Blog 300

Daisy the unique - lover of everyone  (MW)

In the summer of 2014 I took over the Neko Blog from its creator, Claire Fossey, and moved it from being (initially) a series of 2 or 3-times weekly vignettes built around Claire’s photographic close encounters with a variety of RAPS cats, to a weekly feature that used the work of our many talented photographers to explore the situations of some of our cats in more detail. I had hoped that it might be something I could coordinate rather than create single-handedly, but though I have had some wonderful contributions from the late and beloved Marianne Moore, Pauline Chin and several other contributors with whom I co-wrote or ghost-wrote material, I discovered that keeping it a weekly regular event  required regular solo writing.

The yin and yang of Yogi and Wobbly Bob  (VL)

More than seven years later, this is my 300th solo blog, and I had to think about whether I wanted it to be just another cat-profile, or how I might approach it.  Having discovered the Sanctuary in the spring of 2010, I’ve encountered my share of cats with a variety of purrrsonalities.  And its those cats who’ve kept me coming back, week after week, and kept me writing their stories – both for other volunteers, and for the many people who may not be able to visit in person, but have come to know the Sanctuary through the blog, through Facebook and Instagram. So here, for my 300th blog, are some of the cats with whom I have had deep attachments.

Tigger  (MW)

My volunteer shifts in the first few years were mainly in the front – either the main courtyard or in the Leukemia area, which we called Old Aids. Tigger was an early encounter.  A front courtyard icon, he was a loner, as far as cat society went, often found contributing to what I called Pooh Corner. But a little attention was welcomed, and once Tigger had established you as one of His People, he would come trotting over, and reach up, asking to be carried. His favourite carrying position was upright, over the shoulder, and he would dig his claws in to hold himself in place – I have more than a few T-shirts with Tigger claw-holes on the back. 

Kojak - the opposite of his namesake  (MW)

Kojak did not want to be friends for some time. He was a stray cat who found us but took a while to walk into the trap; he proved to be leukemia positive, so had the sense to come to the one place where he would be safe.  He didn’t feel safe for some time; I have memories of cleaning in Old Aids, while one of the med-staff tucked herself into the cage with this hissy, defensive cat, gradually acclimating him to human contact.  Month by month he emerged from his shell, encouraged by tidbits initially, and then by the lure of love and laps. 

Heart-cat Skittles   (BC)

Other RAPS cat-loves have come and gone – Skittles transformed from feral to friendly over the course of a year, and adored his lap-time; Shadrack was a wary cage-top feral when I arrived, and a devoted chickaholic in his last few years. I was one of a number of people who adored handsome Dell – so fierce when he came to us, and such a cuddle-bug in the end; sneezy Yogi, and needy Emery, gentle Gilbert and grumpy Leland, and many more, are all part of what is at the heart of the RAPS Sanctuary for me. 

Our sweet lion, Dell   (MD)

We have been able to be a home for cats who would probably not have survived otherwise: disabled WobblyBob, crippled Terry, genetically challenged Daisy who loved everyone, and many cats with Manx Syndrome.

Sylar - wondering whether to get closer  (KN)

But it’s not just retrospective – every week I try and find out something about a new cat, by observation or by picking the brains of one of the med staff. Because I work in several areas in the Sanctuary, I have the chance to get to know a wide variety of cats, and to establish relationships with them. Little old lady Sara-Lee is a regular companion – on a lap at coffee break, or helping quality control at feeding time. Grey Sylar hears my voice, and though he’s still not ready to be touched, he’s now venturing close enough to accept tidbits from my hand. 

Treats, please?   (KN)

I can’t enter the SingleWide without Bossanova’s pleading eyes asking for attention (and chicken). I am loving getting to know the cats who came to us from Alberta – especially now that Pen 3 is open, and they can explore, and become braver by the day.

William Shakespurr, Jason, Golden - Pen 3 cats  (LBF)

And I feel blessed to work with so many wonderful people who risk all the scratches and scars that come with dealing with scared cats, who scoop poop and clean up messes, who turn up to work on Christmas Day, or who brave rain and snow and heatwave to make life more bearable for these sweet creatures who depend on us.  There are volunteers who are new, and for whom everything is a discovery, and there are volunteers who have served for a long time, and who continue to serve faithfully because they won’t let the cats down. 

Sara Lee loves Sanctuary life  (LP)

There are Kitty Comforters with their endless patience;  photographers waiting to catch the perfect “catness” of a model; students learning new things; people who bring in donations of special foods or furniture or cat-toys – there are so many generous hearts on this team. Volunteering at the RAPS Sanctuary is a privilege, and one I value immensely – and I look forward to sharing more cat profiles in future blogs.

Blog by Brigid Coult

Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen, Brigid Coult, Melanie Draper, 

Vicky Lo, Karen Nicholson, Lisa Parker, Michele Wright

....aaaand.... ACTION!

In every area of the Sanctuary, there are boxes or pots filled with cat-toys.

Tyson chomps on a commercial toy - KN

And I think most cat-owners are probably in the same space – we think “I’ve not been playing enough with Chonky; I’ll get him some new toys”, and he plays with them for a bit, and then they go under the couch or behind the fridge, or wherever, nevermore to be used.

Silky - LBF

Ah, but summertime.... when the playing is easy....

Autumn - KN

It’s the season of LONG grass stalks, which are the perfect cat toy – they have exactly the right amount of spring to tempt a hunter, claws don’t get stuck in them, if they get broken, there are plenty more where they come from.

Kiwi - LBF

So big thanks to Lisa Brill-Friesen and to Karen Nicholson for some stretchy happy-cat pictures....

Leo - LBF

Used-to-be-feral Ranger reaching for his goals....

 KN

"Take that!" says Tigger, getting unusually energetic!

 LBF

Mozart (Poptart) is just a little quicker to grab than his brother Benny.

 LBF

Dodger doesn't do the streeeeetch very well, but the intent is all there

 LBF

Christina Aguilera, who is one of our polydactyls, thinks that it's really useful to have extra toes when you want to grab some grass.

 LBF

Aphrodite, floofy as she is, can stretch with the best of them!

LBF

Even Licorice, who is rather arthritic, and not much into action, wanted in on playing with grass stalks.

KN

There was a lot of action throughout the day - and there were a lot of tired cats at the end.

 KN

Blog (minimal) by Brigid Coult
Photos by Lisa Brill-Friesen & Karen Nicholson

The Garbo Cats (“I Vant to Be Alone”) – front courtyard

Many people come to visit the Sanctuary with a certain amount of hesitation; they have visions of cats in cages and of feeling that they won’t be able to leave without “rescuing” one or more cats. They are usually blown away by the peace of the place, by the beauty of the surroundings (Club Med for Cats, one visitor called it) and by how well all the cats co-exist.
For the most part, the latter is true – cats have the reputation of being loners, and not pack animals like dogs. But that’s mainly a function of their hunting habits; you aren’t going to catch a mouse if you take a bunch of friends with you. Once the mouse is caught (and eaten) cats are quite happy to go back and lounge with their buddies.
At the Sanctuary, mouse-catching is (mostly) not an issue. Cats are all spayed and neutered, so have no battles to fight over mates; there is a constant buffet of crunchies, and canned food offered in the evening, and though territorial issues may come in, there are so many cat smells that most cats just give in and let be.

The Welcoming Committee - MW

But just like humans, there are introverts and extroverts in the cat world. Any Sunday visitor knows that there will be a welcoming committee at the gate, and a press of cat bodies saying “Stroke me! Feed me!” But look around the front courtyard and you will see a few cats who choose to keep themselves to themselves.

Tigger - MW

Tigger is often found by himself in a quiet corner, though he will sometimes come out and make himself more visible. He’s a beautiful big orange and white boy, who loves human attention just as long as other cats don’t get too close. Sadly, when that happens, the human is as likely to be a victim as the other cat. He loves to climb on a shoulder and nuzzle into the hair of his human carrier.

Timmy - MW

Timmy came to us when his family took in an elderly relative who was allergic to cats. Timmy resented losing his freedom, and hasn’t settled very well – he often hangs out at the top of the stairs. Quite frequently on a Sunday, Timmy will pick one visitor and demand attention; that visitor is then expected to sit and cuddle for at least half an hour!

Leland - MW

Leland is still having a very tough time at the Sanctuary. This handsome grey boy does NOT like feline company, and lets us know it with a constant output of growls and muttering. He even needed to be medicated a bit at the beginning to ease his anxiety. But we don’t want to leave him on medication, and Leland just has to deal with other cats. He has his human favourites, though, and there are many of the staff and volunteers who will make time for him – in the right mood and with the right person, he snuggles like a baby!

Treacle - CF

If you hear a spat going on around the Hill House, it’s probably caused by one of the smaller cats. Treacle is a feisty little older girl with plenty of “tortie-tude”. A regular supervisor of quality control at mealtimes, she’s one of the few cats that likes to be picked up and cuddled, but other cats get within paws-reach at their own peril.

Treacle - DW

When we have a truly adoptable cat, we try to make sure it has its chance at the No 5 Road Shelter – the public face of our organization, and the place where all the adoptions occur. For these four, and for cats like them, the No 5 Rd Shelter can’t be an option – there’s nowhere for them to get away from other cats and they would be acutely unhappy. So they stay with us at the Sanctuary, where they can usually find their own sanctuary somewhere. Unfortunately, tension makes them develop some bad habits about where they poop and pee, which means that they’re often not a good adoption risk.  We love them anyway – and cleaning up after cats is just one of the joys of volunteering here!

Guest blogger: Brigid Coult

Photos: Michele Wright, Claire Fossey, Debbie Wolanski

Tigger

Although I must have seen this big ginger & white cat in the front courtyard on more than one occasion without knowing who he was, my first proper introduction was via Brigid. She'd remembered my description of Fred, where I likened his manner of requesting a pick-me-up to that up a small child with outstretched hands and a chant of "Up! Up!", and asked if I'd met this other "up! up!" cat in named Tigger.

Brigid said it had only happened a couple of times so far since he's can often be a bit on the aloof side. Get him in the right mood, though, and he's apparently more than happy to climb right up for a good old cuddle. Unfortunately, he really doesn't care for other cats, so getting him in the mood for a little love before the other cats in the front courtyard start crowding around to grab their share of the attention can be a bit tricky.

Tigger was surrendered to RAPS when the woman he'd lived with moved to a place that didn't allow pets. He was brought to the sanctuary from the No. 5 Rd. shelter because he looked too cranky at first to be a candidate for quick adoption and he was too big to comfortably hang out in the adoption centre cages for an extended period of time.

Once he'd settled in at the sanctuary, Tigger turned out to be a very friendly guy. Leslie says that he'd get quite anxious, though, when other dominant males came too close -- so anxious that he'd forget that the human holding him was his friend. He's been with us a couple of years now, so maybe he's a little less likely to forget himself and get his humans caught in the crossfire.

When I met him last week, Tigger was pleased to see Brigid and me. He wasn't quite in an "up! up!" mood, but this seemed to be due at least in part to him sensing other cats moving in, attracted by the humans. Interestingly (and luckily for us), he chose to express his dislike for the other cats simply by pointedly turning his back to them.

Got to agree with Leslie's thought that he'd make a great "only" cat in a household.