shops and meet people for a kitten re-homing program that niki runs. My sister was given a new home to a lovely lady not far away, we don’t see her but we know she has a good home.
My brother Marcus became very sick and had to keep away from us and all the other kittens. Nori my other sister and I went to a shop way up north with about 15 other kittens and this family came in the door. I don’t know what it was but I just had to stare at the man. He talked to Niki and picked me up and lay me in his arms and I was in absolute heaven. His wife picked up Nori and the introduced us to their little girl. We went home with them that day and we have a fabulous home, lots of brids come close to the windows, there are nice places where the sun shines in and a wood fire to sleep in front of when it gets cold.
We had been here for about 6 months when Niki called in to see how we were going and make sure we were all happy and well cared for. We also heard that Marcus was better now but only had one last weekend at a shop and if no one gave him a home he would go back to the shelter.
Sunday afternoon the family went out to see Niki and ask about our mum. It turns out that mum had six more kittens and all of them have new homes and Mum Too! But when they came home they had the best surpise of all, They brought Marcus home to live with us. Marcus was thrilled he was running around and playing with toys, we showed him where to get food and water and where the litter box is. We have been here for nearly two years now and life is just Purrrrrrrrrrrfect!
William Schuurman
A beautiful little tabby, who I named Mr Whiskas appeared at my back door. I gave him some food and water. He continued to visit every evening until one night he didnt appear. About 3 weeks later Mr Whiskas or Mrs Whiskas I should say didnt visit alone. She had with her 3 little kittens. I was so shocked and concerned for them all that I rang my vet to ask advice. He said to carry on feeding them and the mother until It was possible to catch them. One night, they all came to my garden and waited for their food, as usual. As the kittens ate their food the mother looked at me, turned away and ran away through the gardens. I continued to feed her babies but sadly she didnt return. I then felt it my responsibilty to bring up this little girls kittens. I now have Milo, Jake and Bella. Whatever happened to Mrs Whiskas? I felt that she had put her trust in me to take care of her darling little kittens.
From Marian V., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
My first rescued kitty was just that rescued. My daughter saw a man trying to get a dog to kill the kitten. She grabbed the kitten and brought her home to me. The second kitty I got from a rescue agency. She was and still is very shy. The third kitty was left by a former neighbor that moved away and left two kittens. I took one and my daughter found a home for the other one. I have had all three neutered. There are times when I am sitting in my recliner that I have all three of them on my lap. The male weighs 15 lbs. He is solid black and looks like a miniature panther.
From Karen L., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
My Rodney was at Cat’s Protection in Bournemouth and they thought no-one would ever want him because he was filthy, messy, bald patches…We saw him, he purred at us, we took him home! He was only with us for a little over a year but he was a real gentleman cat and we missed him so much when he died. Cassie cat still sits on the stone we buried him under 2 years later!
From Melinda R., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
We rescued our 2 cats from abusive owners. They were so sad at first, but now they are spoiled rotten.
From Sue S., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
I have several but I’ll share Antonio’s. My cat Boo passed in October in her sleep. The house was so empty and silent and I just couldn’t bear it. I was going to wait till I had paid off a massive vet bill but just couldn’t.
I stumbled on to the adopt a pet website and set up a search. My requirements were simple: tuxedo over the age of five. Several days later I had an e-mail from them about a cat named Mouse, he was in Arlington(TX) Animal Services. He was seven years old and declawed. They are a high intake shelter and we all know what that means. His intake date was October 11th and he was home with me on October 15th.
He is now Antonio for Antonio Banderas, he was too elegant a gentleman to remain Mouse. Antonio was an owner surrender, I want to believe that he was not given up lightly.
A note here I don’t believe in declawing, it’s barbaric but I wasn’t going to say no to this sweet boy. I have to laugh here. I hate express way driving. I drove a total of seventy miles to get him. When I walked through the door I gave them my name and said I’m here to take Mouse home. No I’m thinking about adopting him, just I’m taking him home. I was taking him home no matter what.
From Lia G-B, who shared this story on our Facebook page:
My furbaby Allie was 10 months old and died unexpectedly (went in to get spayed & had complications). I was so lonely and depressed 1week later, that I went to a kitty boarding facility that gave away free kittens. I had wanted another grey kitten. They said they’d have one available in a few weeks (when finished weaning) but that Mr. B needed a home. He had been found near the facility hit by a car, and near death, and rescued. His foster parents were no longer able to care for him. They took care of him after the surgery (they named him Mr. Bigglesworth because he was completely shaved and looked like Dr. Evil’s cat in the Austin Powers movie). He was missing an ear and looked really mangy. I didn’t really want him, but I saw his beautiful, scared eyes as they were putting him back in a cage (after being in a home) and my heart went out to him. I agreed to foster him until my grey kitten was ready, and sure enough he decided that he had found a permanent home with me! :) I did get the grey kitten and his brother (I no longer have them) and now Mr. B is the King of the castle!
From Emilie H., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
Lou Lou and I, Annie, adopted our momma in 2000.Her kitty, BJ, who was a handsome, long black haired boy, with green eyes, lived to be 13, but had been in kitty heaven for a year already. She came to our temporary home, a humane society, to help us find her on a beautiful, sunny, autumn Saturday. After 4 hours of meeting kitties in cages, she finally came into a room with no cages and just sat on the floor in the middle. I had fallen asleep with my friends while I waited for her. But when she came in I immediately emerged from my warm nest and curled right up in her lap…HOME!!! She said “there you are” to me! I knew she wouldn’t mind my silly nervous skin condition, or that Lou Lou was blind, so I wasn’t afraid! We’ve been living so happily together ever since!!
From Caroline B., who shared this story on our Facebook page:
I went to the local SPCA and they suggested if you want to know a kitty’s personality and whether it is a good furever fit–to adopt one who is 4 months or older. As always, I wanted to take all the kitties home. But I wanted to make sure I was making the right decision, so I thought I’d check out the next closest SPCA, 1 hour away. This SPCA had kitten, teenager and older adult rooms. I checked out the kittens first as most people do. You can’t resist their cuteness. They had so many people wanting to adopt. But mindful of what had been suggested to me I went to the teenager room. My heart was stolen immediately by a 4 month old Tuxedo kitty the moment I walked in the door. All dressed up in his tux, being the excellent greeter he is, he followed me around meowing as I said hello to the rest of the kitties. He is now 6, this month in fact, and he still has his cute tilted head stance while meowing as if to say, “when are we going to the party, I am ready to go!”
A few years ago I had a grey tabby boy named Ashes. Sadly though one day he ran outside when nobody was looking. My neighbor has found him on the side of the road, he was hit by a car. I was really sad and hadn’t gotten another cat for years. Well in January 2010 I decided to take a look at the local Humane society. They had 4 kittens, but one of them caught my eye immediately. She was a beautiful tiny little brown tabby. Her markings were really striking, she looked a lot like a Bengal, with some greyish brown fur and black spots all over, with tabby stripes on her face. I took her out of the cage and she immediately licked my nose and started headbutting me. I filled out the papers and brought her home within the hour. I named her Church (pet sematary is among my favorite books)
In November 2010, I was sitting at the computer playing a game with Church cuddled up in my lap when I got a call from my sister. I had just visited them a few days before with Church, her kids loved her and she loved them, so my sister decided to get them a kitten. She picked up her baby from the shelter and named her Daisy. She called and told me Daisy had a brother who had gotten very upset the minute they took his sister away. The next day she picked him up for me and the vet told her he had been meowing nonstop since Daisy left. I was in love the second I saw him. He is a little tuxedo boy, with some nice black markings on his muzzle. They reminded me of a gladiator`s helmet, so I named him Spartacus (Sparta for short). Church adopted him and thinks he is her baby.
Sparta and Church are opposites lol. Church is calm, I cant count on one hand how many times I`ve heard her meow, she rarely purrs even though she is very snuggly, and she eats very calmly and very little, in fact she`s barely bigger than she was when she was a kitten! Sparta on the other hand is hyperactive, he is very vocal, sometimes he wants something, sometimes he just feels like singing, he purrs all the time, and he eats like a little piggy, and he`s bigger than an average cat even though hes not fully grown! Both however are very affectionate and loving, Sparta is shy with strangers but warms up pretty quick, Church makes friends with EVERYBODY. I“m so happy I have my two babies, they are the sweetest little kitties ever!