AND NOT QUITE SUCH A GOOD WEEK

It started out well when I re-homed Polo (who had interest from three people) to a nice young woman who wanted a friend for her young ginger female, but it went downhill after that with no other cats or kittens adopted since then.

I agreed to take in an adult female which had been seen being thrown out of (a non-moving) car and had a stray kitten delivered from Seaham. Andrea took the former and Joanna the latter. Both of them were discovered to have problems with the kitten having a headful of ticks and, after being opened by the vet, to have an inflamed gut. The cat is being sick and has diarrhea. Both are being treated and will hopefully get better soon.

Here's the, lovely natured, kitten.

 On Wednesday lunchtime I got a call from Hill View Infants School (not far from me) about a young ginger-white cat which had come onto the school grounds that morning and refused to leave. As the conservatory was free -Tomas, a white with grey patches and a tabby tail, young male, having graduated to living in the rest of the house and spending time on my knee- I went round and picked it (her, probably) up. After two days she's still not eating much and varies between rubbing up against me and purring to giving me a swipe with her claws and growling at the other cats peering through the glass door. Being a young pretty little thing I put her up on Animal Krackers Facebook page with high expectations of locating her owner. No word, however, so far and I'm beginning to suspect that she's been dumped. I was told when I collected her that a teacher was interested in adopting her so if I haven't heard anything by next Wednesday and a Tuesday checkup at the vets gives her the all clear, the teacher can have her.

There is one nice thing to have happened this week. A few weeks back Adele sent me the link to the Galaxy Hot Chocolate Fund which gives small disbursements to charities which are listed on their webpage. It's designed to raise the profile of charities and encouraged more involvement in them -as well as getting good publicity for their product (and who could begrudge them that?). Anyway, after I put up Animal Krackers' profile on their page, we have been selected as one of this week's winners and we'll be getting our photo taken next week. So a big thank you to Galaxy Hot Chocolate.

Skye, a cat I rescued, fostered, and moved to the re-homing centre suddenly deteriorated and was discovered to be ill with feline leukemia and put to sleep. I had her vaccinated as soon as I got her but it was obviously already inside her. She kept to herself while in my house so I'm hoping she hasn't passed it on to any of mine. Apparently it can be passed on through the use of shared litter trays but this is rare.

WHEN THINGS GO WRONG (BUT RIGHT IN THE END)

Remember when I blogged about two lovely friendly but abandoned cats which I was determined to help? Well, it took a bit of work but I got everything lined up: a fosterer arranged, a vet's appointment booked, a time to turn up sorted. All I needed to do was collect the cats, take them to the vets for a checkup and drop them off with the fosterer (thanks Adele).

Monday afternoon and I turned up with two cat carriers and as soon as the tabby (Charlie) saw them she immediately became skittish. I managed to pick up Chocolate and put her in the carrier without problem. Charlie was a different matter. As soon as I got hold of her she went ballistic, all squirming teeth and claws as she struggled frantically to get away from me. When one claw dug deep into my cheek, I had to let her go. I didn't have much choice as she caught a blood vessel and the red stuff trickled heavily (if you can have a heavy trickle that is) down the side of my face and onto my clothes. It took several minutes before I managed to stop it. By this time Charlie was on the other side of the low fence and showed no sign of coming back. (A couple of days later, a friend commented that it was a shame I hadn't been able to take a selfie of my face as it must have looked spectacularly gory but I have to leave it to your imagination.)

I gave up and settled for Chocolate.

When we got in to see Louise the vet I put my hand under Chocolate's tummy to get her out of the carrier and said, "Uh oh, she's pregnant." Louise checked her out and confirmed what I thought about her pregnancy (and her age -about 2-3). Luckily she wasn't far gone so she could be safely spayed, terminating the pregnancy without any risk to her and she'd be kept in overnight with the operation performed the next day. There are far too many unwanted kittens around as it is to add to the numbers.

There was another implication to all this: if Chocolate was pregnant then it was virtually certain that Charlie (whom I assumed to be her sister) also happened to be in the kitten way which made it more imperative that I catch her.

Meanwhile I had to re-arrange my plans. After checking with Adele that it was okay, I decided to go back the next afternoon for a second try at Charlie, then I'd collect Chocolate and keep her at my house until Charlie had been sorted before passing them on to Adele to foster.

Tuesday afternoon and my second attempt to catch Charlie. As soon as she saw me she jumped the fence and sat watching me from about ten yards away. I opened a sachet of cat food and tossed a few pieces near the cat. She tentatively came forward and took a nibble so I did it again. I went and sat in a garden chair a few few from the fence and Charlie sat on the top of it. Again I tossed a few morsels near her and then, gradually, more and closer until they were right next to the chair. Charlie came and  let me stroke her, purring away and now relaxed. So I grabbed and quickly put her in the flip top carrier almost before she realised what was happening. Success!

Off to the vets where it was confirmed that she was the same age as Chocolate and just as pregnant. I left her and brought Chocolate home with me to recuperate in the cat cage in the bedroom. She didn't want to socialise with the other cats though she wasn't aggressive to them other than a perfunctory hiss and was very happy to be stroked and cuddled.

Wednesday and I collected Charlie from the vets along with another cat which had just had its second flu jab and which I dropped off at the re-homing centre on the way back to my home where I re-united the sisters in the cage.

A few hours later I took them to Adele's where they met their new kitten friends. Both cats appeared relaxed from the start, sniffing the kittens and exploring the flat. Chocolate was interested in Adele and (I've since heard) was later observed washing one of the kittens. 

She'll keep the pair (having given them their names) for three weeks until it's time for their second flu jab when I'll take them off her hands to move them to the centre. Actually I'm back at Adele's this evening as I've had a phone call this afternoon from a lady who would like a kitten or two and I suggested hers. Fingers crossed.

Things went a bit wobbly but, with Adele's help, I've managed to rescue two adorable cats who should have no problems finding a nice home together -they aren't being separated.

CHECKING OUT CATS

I often get contacted four or five times a day by people wanting us to take one or more cats they can no longer keep or that have already been abandoned. That's around 30 cats a week. In a good week we can re-home maybe 3 or 4 so it's pretty obvious that I have to turn most people away. Or at least suggest other rescues or the website Cat Chat Tyne & Wear which lists local cat rescues. People forget or don't realise or just  plain don't understand that we are just a small local charity with very limited resources and we do the best we can but the simple fact is that we can't help every cat which comes our way and nowhere near it.

Around teatime this afternoon I got a call from a guy who'd been feeding two cats which, from conversations  with neighbours, he believed to have been abandoned by people who moved and left their cats behind to fend for themselves -a sadly all too common story. He'd been feeding these two but couldn't take them because he had two dogs who did not like cats. More recently his neighbours had been complaining that his feeding the cats was resulting in the cats messing in their gardens. I did say I might be able to take them if I could catch them and get the vet to give them the first flu jab but he would then have to keep feeding them for another three weeks before they could have their second and I could then take them to our re-homing centre but this wasn't really satisfactory. As he didn't live far away, I offered to come round and check them out. Which I did and this is what I found.

Two young (around 2-3 years old was my guess; I'd be surprised if they're much older) and very pretty females who seemed in good health and were very friendly. Both came up to me to be stroked and purred when I did. They are what I consider to be very re-homable indeed. If I didn't have so many cats already in my house I'd have taken them without a second thought.

What I am trying to do is find temporary accommodation for them and have put out feelers. If I can move Ted the battered smelly stray upstairs I might even just squeeze them in here for three weeks. As it is, all I can do for the moment is put them on the cats needing homes webpage and see if my feelers get felt. 

I'll let you know.

THE FLUFFYS: WENDY THE VET'S VERDICT

Do read the previous post before this if you haven't already. Thanks.

I reckoned that Alpha Fluffy to be a boy and favouring female for Beta Fluffy (the black and white one). Same age, about a year give or take three months either way.

Wendy checked Alpha's teeth, had a think, and thought about a year give or take.

Wendy checked under his tail. Male definitely. And not neutered. Hmm.

Beta's teeth were the same so definitely the same age. Also female, so most likely brother and sister.

This gave her cause of thought and she decided to revise her age estimate to around 7 months on the grounds that any older and Beta would be pregnant.

So, because she's such a lovely person, she squeezed them both in to be done today.

I'll be picking them up about teatime but bringing with the old black boy that Lyn took from me to foster last week as he has a poorly tummy.

In about five minutes time I'm off to the re-homing centre to meet a couple who're interested in adopting a cat or two(!). They rang about ten minutes ago. I've just had a call from Saturday's couple who want to come back and are favouring Gilgamesh.

Then a guy is coming to (hopefully) fix my broken oven and grill at 2.30.

Toodles.

MEET THE FLUFFYS

They've been here around 46 hours and have already wormed their way into my heart, cold callous and icy as it is.

Here is Alpha Fluffy.

He's Alpha because he's the only one of the two who sleeps out in the open -currently on top of the chest of drawers. Beta Fluffy sleeps hidden away in the small space under my bedside cabinet.

At first I thought he was the more nervous of the two but I was wrong. Stroke him and he responds very positively, as does Beta, purring and rubbing against me with his delightfully soft lustrous fur. In this state he wasn't bothered when, inevitably, Aelfric jumped on the bed next to him. 

Beta is also very friendly when stroked, indeed there's no real difference. His fur is just as soft. I look forward to seeing how they develop as they settle in for their minimum three-week stay while they get their flu jabs (unless someone adopts them first). They are really really nice natured young cats. I don't know how old they are but my guess is not much more than a year. I don't even know what sex the smaller Beta is though I'm sure Alpha is male and I think they're either brother and sister or two brothers. I'll get a couple of the answers tomorrow when I take them to the vets for flu jab and checkup.

Here's Beta Fluffy.

"And that, unless something unexpected happens, is the last post of the month," Ian Williams approximately three hours ago.

Well, guess what?

Round about nine last night this cat came into the possession of Andrea, via Lisa the pet taxi person, after running into the Grangetown chippy and hiding, clearly terrified out of her wits, under the fridge. Andrea had nowhere to put it except the shop where there's already one cat in temporary residence. So later this morning I got a call from Susan and you can guess the rest.

As you can see, she's absolutely gorgeous and is used to being handled. Bit wary -hiss, hiss- of my cats so far but she's only been here a few minutes.

We've finally got round to buying a microchip scanner which is currently being charged on the shop's laptop. When that's finished in a few hours, Andrea will come round and scan the cat -and the other two I've got here, and my own just for fun. Hopefully we'll find her owner as she has to be local. 

There are times when I wish all the people who neglect their pets were all in one body so I could wrap my hands round their collective throat and scream, "If you aren't prepared to look after a cat for life then don't rude word get one, you stupid rude word arseholes!"

I've taken three lovely cats into my house in the last two weeks and, believe me, that's only the very tiniest tip of the iceberg when it comes to lost and abandoned cats in Sunderland. There are many many more trying to survive on their own which either never come to our attention or that we don't have the resources to help. We're a very small local animal rescue charity trying to do our best to help and knowing that it's never going to be enough. But at least helping a few is better than helping none.

TINK, FLOPPY, AND THE CATMOBILE

I made three acquisitions today and here are photos of them.

Tackling them in reverse order-

Susan initially wasn't keen on my intended vehicular purchase (see previous post) but when she came with me to actually look at it she was won over. My funds were all in place by today so off I went and, after a test drive, completed the purchase. I've decided to affectionately call it The Catmobile. Yes, that is a pretty crappy twee corny name for it. How about The Feline Flyer then? Catcatcher?  Or how about some of you coming up with a good name and letting me know? My Car seems rather mundane somehow.

The honour of being the first cat to ride in it went to Tink. As regular readers may remember, I usually go swimming about three-four times a week at the local sports centre. One of the regulars I chat to is an oldish guy who I helped a few years ago with his cat. A couple of days ago he told me of a nice friendly cat that had been thrown out of the house by its owner because she'd got a kitten for her daughter. I said I'd check it out and probably take it in. It's difficult to exchange details when you're standing in water and just wearing swimming trunks but today I remembered I had my Animal Krackers card in my wallet which I slid in his locker on my way out.

I got a call at lunchtime and agreed to go get it. (Here's another photo).

He is a handsome boy, isn't he?

However, things weren't quiet that simple. The day before I'd received a call from the local branch of Pets At Home asking if I could take in a stray that they'd found. My initial response was no because I'd already agreed to take Tink and keep him in the conservatory. But then I had a think. Pets At Home have been very very supportive of us -they paid most of the cost of the new van for example- so I thought what the hell, the two would have to go in together. I got in the van and drove round to get the cat. They also had a cheque for £150 for us and a binful of cat and dog food. I took the cat straight to the vets where Wendy declared it an unneutered male around three and a half years old. She agreed to keep him overnight and neuter him today.

I decided to call him Floppy because, if you look carefully, one of his ears partly flops over.

To cut a short story shorter, I picked up Tink, Holly the vet declared him a nice neutered male about four years old, and I brought them home in Catcar the First.

Floppy who, having had an operation to remove his dibbles, was very hungry and munched through a bowl of dried food before demolishing a sachet of moist. Tink, so far, is keeping out his was by sitting on the windowsill. Floppy appears to be standing guard over the now refilled bowl of dried munchies.

Okay, that's yer lot. Time to go do a homecheck.

EDGAR AND THE QUIET DAY

I woke up.

What am I going to do today? I asked myself.

And replied: Anything you want. We've got a free day. Absolutely nothing scheduled.

I considered going swim as I'd woken  up early enough to get there by my preferred time of 7.30 am but then remembered that I'd left my trunks and towel in the washing machine along with the rest of assorted stuff overnight. Oh well. I could, of course, choose to do lots of housework but then again I could equally and more likely choose not to. (Cleaning cat litter and feeding cats counts as compulsory and therefore choice is not involved.) 

I checked my emails and discovered I'd sold a graphic novel through Amazon Marketplace. I immediately located the book, wrapped it and addressed it ready for posting, and emailed the buyer that it would be in the post today. I'd only make about four quid on it but four quid in my pocket is four quid in my pocket.

Looked in the mirror and confirmed something I'd suspected for several days. I needed a haircut. I go to a local place just a few yards from the Post Office so that was a twofer which was good. I decided after that to go to PC World in town and buy a new printer, the other one having packed up. Turned out that Sweeney Todd's (which is not a poncy hairdresser's but a manly man's) Barbershop hadn't opened and was ten minutes late. Still hadn't five minutes later when I set off for PC World. Slept in? Killer hangover? Who knew?

I spent more than I wanted but less than I could have on a new printer. By the time you add in a cartridge set, a ream of paper, and a guarantee (if it breaks down in the first three years we'll replace it) costing £12.00 which seemed reasonable even to penny-pinching me, I'd spent just over a hundred. Checked out Sweeney Todd's on the way back an hour later. Still shut. Must be sick.

I put the new printer still in its box next to the desktop and proceeded to choose to ignore it which I'm still doing as I type this.  

What a day I was having, free to choose what to do all day. So, mid-morning I chose to watch Sherlock Series 1 episode 3 (the one which introduces Moriarty) and the making of on the DVD box set I bought last week, accompanied by a mug of strong black coffee and chocolate biscuits. Don't tell me, I know, you're just so jealous. Living la vida loca! But don't worry, my morning idyll is about over.

Just on lunchtime, the phone rang and I was asked if I could help with a cat which had been abandoned by its owner ten days ago and was being fed by neighbours and was in good condition. I looked at my empty conservatory with the litter tray, cat furniture, cat beds, bowls, and sighed. I'd call at her house when she got back from work after 4.30.

That still left most of the afternoon. Time for a nap after cleaning litter trays in the bedroom. That done, head down. Susan bangs loudly on the door.

I had to come with her straight away as I was the direct cause of problem so serious that it could split continents in twain and devastate the planet if I didn't do something immediately, preferably whipping my back with a barbed-wire flail to show due penance. (That latter bit might just be wishful thinking on my part.) So off we went.

No, I'm not going to tell you what it was about or what happened. Suffice to say it turned out to be a misunderstanding on several parts which wasn't really the fault of anyone involved. However to avoid any similar misunderstanding I'm going to introduce a new cat page entitled: Somebody has seen this cat [show photo] at their back door. If it's yours, get in touch and claim it as it's been coming here to get fed for weeks now.  Or something like that.

And so to Downhill so far on the other side of the city that it's almost in South Tyneside and a meeting with the cat that I've come to call-

EDGAR

I actually walked by him without realising as he sat at the end of a narrow lane on my way to the lady's house. When we came back the same way we found him sitting on the outside window ledge of the house where he lived until being abandoned ten days ago. He almost ran away when I approached him but had a secret weapon -a bowl of cat food which I placed in front of the carrier. I let him eat for a minute before, not without help, grabbing him and stuffing him inside. I left my details in case his owner turns up. (Stop laughing, it could happen. But then so could me winning the lottery.)

Off I set, having decided to ring Wendy the vets when I got home and book an appointment for him. Then, while driving over the Queen Alexandra Bridge, I asked myself: Why wait till tomorrow? We could call in now and I'm sure they'd fit us. They had a couple of weeks ago when we'd picked up the kitten. As I completely agreed with myself, at the end of the bridge we doubled back the way we'd come as it wasn't far.

They did indeed fit us in within about half an hour which I spent, as usual, chatting to other people and making a fuss of their animals, comprising several dogs and a sadly tumour-ridden pet rat. Edgar was declared to be about 8 years old, in general good health, and with no fleas. He was calm in the surgery despite being poked and prodded by Wendy.

He's now been with me a couple of hours and has settled on a chair in the conservatory. He doesn't run away from me and is quite amenable to being stroked. Initials impressions are that he's a very nice cat. Maybe later tomorrow I'll see how is with the other cats. Here's another couple of photos.

And tomorrow I've got another quiet day!