We've had pretty good luck lately. The last two fosters we took in were adopted super fast. Katy went to her first event this Saturday, less than a week after I got her, and she got adopted and went to her new home last night. Her adopters are super happy with her, she is just too pretty and sweet to linger long in the foster system.
In other news, Caleb had his follow-up vet visit yesterday as well and had X-rays and neutering done. His leg is healing very nicely and the vet cleared him from cage rest. He will be attending his first adoption event Saturday, wish him luck!
I've neglected the blog for a few weeks - I had a very busy project at my job and was working about 18 hours a day for a couple weeks. I've spent the last two weeks catching up on everything I pushed aside for work - vet visits, cleaning, etc.
1. Princessa was adopted and went home at the end of September. Princessa is the first cat I tried to pull from Animal Care & Control. She was pregnant at the time, and I tried to get her while she was still pregnant so she would have a safe place to have her kittens. In the time it took the shelter to get back to us about her, she was spayed and her kittens aborted. She was still healthy at the time and had a chance of being adopted, so we took Rondo instead. About a week later, Princessa ended up on the kill list with a cold, so we took her after all. She had to go the the vet straight from the shelter, and she was there for a month before I finally got her home. She was with us for a few months. A couple had seen her briefly at Petco and I was in the back of the store - the other volunteers got their contact info and I was able to bring Princessa to their home the next day to meet her in a calmer setting. She wasted no time in jumping up on their bed and curling up, and that sealed the deal. She is so sweet, and it was shocking that it took so long for her to be adopted.
2. Sheri FINALLY got to go home! She and her kittens finally got rid of the ringworm and I am happy to say it is out of our house now. Her new owner is so thrilled with her, and she gets along fabulously with her new brother cat.
3. Shirley, one of the cats I originally caught for TNR, was adopted last weekend. She was NOT with Anjellicle, but the rescue group who paid for her vetting found a home for her quite unexpected. Either way, I'm still very happy for her!
4. I have a few new fosters:
Caleb, an 8-month-old cat who fell out of a third-story window and broke his leg. He had surgery and he is on strict cage rest with us. He's doing REALLY well and you wouldn't even know his leg was broken unless you really watched him. He's also very sweet, and I think he'll get along with the rest of our clan very nicely when he's able to leave the cage. He has a checkup next Tuesday, so we'll see!
Joshua, who was 7 weeks old and a woman found him out on the street
alone. She brought him to Anjellicle while we were holding an adoption
event. He's pretty small for his age, but very lovey. He has "mommy issues," as we call it, where he tries to suckle on the people who hold him.
Jake, a 4-month-old kitten who has burn marks all the way down his head and back. I traded another volunteer another kitten I was fostering in order to take him, since she couldn't due to vaccines and such. Very very sweet boy, and my husband's coworker is actually adopting him. She is an amazing woman and he'll have a great life with her. His burns are healing nicely, but he might always have a stripe of missing fur due to scars.
Star, a 1-year-old who was pulled from AC&C but didn't have a foster. She looks EXACTLY like Dusty, so I asked if I could foster her. She has already been adopted and is going home this weekend.
I have a new foster coming tomorrow, Katy. She is 1.5 years old and came into the shelter with a kitten, the owner gave them up because of too many pets. Spay and neuter your pets, people! She was on the kill list this past Wednesday and I couldn't stop looking at her, so I asked to pull her. She gets along with both cats and dogs. I can't wait to meet her!
Two more kittens went to their forever home today! Boo and Bobo came to me in the group of 8 kittens I took in over a month ago. Boo is a male and Bobo is female, they are siblings (and there were only the 2 of them). They are incredibly bonded and Boo really depends on his sister. Boo had a lot of interest since he looks like a Russian Blue, but I was hesitant to separate them. I was thrilled when a couple wanted to adopt them together. I took them to the couple's apartment for a meet and greet and they spent over an hour playing with the kittens. Total love. They were so anxious and happy to take them home today.
After a month-long dry spell, we've finally had a few cats go home the past few days. All three are doing our foster-to-adopt program, where the family gets one week for kittens and two weeks for adults to decide if the cat will work in their home or with existing cats, etc. before finalizing the adoption and paying the fees.
Hoodie went to a home with a gorgeous long-haired older cat and two kids who will give him the playtime he needs. We had him for about 2.5 months. He's very sweet, plays fetch with toys, watches TV, and cuddled in bed with us.
Rory went to a home with two 4-year-olds, and she is tolerant enough to be a family pet. We had her for about 3.5 months. If you remember, she came to us with Zigby, who was adopted within a few weeks. She's an amazing cat, we almost considered keeping her ourselves for awhile!
Last, but not least, Vanessa went to a home with a few young adults who are very excited to have her. As soon as I let her out of the carrier, she was immediately exploring and checking the place out, but with no fear or anxiety. She'll be just fine! She is a medium-hair, very friendly and loves to be held. We expected her to get adopted very quickly, so I'm surprised we had her for so long - over a month.
Good luck furry ones and I hope the adoptions become final!
So much has happened since I last posted, and I was incredibly busy because of it. I just didn't have the time to post, and then no motivation to, as you'll see shortly.
Sheri
1. Sheri and her 5 kittens have ringworm. I have been treating them all but this means they have been isolated from everyone else and have been unable to attend adoption events, and that is bad news during this crucial time when they are very adoptable. The kittens are now 3 months old and getting sooo big. I really hope they will still have an easy time finding homes, but the ringworm isn't gone yet so I don't know when that will be. Sheri was indeed adopted by the lady who was interested in her, and this woman is a SAINT. She has been so patient waiting for Sheri to be ready to come home, even though it's been 4 weeks already. She just wants her to be healthy!
2. Prize, Chandra, Tibalt, and Hermie all went to their new homes. Hoodie is my only remaining kitten from this bunch that were together, and he couldn't go with Sheri's kittens for obvious reasons, so he has been staying with Lily in our bedroom. Hoodie is incredibly sweet now, I'm so happy with how he's turned out, he used to be the most shy of his brothers. He is also 3.5 months old now and I really hope he'll be adopted soon. The older they get, the harder it is...
3. We caught 2 females for TNR completely by luck. We named them Laverne and Shirley. We found out they were both already spayed, but they got their vaccines and ears tipped anyway. Laverne was semi-friendly but just not enough to be adopted, so we released her back to her neighborhood, where it looks like people were taking care of them anyway. Shirley is still with us for now, she is VERY friendly and we didn't have the heart to release her. We are trying to find her a home and may need to take her to adoption events with the group that I do TNR with.
Shirley
Laverne
4. I wanted to take a few more foster kittens for Hoodie since he would have been alone otherwise. I originally agreed to 2, then got talked into agreeing to 7, then 8. Eight kittens = 5 4-week-olds (no names at the time), 2 8-week-olds (Boo and Bobo), and 1 ~10 week old (Sachet). When the kittens were first brought to me at an adoption event, I noticed they had diarrhea, but figured I'd give it a few days since it could be due to anything, even just the food they were eating. However, by the end of the week, the diarrhea had not cleared up and several of the kittens were dehydrated. Sachet ended up at the vet for 3 days, and we lost 2 of the youngest kittens. It is the first time I've ever lost a kitten, and I know I am very lucky it hasn't happened until now. We are doing our best for the others. The remaining 3 are now named: Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup (yes, the Powerpuff Girls!). Sachet may have an adopter, and Boo and Bobo will start attending events this weekend.
5. Rondo, who was living at Petco now, passed away unexpectedly. He got very ill very quickly and passed away at the vet before they could drain some fluid from his chest. They think it was either heart problems or cancer. I was devastated. He had just been adopted and was going to be delivered to his new home the next day. Absolutely horrible news. The group is thinking of starting a Rondo Memorial Fund to assist with vet costs for cats who get ill so quickly, which is a great idea and I'm happy he'll be remembered that way. Here is a video from after he first went to Petco:
6. Current count = 25. We are taking a break - no more fosters for awhile. Of course we will continue to go to adoption events until the kittens are all adopted, but especially this latest batch of kittens and the ringworm have taken a toll on us and we need a breather. The adults aren't as time-sensitive to take to events, so having a few adult fosters isn't as bad. Of course I say "no more" right now, but there are always cats in desperate need of a home. I'm trying to be serious this time, at least!
The very first cat I rescued from the kill list was Rondo, back in March. He is an incredibly handsome 3-year-old fellow. He was brought to the shelter as a stray and came to me with a pretty bad cold and an abscess that was draining, but not healing. After about a month, including over a week at the vet, he was healthy and lovey as ever. We kept him in his own room for a long time while he was recovering. A short time after he was finally good to go, he snuck out of the bedroom while the door was open. Normally we would immediately intercept and put him back, but he had been in the house long enough that he at least knew most of the other cats by smell, so it was a good introduction test. He crept a few feet, then went STRAIGHT for our biggest cat, the 20-pound Sharky. It was the first time I saw an actual hissing-screaming-ball-of-fury cat fight, straight out of a cartoon.
After that, Rondo was separated again. We got a large cage and put it in the living room and for weeks we kept him there to get used to the other cats, thinking he just needed a longer introduction. We started letting him out again for short periods of time. He would be okay for an hour or two, then out of nowhere, he'd corner another cat or just attack one. He always goes for the back of the neck, so we quickly learned that it's all dominance - he isn't attacking them out of aggression, but the need to be the dominant cat. We tried so many times, but he is just TOO dominant to be with other cats. Maybe he would do well with one submissive cat, but he wouldn't be able to work with our clan.
There was another cat that lived in the condos at our Petco location, and I found out she was good with other cats. I recommended that we switch the two - Rondo could live at Petco and I would take this girl. Timing worked out well and she got adopted a few days before I was to bring Rondo to Petco this past Saturday. So instead I got this family in exchange:
Meet Sheri and her 5 8-week-old babies, Kara, Kennedy, JR, Juniper, and Justine. JR is the only boy. This picture was taken at the adoption event where I was picking them up from, they are in our large foster room right now. They are all a little ill right now with colds and eye infections, but doing well. They are ALL very friendly. Someone is already interested in Sheri, which is amazing, because I'm always afraid that the moms will be left behind after kittens get adopted.
For those playing along at home, our cat count right now is 21 - 10 are kittens, though, and 4 of the kittens have applications and/or already approved to go to their new homes, so the numbers will be decreasing rapidly this week.
As always, Rondo, Sheri, and her babies are available for adoption through Anjellicle Cats Rescue.
We've had pretty good luck lately. The last two fosters we took in were adopted super fast. Katy went to her first event this Saturday, less than a week after I got her, and she got adopted and went to her new home last night. Her adopters are super happy with her, she is just too pretty and sweet to linger long in the foster system.
1. Princessa was adopted and went home at the end of September. Princessa is the first cat I tried to pull from Animal Care & Control. She was pregnant at the time, and I tried to get her while she was still pregnant so she would have a safe place to have her kittens. In the time it took the shelter to get back to us about her, she was spayed and her kittens aborted. She was still healthy at the time and had a chance of being adopted, so we took Rondo instead. About a week later, Princessa ended up on the kill list with a cold, so we took her after all. She had to go the the vet straight from the shelter, and she was there for a month before I finally got her home. She was with us for a few months. A couple had seen her briefly at Petco and I was in the back of the store - the other volunteers got their contact info and I was able to bring Princessa to their home the next day to meet her in a calmer setting. She wasted no time in jumping up on their bed and curling up, and that sealed the deal. She is so sweet, and it was shocking that it took so long for her to be adopted. 
3. Shirley, one of the cats I originally caught for TNR, was adopted last weekend. She was NOT with Anjellicle, but the rescue group who paid for her vetting found a home for her quite unexpected. Either way, I'm still very happy for her!
Caleb, an 8-month-old cat who fell out of a third-story window and broke his leg. He had surgery and he is on strict cage rest with us. He's doing REALLY well and you wouldn't even know his leg was broken unless you really watched him. He's also very sweet, and I think he'll get along with the rest of our clan very nicely when he's able to leave the cage. He has a checkup next Tuesday, so we'll see!
Joshua, who was 7 weeks old and a woman found him out on the street
alone. She brought him to Anjellicle while we were holding an adoption
event. He's pretty small for his age, but very lovey. He has "mommy issues," as we call it, where he tries to suckle on the people who hold him.
Star, a 1-year-old who was pulled from AC&C but didn't have a foster. She looks EXACTLY like Dusty, so I asked if I could foster her. She has already been adopted and is going home this weekend.
I have a new foster coming tomorrow, Katy. She is 1.5 years old and came into the shelter with a kitten, the owner gave them up because of too many pets. Spay and neuter your pets, people! She was on the kill list this past Wednesday and I couldn't stop looking at her, so I asked to pull her. She gets along with both cats and dogs. I can't wait to meet her!
