all cats go to heaven

Date: 12 July 2007 09:56:13

no, don't worry, i mean that figuratively, not literally. sam is still with us. or, no, really he isn't with me, and although i'm very happy for him, i do miss him.

after his neutering apointment and weekend with the vet, he came back and we didn't take him back inside imediately. he showed up for breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday and i tried to provide shelter outside for him (which he didn't use). but then, he disappeared again.

ARGH

i was beside myself. had neutering him made him less able to fend for himself in the big wide world? had i done the wrong thing? where was he? he didn't show up for dinner, for about 5 days he gave no acknowledgement that i was there and waiting to feed and shelter him as best as i could (which still wasn't great, but at least better than what he had otherwise).

so then as i sat on the sofa, i heard a "meow" and looked out the window to see sam looking at me as if to say, "well, where's my dinner, then?" ah relief.

but i wasn't putting him back in danger this time. the first hurdle was pleading with the husband. "please, just give me a week to find him a new home." so after that hurdle was jumped and we had separated the upstairs cat (sam) from the downstairs cats (heathcliff and minnie), i began my search for a new and permanat abode for sam. yet, again. and i had had no success up til now, but this time i was pulling out all the stops.

i put him on more waiting lists for shelters and i conceeded to advertising, which as i have said, i'm not in favour of as you don't have anything backing you (like a national welfare organisation) when you make demands about how the animal is to be kept. but anything (well, almost) was going to be better for him than being stray. (remember, he's not feral and wild or nervous, he's stray which means he's trusting of humans)

so i placed the following advert on, of all places, freecycle:
--------------------------------
I don't usually like rehoming animals by advertising without going
through a welfare organisation or shelter, but we are currently in the
'kitten season' so no shelters are able to take him and I'm desperate
to find him a new home quickly. I have tried everyone this side of the country. They are all full up with kittens.

Sadly, I absolutely can not look after him any longer. I already have
2 cats of my own and am expecting a child.

He has been coming round since last November, he has been scanned for
a microchip but has none, we have looked through lists of lost pets
with no luck. He was thin, hungry and unneutered, but we decided to
have him neutered (as it's kitten season). We've been feeding him and
looking after him in our house since last week when he was neutered
and he looks quite healthy now. He had the op with no problems at all.
One of my cats is nervous and couldn't get on with him, and I MUST
find a new home for him.

He's short haired, all white except for a brown tabby tail and spots
between the ears (and a small one on his side). Very friendly, likes
attention, not nervous. Slender. Uses a litter box with no problem.
Seems very relaxed when he was given food and shelter. Although he
survived for a long time with no shelter, he was obviously more happy
once inside a home. He has obviously known human contact at some
point, but probably strayed outside his patch because he wasn't neutered.

New owner will need to be responsible for yearly vaccinations.

When rehomed, he will need to stay inside for at least a month (if not
longer) to get used to his new surroundings so that he doesn't roam again.

He was neutered and treated for fleas and worms a week ago (worm
treatment was a precaution). I feel that he will need a home where
the new owners have experience of cats.

I could not bare to put him back outside with no shelter again. But my
circumtances will not allow me to keep him. Thanks for reading.
------------------------------------------------------

That evening, I received an offer from a lady with 55 acres, 16 cats, 10 horses, 6 ducks, 1 sheep and a jersey cow.

BINGO!

I waited a few days to see if anyone else would be interested (she was offering as a 'last resort') and i asked her about what she fed them and the accomodation and his ability to come and go from the house to farm etc. and of course i had 1 or 2 initial alarm bells of the posibility of an 'animal hoarder', but by her answers to my questions it was clear that she was taking good care of her animals. we drove to the farm with sam protesting the whole way from his carrier (about an hour and a half's drive - he'll be much less likely to find his way back to his old patch from there too). i knew that i'd get a feeling for the place when we got there, and if i was too worried by what i saw, i wouldn't leave him.

16 cats?

even i wouldn't go that far. but then i don't have 55 acres of land.

so we got there. (go to the middle of nowhere and then on a few miles). somehow our car's shocks survived the little dirt track. and we met her cats, and her oldest horse (37!) and felt that sam was going to have a good home, as soon as he and the big black cat could decide to live together (the others didn't take any notice of him). and he's been kept seperate for a week or two until he settles in.

so we said our good byes, and left sam with 55 acres in probable cat heaven.

i know he was never mine really, but it was a bit of a wrench to think i'd never see him again.

bye bye sammy. take care, be good, be safe and enjoy your new cat friendly life. (oh, and do leave the ducks alone)