Skinny teeth

 I arrived at Safe this morning before the Willoughby truck. So I thought that I would just check in the basement to see if both bins were on the pavement on my way upstairs. One wasn't. It was empty. Just on the off chance, I took it upstairs with me and found 9 bags of trash on the balcony. So I put them in the bin and took it down to the sidewalk. The Willoughby truck had just collected our lot and the man was organising the bins next door. He, very kindly, emptied my bin before moving on. 

So when it came to filling the Cousins bins, one was almost full (28.9Kg) and the other had only 10.4Kg in it.  . . . . until we got the diagnosis of the planet kittens in the play place. One died over the weekend so they all went to the vet. The diagnosis is serious and two more have died since. So the play place had a thorough bleach treatment. And I filled the second Cousins bin with large, potentially un-disinfectable things from there. We hope we have caught the highly infectious bug before it spreads further. 

Choc and Chip heard the fuss and the bolder of the two, Chip has taken to sitting on top of his shy brother to keep him safe. Sorry for the fuzzy photo. But, of course, kittens will move when you point a camera at them.

Chip and half a Choc

Where Mieka and Loki were are Maple and Benny . . . another bonded pair. Maple is the front "man" and Benny, with the brown nose is shyer. But they are very sweet.

Maple (left) and Benny (behind)

On high on Better Row is another gorgeous ginger boy called Bobby. I don't think I have seen a pattern like his.

Bobby

And we have a ginger Brennan:

Brennan

And Biscuit and Milly:

Biscuit and Milly

Gingers galore.

And the bad ginger news is the Griffin was returned today having been adopted on Monday! He got on with the resident cat and with the young(-ish) man who adopted him. But the mother thought that there wasn't enough room for a second cat!

He is getting to be Griffin the travelling cat.

 

 

 

Romeo adopted

 His new people fell in love with him on Saturday and took him home. Seemed like a match made in heaven to me. I hope he finds it so. On Sunday I brought Aslan home to have some R & R after I thoroughly vacuumed all Romeo's hair off the carpet. I don't think he has taken any notice of "other cat" smellls. He is just interested in finding the food. He can jump up onto the kitchen benches (unlike Romeo who kept all paws on the ground at all time). So never has my kitchen been so neat and clean.

As he is quite thin (4.2Kg) I will put him on normal rations to see if that diminishes the food drive. 

Today we are up to 41 adoptions for August. Including Mateo who was spotted at the Cat Show by an enthusiastic dad who came at 10am to adopt him. It would have been 43 if the computer had cooperated when I did the paperwork for Phoenix and Sydney. The new owner didn't want to pick them up until tomorrow or Friday when everything in their house will be ready for them anyway. Now the paperwork is mostly done and Sydney just needs his vaccination before he is set to go. So they have an "ADOPTED" sign on their condo. And Tim will sort out what I did to Shelter Buddy tomorrow.

Sydney and Phoenix

Maple and Benny have moved into Loki and Mieka's condo. The young man kept on coming back.

 

Maple and Benny

I just heard a suspicious noise from the kitchen. Aslan was attempting to open the jars of fish food that I used to keep beside the fish tank. They are now in a drawer. I wonder how long it will take him to catch the tiny tetras! 

Aston is in Alladin and Jasmine's stand alone. Not happy.

Aston

And Brennan is where Doris was for a nanosecond. He is a typical ginger: noisy and demanding.

Brennan

This afternoon the "pregnant mum" had one kitten. Black and white. May not be the last one. She was remarkably relaxed about it. Perhaps it is not her first litter. Which means that there may be many more by tomorrow morning.

New cats

 I went around Better Row and met the new cats shortly after I got to SH at lunch time.

Mike looked depressed. When I went by at the end of my shift he was in exactly the same position.

Mike

But I gave Will (below him) a Woolies paper bag then that somebody had donated stuff in. Will had a lovely time fighting his way out of it after getting into it! Mike might need a nap now.

Next to Mike is an odd pair of kittens: Ollie 4-6months and Bassie 2-4 months. Poor little Bassie was exiled to the lower level when I arrived because he is too little to jump up to the bed box. So I added a stratchy pole and he figured it out and went to sleep.. . . . at last.

I got a call from the Cat Taxi. She was double parked downstairs in the loading zone so I went down to relieve her of her delivery. She had two folders for Zena and Duke. And two occupied cat carriers in the back of her taxi-mobile. When I put one carrier over my shoulder I stood erect. When I added the other carrier, I tipped over. That cat is seriously heavy!

From the paperwork supplied, Zenia is the tabby and Duke is the heafty ragdoll. The carriers have their names attached and are stored above their present condo. We must remember to give them away with the cats when they get adopted.

Zena and DUKE

The man who fell for Micka and Loki on Wednesday, did come back on Thursday to adopt them but in the meantime, Loki had developed a seriously flu-like cough/snuffle. So they have been taken off the available list. He came to visit today and will come back next week to check up on them. He didn't ask to meet any other cats. He just sat on the poof and talked to "his" cats.

Mieka and Loki

PS: I wrote a pattern for the Elizabethan collars I sew for female cats who get desexed. Happy to share it if you would like a copy.

Valentina's Day

 Her man came back today and decided that he wanted Valentina not Darcy. Fastest adoption ever. I sent him off with an old litter tray and a scratchy pole from below the couch in the hallway as "adoption freebies". Tim retired for bandaging after getting her into the cat carrier. She even managed to draw blood from his leather-gloved-left-index finger! And achieved a swipe to his left leg. As well as pee-ing on her pillow. (I whipped off the pillowslip, replaced it, and gave it to her new owner too). I believe she will settle down with Colin and be a loving companion.   . . . . . in time.

Irene is about to go overseas for weeks so came in to rearrange as many kittens as possible.

The three kittens in Incoming have moved to Welfare. One of them, Loki, is already earmarked for a very nice man who came in this afternoon. He has a white and ginger cat at home who needs a ginger and white friend. Loki will be perfect.

Loki

His condo mates, Amelia and Lexi are not his siblings.

Amelia and Lexi

Jellybean went to the vet and passed so he has been moved to where Jimmy was. I expect he will have the same short stay as Jimmy did because he is a loving spoonful too.

Jellybean

Griffin went to the vet too. And has a new place in Welfare.

Griffin

When Angelica came in she wouldn't eat anything but crunchies. Now, after 2 weeks with us, she only eats babycat wet food.

Angelica

And the two kittens with Japanese names are just the same.

Thanks to Joy for the lovey Incoming photos. 

Cordelia has moved from Isolation to Incoming.. . . no signs of ringworm on her.

And we have another "pregnant" mum in Incoming. She really looked as though she had swallowed a football when she was photographed on the street that she was picked up from. But will she absorb that bulge just like Chicken and Goosey have done? A woman came in with some nice donations. Her name is Lorraine so we decided to name the new "mum" after her. But then she said that her nickname was Roxy and we chose that one instead for her.

Boarders

 For school holidays we are remarkably unfull of boarders this week. But a pair of cats who were "adopted from us 2-3 years ago" came in this afternoon. . . . Calli and Lexi. I can't remember them but they may have put on a little weight. And they are not happy, Jan.

Calli and Lexi

Over the weekend all the "desirable" kittens were adopted. We even had another call to adopt Souffle today!

And a man came to meet Valentina. She played "I want to be alone" as usual. So I introduced him to the other available cats who have been with us for a while. He really liked Darcy. He will be back on Friday morning when he has set up his apartment to adopt one, or the other.

And a nice teacher came in with her mother to adopt Astrid. She knew all about her dodgy patella and is fine with it. She will bring Astrid in next Thursday because her vaccination is due and there wasn't anybody around who is trained to give injections.

One of the vollies is doing Animal Heath at Tech and had to give a cat a "physical". Not so easy choosing a suitable cat for that! But we settled on Velvet who tolerated being prodded and handled. Vovo was a bit jealous of the attention that she got. It was definitely a two person examination!

Sue spent the afternoon giving Calli's four kittens a bath. . . separately. And thoroughly scrubbing their condo. They are probably ringworm free now. But don't look very happy about it.

They have names: Jasper (ginger), Lapis (black tabby), Coral (white tabby) and Jade (orange).

There are plenty of pretty kittens in Incoming: photographed by Joy.

Amelia and Lexi

Loki

And two from the stand alone:

Chicken makes purrs?

 Jellybean has the BEST purr even though he looks shy. Perhaps it was chicken induced.

Jellybean

The three Incoming kittens have names:

Loki is the ginger, Lexi has a black nose  and Amelia has a white nose. Lexi and Amelia are tuxedos.

When I went to Isolation to give afternoon teas, Cordelia was standing on one hammock while grooming India while China watched from above. (Those hammocks should be thrown away when the family has been cleared of ringworm.)

India, Cordelia, China

We had expected a rush on Monte Carlo, Mont Blanc and Souffle this afternoon. But they haven't been added to the available list because their incision lines (from desexing) look a bit grungy and swollen.  I hope there is not a chorus of complaint tomorrow for Terry to deal with.

LeClerc is enjoying his role as le door clerk.

LeClerk

Roisin adopted again

 Let's hope it is for good this time. Because her stand alone was emptied, a pair of foster cats came in. They are Alladin and Jasmin. They are VERY shy. Their fosterer came in today to give them their favourite bed but they still look terrified. I decided that being inside the front door opposite the desk where the phone rings and folk talk all day is perhaps not the best place for them. So I swapped them for Le Clerc (ie I moved the stand alones around).

Hiding Alladin and Jasmine

LeClerc is now the meeter and greeter cat and likes it.

Sue and Le Clerc

Mylo has gone too. And Jimmy will be picked up on Sunday. 

Coco Cranfield is visiting again. She was very chatty today.

Coco

There are new kittens in Incoming including Griffon and 3 in C20

Amelia, Lexie, Loki (ginger)

Griffon

Souffle and co had several inquiry phone calls today. They might be ready on Friday. If so, there might be a "I got here first" fight for Souffle.

Souffle

Adoption Tails: Maggie and her litter

 Maggie

4 days: Maggie has been under the bed in the spare room for 4 days. She is eating well, using her litter tray, and comes out at night to have her treats. Her owner talks to her and has a 5 minute playtime with a fluffy toy on a stick but she doesn’t respond. Her owner won’t be changing her name - Maggie has gotten to know her owner when she’s volunteering at SAFE. “I love her so much.”

1.5 weeks: Maggie comes out of her hiding spot since the toys are always in a different place. Maggie also finds the treats her owner hides in her room. She likes the water fountain and is eating well but isn’t coming out yet. Her owner spends time trying to entice her out with feather toys. Maggie’s owner heard all sorts of strange noises in the bedroom last night and saw it was Maggie exploring. Her owner walked into their bedroom and Maggie was lying on the bed. She became anxious when she felt cornered between her owner and the door. She meowed very sweetly and ran back to her safe room. “She is such a sweetie”. Maggie’s safe room has places for her to hide in - they're soft and fluffy and have dangly toys. 

2 weeks: “Maggie is still under the bed. She came out yesterday when I took in her breakfast then looked at me gave a little meow and went back under the bed. I hate that she is so afraid.” Her owner was considering getting a little kitten to keep her company. “I even dream about her! I will be over the moon when she walks around and knows I will do anything for her.”

5 weeks: “I am delighted with her progress. She still likes to spend her day under the bed with various toys but explores and plays around the house at night. This morning I tried feeding her in the family room but she wasn’t comfortable there so went back to her usual spot. She lets me pat her, rub her ears and back and purrs so loudly. She is very talkative and constantly rubs against me. I haven’t tried picking her up for a cuddle. I think that is a long way off. She knows her name and is so sweet and loving. I adore her.”

Loki

1 day: He is settling in very well and is also very playful. He has been introduced to other rooms in the house because he constantly stood outside the door and he seems fine with it. He is eating and drinking well too. He had some problems with his litter box but is not using it.

1 week: Loki has been exploring his environment. He has moved out of his safe room and has started to explore the rest of the house. He is hesitant to snuggle with the family, but his owner thinks he needs more time for him to feel safe.

Loki, 1 week

1 month: His owners are struggling to cut his nails. They are getting very long and he accidentally scratches our family members. His owners have tried to cut them but he doesn’t stay still and always runs away.

7 weeks: They put a harness on Loki and he’s constantly trying to take it off himself. “He is also just a tiny bit sad.” His owners want to get him used to the harness because they plan on taking him for walks. They’ve also made sure that the harness is loose so he can breathe. “He was just very curious and every time we opened the door to go outside, he always wanted to come with us and stood there meowing and watching.”

Loki

2.5 months: “Everything with Loki is going very well.”

Atlas now Casper

1 day: “Atlas seems to be settling in very well to the safe room from what we've seen! Surprisingly he's been very affectionate and meows a lot when we leave the room. He is eating and drinking but usually only in small amounts (around half the bowl of food and water is normal). He's only used the litter twice since being brought home and I'm not sure if that's normal though. He's been a bit sneezy but not today thankfully. We are planing on renaming him but we're still deciding on a name.”

Atlas now Casper

1 week: Atlas has been renamed Casper. “We changed his litter to no dust a clumping anti crystal litter and he seems to be good with it. His mood has been a bit all over the place, sometimes he's super active and VERY attention seeking and at other time hes hiding under the bed. He can't have us away in another room without him else he meows/crys a lot (it's been so worrying I had to stay back a day from college, we're very tired).” His owner is very overprotective of him and just wants to make sure Casper is alright and they’re not doing anything wrong.

1.5 weeks: Casper has been having some flu symptoms. “He's suddenly become distant from us but wants our attention for something that's not pets, play, or food (very odd) even though his appetite is fine.”

2 weeks: “We've been observing him closely and I think Casper is fine now, his runny eyes and sneezing have greatly reduced. He's been exploring outside the room so much sometimes he sometimes doesn't want to go back at all! Although I do think he's still a bit frightened/stressed/bored at times. He's been running around the house a lot and being vocal and we still don't quite understand that he's after at times but overall I think he's ok.” He hasn’t been responsive to his new name and doesn’t play with any of the mental stimulation games they’ve given him. “He's becoming very curious about the outside”

1 month: no response

Roman 

 

1 day: He is doing great. He has started exploring new rooms today. They will be keeping his name.

1 week: Roman is doing very well and has settled down. He is very happy and playful yet very vocal, just like their previous cat Chimney. “Roman is a blessing of happiness in our house and we love him immensely”.

Roman

1 month: no response

Zaria now Mochi

 

1 day: She's doing well. She is eating, has had water and a wee. The family is keeping a close eye on her. The daughter has decided to name her Mochi, after a tasty little Japanese dessert! The family thinks she's doing really well considering the change. She's been super affectionate and cuddly. Mochi has a safe space under the bed but is spending most of her time out and about in the room with the daughter or dad.

1 week: She's going really well! Eating, drinking and toileting.

1 month: Mochi is doing so well. The family absolutely loves her. She's a very brave explorer and has a lot of confidence. She's energetic and very healthy. "We are very pleased to have her!"

Astra now Delilah

1 day: She’s doing well. She is eating very well and has used her litter tray to pee and poo. “She is finding comfort in her room”. She and their resident cat, Teddy, have been talking to each other through the door. She has been renamed Delilah.

1 week: She’s doing really well and is full of energy. “She is loving the company of our dog and cat. She’s fitting in very nicely.”

Astra now Delilah

1 month: no response

Short orders

 Again I had to take DH to the eye doc today so was only at Safe long enough to feed everybody their breakfast. When I got home at 10:30am to pick up DH to take him, my Cody posed under the poppies.

Cody

He was still there when we got home after 3pm! Cats do spend 22 hours a day sleeping, just like ants. But they sleep very lightly so need the extra hours.

I was surprised when the first new vollies arrived shortly after 9am Evidently 9am to 1pm are the new vollie hours. Traffic will make them arrive like Brown's cows.

Loki (Maggie's all black) was adopted over the weekend. The woman who came to line up Astro on Friday brought her 2 daughters in on Sunday. One girl immediately had an allergic reaction to our cats so they went home empty handed despite all the preparation the Mum had done. We know a lovely dog that they can adopt!

Belle went home with her vollie. Kat has moved into her condo. It is smaller than her previous condo and won't offer her the same variety of beds.  It was also pretty warm in there this morning.

I will share some of Joy's fab photos from last Wednesday.

Jagger has long legs

Louis is settling down

Chonk has lost his parfum de bloke

Aslan is available for adoption

 

PS. DH had to have an injection into his left eye. He is still lying down.

Many visitors

No wonder Tim needs days off, it gets exhausting dealing with all the people. . . . the cats are easy. Heather rang at 10am to ask if she could come to meet Tammy 6. Sure, I said. She arrived at 11:30. It was a case of love at first sight, for both of them. She adopted her. While the adoption was being processed (I am slow, still) two other folk rang to ask about adopting her. And there were a couple of emails. Her write up on the SH website was very appealing. Heather used to be a vet nurse. Has had lots of cats (including a Himalayian so she knows about brushing cats) and her two Jack Russle type dogs died in February so she was ready for a new house mate. She wanted a scratchy pole. So I rang Tim (sorry Tim) to ask about the price for Lil's brand new white one that only got as far as just inside the front door. $100 was accepted and it is gone. Heather may be back as a volunteer. Then came Tara to adopt Loki. She didn't need to meet him. She just wanted him. I told her that he was a bit snuffly but she didn't mind. Compared to Tammy 6, he was a dream to get into her carry cage. I had to lend Heather a top loading carrier for Tammy who wasn't dangerous was but determined not to get into her small carrier. Then came the woman whose son adopted Amber. Amber is having a splendid life, she says. She came with a donation of towels and, of course, wanted to meet some cats. She has two 6/8 year old boy cats. So she really doesn't need another. But she might have gone home to work on her husband about Angelique. Then came a local couple who drop by frequently to find the perfect cat for them. They were interested in Tammy 6 from the website. Too late. So wanted to meet everybody else. They go for the older cats but he liked Vinnie who is new and came with all kinds of food.

He has perhaps been shaved from his knees to his tail to his waist. Or perhaps he has an allergy. His face is very cute and friendly.

Or perhaps the special organic type food is for Bella, a very tortie, confident lady whom they also liked.

Lil is back. I couldn't bear her being stuck in a small condo until Saturday when her new people (with kids) will come for her so set her up in her wheely cage so that she can crow and call.

Then it was time to mop the floor and serve dinner.