Friday, April 8, 2016

Atticus and Scout

Atticus Finch and Jean Louise 'Scout' Finch joined me this week. They'd been living with their mom under a decaying mattress and box spring in the side yard of an abandoned home. This wasn't the best place to be with upcoming storms and interested free roaming neighborhood dogs.

Atticus is a short hair black male American bobtail mix with a half length tail. Scout is a black and white bicolor female with medium length fur. Both kittens were of a feral disposition at first, hissing and spitting whenever they were approached.

48 hours has changed their minds about life on the inside. Atticus is fearless. He sees not obstacles, only challenges to conquer. Scout is sweet of disposition but has a lot to say. She's a bit of a talker and if she is not getting what she wants, she will merrily let you know about it. These two should make weight in the next week or two and can then be taken for their vetting and fixing. By then, I imagine they will be champ indoor kitties.



They have already been wooed by the delicacies of turkey goo, the never ending bowl o' kibble, the pillow bed and the wonders of fleece. On demand clean water and the litter box that they don't have to clean also seem to be appreciated.


I'll post more about them soon, including when they will be available for adoption.

Grace O'Malley

Grace O'Malley is a tiny kitten that found herself dumped in a restaurant parking lot. Some nice staff folks took her and her two siblings into the offices for the day. Two were instantly adopted by folks who worked there, but little Grace needed a place to go. As one of my friends works at the restaurant, I was contacted and gave my usual answer: "Sure, why not?"


Grace was an instant sweetheart and it was easy to tell that she had been dumped and had never been feral. She was very clean, free of fleas and loved to be petted. I posted a few photos of her on my Facebook page, and a friend of mine fell in love with her and sent in an adoption request.



Grace went with Duchess Josiana for her "spa day" at Humane Society of Tampa Bay where she was spayed and vetted. She then headed to the home of another foster to see if she could help coax a feral kitten into being more social with people. She'll stay at this foster home until her new house is ready in a week or two and hopefully, she will be an excellent role model for the other kitten until then.



Monday, April 4, 2016

Current Cats: April 2016

Irene Addler

Although she still does not like to be touched, Irene has come a long way from the growling and unseen monster in the back of my closet. She is now a lovely girl cat that has received all of her initial vet work and has been spayed. Regular eating and not being in the shelter have changed her for the better. Irene is a curious girl, ready to follow you around the house, watch over your shoulder and stare balefully at you as you cook and don't give her morsels. She'll hang out and nap next to you on the couch, but pet her at your own risk. You'll likely be shanked in response.

She is extremely food driven and wet food and all kinds of human foods are of interest to her. Including cookies. Seriously, she will swipe a cookie from you with hilarious alacrity. She may even helpfully open the package for you. The one way she will merrily approach a human is is the have a handful of treats and are seated on the floor. In this case she comes skidding to a halt in front of you the moment she hears the treat bag and will delicately take the treats from your hand. She's quite the dainty lady when she wants something.

It's a long way she has come, but she still has a way to go. She'd make a great companion for someone who isn't too interested with having a cat that wants your attention all of the time but doesn't want to be entirely alone.

Allen Quatermain


This kitten has gone from skittish to sweet. Each morning he waits for me to wake so that I may pet him. Quatermain is deferential to all other cats and is certainly not an alpha cat. He enjoys sleeping in baskets, watching television, squishy food and being petting in two minute increments. Q is a sweet, soft and beautiful boy who has all his initial vetting done and is fixed. Although we had a few people interested in him, they seem to have wandered off in favor of other cats.

Quatermain started life as a feral street cat, but has become a happy house cat. He is a bit shy with new people, but once they settle down and are quiet, he will begin to explore the new humans. Q does have an upcoming meet and greet date this Saturday. I'm really hoping it will go well. He's such a good boy and I want him to have a great life.