One Quick Week Later

Today marks the one week anniversary of adopting Giles.  And he remains the amazing cat we hoped him to be.  So far, Dorothy is doing pretty well.  She will hiss at him, but also shares space with him without any anxiety.  Their introduction to one another got rushed.  Mainly because Giles was ready to be out of his safe room.  Sunday morning, he dashed out and into the path of Dorothy.  We then began supervised time. Like I said, they do pretty well together.   We still separate them at night and if we have to leave.  I think that will be the way it is for awhile.  He seems to take a long afternoon nap, so that gives both cats some time away from each other.  We are paying a lot of attention to Dorothy.  She loves to play, so that is our main vehicle of attention.  I do hope Dorothy warms up to the idea sooner than later.  He isn't going anywhere!

Meet Lord Giles Purrbiscuits the First

Yep, my wait for a kitty is over. But, we didn't find him where we were planning to adopt from.  A friend of mine suggested we look at our county's shelter. She had seen "fancy" cats on their Facebook page.

I saw a couple that seemed interesting.  Jeff and my mom said to go look.  I wondered if I was being too impatient. But the idea of a bird in the hand being worth uncounted ones in the bush, was too inticing.  Plus, I would still be rescuing a beloved Siamese. And, this shelter is priced right! They also include a vet visit, already microchipped, and a month of free pet health insurance. And one more thing, I'd be helping a local shelter.

So, yesterday we went to see their Meezers, all males.  Quickly we eleminated the Seal Point who was bonded to a 12 year old black cat. They were a package. One cutie Snowshoe had just come from his surgery, so was not available. Another was FIV +.  Another was a sweet guy, but had lots of baggage.  That left Peter Pan, an 8 year old stray Blue Point.

They let us take him into a room and within minutes I knew we had found our love bug. He was friendly, loved being petted, and briefly sat in my lap. All the while he purred.  What a delight! He was a little older than I was looking for, mostly for Dorothy's sake. I wanted a match in energy. But really, I love mature cats who want lots of affection, so that quickly did not matter.

I did feel bad about having gone to the trouble of getting approved by the other rescue.  I learned so much from that process. I talked to some great fosters.  The work they do is so valuable. But the end goal was met, just not how I thought.

Peter Pan didn't know that name, so we quickly changed it to Ryan's favorite,Giles.  When we got him home into his isolation room, we quickly discoverd just how affectionate he is. My does he love to purr and "knead" when he is petted.

Monday he gets his free vet check. He is being treated for an ear infection with drops twice a day. I also know he needs a dental sometime. Other than that he is a great guy.

Dorothy doesn't seem affected by his smell on us. She smells our hands and doesn't get upset. She also doesn't try to get un his room or act curious about the door being closed. I am relieved.   I thought things might be tense. We have a week with him in isolation.  Then we can think of introduction.  I have plan. Just hope they agree. He was said to like other cats, so that is half the battle!

Almost a Year Later

It's hard to believe that my sweet Abbey Cat has been gone almost a whole year.

Look at that girl stretch!  

My lap has been a very lonely place since that day in April last year.  Quickly, maybe too quickly, we invited Dorothy into our home, just two days after Abbey left us.  Sometimes I do wish we had taken a little more time with that decision, although, I love her and would not want her to be with someone else.  I mean, who can resist her beautiful face?  It would not have mattered what cat we got in that moment of grief.  I was in no place ready to move on.  Perhaps it is just now that I feel like I can really love another cat.

While Dorothy is the best cat, behavior-wise, she isn't a lap cap.  She is easily over stimulated by our touch and will swipe you with a claw filled paw if you cross her line.  It doesn't hurt much physically, just emotionally.  I feel rejected at those times.  I have tried everything, food bribes, sweet talk, gentleness, time.  She just isn't a lap cat.  And she is easily frightened.  I wonder if she was mistreated?  What she is is a playful, entertaining, beautiful, sweet, affectionate,good, but better keep your hands to yourself cat!  And we do love her.  I think she is perfect, except for that one little thing of not liking laps.

My dear, gracious husband has given his consent for me to find my lap cat.  (Oh, how I love that man!)  Even before Abbey passed away, I had been visiting Siamese Cat Rescue's webpage regularly.  I knew she was not going to live forever.  However when she died, I didn't want to go through the lengthy process of approval.  And we found Dorothy so quickly!  (She is part Siamese,distantly.  Her blue eyes make her part Siamese. The vet called her a Lynx Point/Snowshoe.)

Last week, we were approved to adopt a cat from The Siamese Cat Rescue.  I feel as if this is a dream come true!  Of course now that we are approved, there are not any cats that match our special needs since we already have a quirky cat and that dictates the kind of cat we can adopt. We think we have the best chance with her approving the cat if it is male, young, and outgoing.  For me, I must have a lap cat or burst.  (Not kidding!) So we are looking for a young male who is laid back, outgoing, and loves laps.  

So far we are finding it a very competitive process, too. I think there are many more adopters than cats.  That is true of this geographical area anyway.  There are only 6 cats in our area.  Two are very sick from a hoarder and not available.  One might be perfect except he hates other cats.  One, while my heart goes out to him, is very old.  One is not a lap cat, but otherwise very nice.  He has another family in line before us and he is in KY.  The other is maybe too shy and a bit older, 5.  I am waiting to hear about him.  He also has a family ahead of us.  He could work if Dorothy's playfulness didn't bother him.  He may need a more relaxed cat to buddy with.

Anyway, I am not going to stress or worry. Our guy is there,somewhere!  I have to keep my eye on the website as it is first come, first serve.  This may take awhile. Stay tuned.

~Jenn, the cat crazy blogger