Ten cats, ten stories UPDATE

UPDATE: SEE BOTTOM of POST

This is Kiki (Kikki, KiKi) here with
Gabriella (Gabby, Gabs, Skunk) because their human family became homeless.


This is Jet, the baby He's a kitten now, but he's very well mannered and will be a fine cat.  He came from a feral colony, but you can see there's nothing wild about him.  (Well besides foolish kittenish behavior that is)

Well, that was him the day after we caught him.

And this is him now. I couldn't get a picture of him like I usually see him, I can't seem to use the camera when he is lying on my keyboard snuggled around my hands. Hard to work around, but oh so lovey.

Chi.  Her mom dropped her and her siblings in the dust in front of my door.  They were wet newborns and had to be bottle-fed.  Like all bottle fed babies, Chi is spoiled and doesn't think of herself as a cat.  She would be a lot happier living somewhere there weren't those pesky kitties around so she could sleep on someone's face in peace and not have to share the warm bodies at night.   She was born crippled, but therapy gave her strong legs, and she was a sick kitten who the vet dubbed a miracle.  She no longer is a special needs cat, but at 6 years of age, now she has prejudice working against her.






Dora is most definitely a special needs cat.  She has asthma and a condition called stomatitis.  Right now, her condition is controlled with supplements and special dental gels, but in her future there may have to be a special type of dental operation.  She loves to sit high on your chest so that you can't see around her, is a great alarm clock, loves to talk and makes a good secretary.  She reminds you when to feed the dogs, when to medicate anyone on meds, when to take the dogs outside and when to sit awhile with the kitties.  Especially her.  She watches the trains go by and has taught Ebonetta to enjoy doing the same.  But exploration is her first great love, since she could first toddle. 

Salem is considered special needs, she has a condition called herpes (don't worry, it's not the kind people can get), but she doesn't have many problems from it.  Once in awhile she gets a teary eye and loses the hair around her eyes and mouth.  Usually that is a sign of stress in her, like when we have an overload of cats waiting for adoption.  She was left here when her owner died.

Ebonetta wrote her story in an earlier post.  Sadly, neither she nor her brother Onyx have found their forever homes yet.















Gabby (written about earlier along with her housemate KiKi) is also still available.










Amber is another special kitty.  She has asthma and needs medication mostly in wet desert summers.  (I know, sounds like an oxymoron, but we live in Tucson.  Normally most of our rain falls in the summer monsoons.)  This year was very dry and she has had only mild attacks.  She recently had all but two teeth pulled, and she is only six, but she had a hard beginning to her life.  Her very feral mother brought her and her siblings into our garage and came to our door, crying until I followed her to the babies.  They were soaked in oil and covered in grease.  It took a long time to get those kittens healthy, and a longer time to get Amber so that she could keep food down.  Turns out she is allergic to beef, chicken, wheat and corn.  Her very favorite food in the world?  Doughnuts.  She will try to pry them out of your mouth if she knows you have them.




This is Onyx, another sweet rescue feral.  He loves to hug and be hugged, and when you try to leave, he wraps himself around your feet.  He loves to sit on you as much as his sister Ebonetta likes to sit near you.  But where she likes to pet you, he only likes to be petted.



Finally, there's Bubba, Dora's brother.  Take out a camera and he's there, posing.  If you want a picture of someone else, you have to be sneaky or his face or feet will appear magically in the frame.  He was my mom's cat and she kept telling him how pretty he is.  It must have sunk in.   He is as healthy as his sister is sickly.  He likes to bathe people and kittens and the young cats adore him, sleeping on top of him and trying to get him to play.  However, he doesn't much like Kiki, we aren't sure why, and he really would prefer fewer cats to bathe.

I'm sure you are wondering why we would allow any and all of these cats to be adopted, but as much as we love them, we are in rescue.   And right now, rescue is hard.  One organization I have fostered for in the past is having so many problems getting homes that they have not taken in any more for a year.  And that is a large group with a lot of foster parents.  Our local humane society, who normally shows my kittens for me,  is inundated with cats and kittens who's families are homeless and desperate, and doesn't have the room.  If we can place any of these cats, especially the kittens, we will be able to open up room to save others that are either special needs, need special handling or just need more time.

I have sad news. The economy has struck us hard. We are down to one income, which is limited to minimum wage and 19.5 hours while I am in school, and we are filing for bankruptcy. We do not want to risk that these wonderful cats are subjected to less than good care, so  we have struck a deal with the local Humane Society to take them. They took seven healthy, adoptable cats. You can see them at  http://www.hssaz.org/site/PageServer?pagename=adoption_adoptable_animals, HSSA-Humane Society of Southern Arizona,  3450 N. Kelvin Blvd, Tucson, AZ  327-6088 If you are looking for a loving companion, please take one of these wonderful kitties. Don't be put off by their photos, they are scared and their photos were taken before they were given a chance to understand why their worlds are turned upside down. To see what they really look like, see above.

Do You think black cats are unlucky?

Due to popular request, this post has been repeated for Halloween.  Thank you for the many kind remarks.  And yes, the black cats are still available to the right homes.

Please fell free to copy, link or use this post.

A bride will have a happy married life if a black cat sneezes near her on her wedding day.

 Old Proverb

     For some reason, here in the United States, black cats are the hardest cats to adopt out.  Maybe because here they are generally viewed to be unlucky,  weavers of black magic, in league with the devil and familiars of witches.  But in many parts of the world, they are the luckiest of cats.
     Do you believe that a black cat crossing your path is bad luck?  In some countries such as Britain and Japan it is just plain lucky.  It may be seen as visible proof that evil has passed you by without harming you, or even that the cat is warning you of danger ahead, and maybe even slowing your step so that you may miss the danger itself.  Some people believe that in order for the cat to be lucky or to ward evil from your path, you must greet the cat politely.  That's just good manners, and cats do appreciate good manners.
     A black cat walking towards you brings good luck with it.  If it turns away, your anti-luck forcefield is working strong.  Be prepared.
     In Latvia, the farmers rejoice when they see a black cat in their grain silos.  It is believed to be a sign of Rungis, the god of harvests.  For any mice in the silo, they are also unlucky to those who's path the cat crosses, or for those who cross the path of the cat for that matter.
     Sailors and their wives used black cats for luck.  While a sailor was at sea, keeping a black cat in the house was a way a wife could keep her husband safe at sea.  These lucky charms became so valuable that they were often stolen.  What I want to know is if another woman merely stole your black cat's affections?  Would that be a sign she was your husband's mistress, stealing his affections?  Just a thought.
     King Charles I believed his black cat was so lucky, he had guards posted to protect it.  He may have been right.  The day after the cat died of an illness, the king was arrested by Oliver Cromwell's troops to be executed shortly after.

 Onyx

     It is unlucky to chase a black cat away or to send it out of your house.  Of course it is unlucky.  It's just plain rude, and rudeness attrects bad karma.
     On the other hand, in Scotland it is thought that when you come home to find a black cat sitting on your porch, you are going to be happy.  Especially if it is your black house cat that snuck out earlier and that you have given up for lost, and you cried and cried and...wellllll anyway, it is also supposed to be a sign of riches to come.  And nothing is richer than a lap full of purring black velvet to stroke.  And stroking the fur of a black cat brings you health.  It really does.  Stroking a cat has been proven to lower your blood pressure, help stave off heart attacks and strokes, help recovery from same, help those with dementia or autism.  A cat can even help you fight depression.  If you don't know how good it feels to be loved for just you, you need a little black cat who just wants to love on you.  And I have three of them waiting for homes now.  They even come in a range of love bug types.  They are like the 3 bears.  Ebonetta, the longest fur of the three wants to be your companion, staying close, talking to you, helping you do things, telling you about things like the train passing by and going where you go,  but she isn't one to smother you.  Onyx, the shortest haired one (with the goldest eyes) is the other extreme.  He's  a buddy, and he neeeeds you.  When you hold him, he wraps around you.  He loves to hug and be hugged.  He even goes so far as to wrap himself around your feet when you try to leave him.  Jet, the littlest is in the middle.  He likes an audience, he calls you to let you know he is going to the bathroom, he wants to sit on your lap, and he likes to snuggle, but he also likes to play.
      These three kittens, and other cats besides are available for adoption.  Please contact me here or at my email rossmary@rocketmail.com if you are interested.
      

   Jet