so, I took Alki out front to eat her dinner on the drive way. It was calm out and she was doing great (no fear of the leash today) so we went down to the side walk, walked a few feet in either direction, then headed back up the drive way. did some "look at that" with the neighbors milling about. then tossed kibble in the yard for her to sniff out. she wasnt too into it, was going really slow, I think she was just too hot, so after a few mins we headed in. right when we got to the door the neighbor dog rushed out of their door and started barking, she alerted to it but was easily refocused. I blocked her view just in case it would be too much, and did a few "watch mes" to get her calm and focused again then went inside. she came in and pooped out on the floor. success!
then tonight (a min ago) I took all 3 dogs out back for evening potty and played 3-way fetch (which is basically 2-way fetch with a toss for Royal here and there :)), pooped Alki & Brock out, then put them inside while I played with the flirt pole with Royal for a few mins. its still really hot (91) so they all got "tired" (hot) fast. the boys both need a really good run still. I keep saying Im going to take them to the park and we never go, so tomorrow am, no matter what! Im getting up at 8 and we're going! going to be a busy day tomorrow.. Marilyn, the feral kitten we've been socializing for 5 mos, is flying to her new home tomorrow!! Gotta get her microchipped then drop her off at the airport by 2. It will be a bitter sweet day! We love her but are glad to see her go, shes being adopted by a long time friend and I know she will be happy and fit it well there, and be expertly cared for, and we cant wait to have our master bathroom back to ourselves ;) BUT I am nervous about how she will handle the flight. I know she will be okay but its just stressful, especially for a semi feral kitty.
new photos of the pretty lady (who will possibly be renamed Kiley <3):
hot kitten! panting after a game of playing with Da Bird toy (feather on a string). he & stellan loved this toy before they were re-released, and they still love to play now. its pretty adorable
so funny!
I have a ton of shots of Stellan & Creamsicle flying through the air after the toy but havent gone through them yet. SOON
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4 comments:
They are all so gorgeous! And your photos are fantastic!
Purry nice!
Your pikhs make even khats look good ;-)
Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra
PeeEssWoo: How khool about the furever home!!!
Are these the two ferals that you released? I have two ferals that did not acclimate, but I would not let them outside. It has been two years. I cannot touch them or play or get close, but they are doing fine. They have my other cats for friends and just hang out in the house. I get hissed at once in a while, but they are better off with me. It is unfortunate that people cannot take in feral's for companions to their other cats. They do just fine indoors. I get enough affection form my other kitties, so I don't mind a couple of scary cats. I just hope you'll always be around for them. They are like children. When we move away, they don't survive unless someone is taking care of them. Best wishes and I hope they always have you.
Hi Jenny,
Its a very complicated issue.
First, I only had limited resources available to me, and I did the best I could for these cats that some moron humans allowed to come into this world by not spaying & neutering their cats. I spayed/neutered & vaccinated all the ferals I found (15), and gave all the kittens a miniumum of 3 months to socialize to humans. Alley Cat Allies advocates TNR as the best option for feral cats over 12 weeks of age, and recommends releasing cats that are still very unsocial after 3 months of attempted socializing, so this is the guideline I followed. 7 of them became social enough (3 of the 7 were over 12 wks at the time of capture) and were adopted. 4 (also over 12 wks at time of capture) did not and we released back into the outdoors.
We could not afford to keep, nor did we have space for those 4 wild cats. We have 6 cats of our own and 3 dogs, and limited income and an unstable home (need to move a lot). This is not the home for a feral or semi feral cat to thrive and be happy in. And besides, why is it my responsibility to care for them and take them in?
The ONLY other option available to me would have been taking them to a shelter where they would have been euthanized immediately.
And I completely disagree, they are nothing like children. Feral cats are wild animals. They are just as capable of surviving outdoors on their own as squirrels, birds, and racoons, but just like other wild animals, they are just as prone to the dangers of life. There is a reason "life span in captivity" is much longer than "life span in the wild." That doesnt mean that all feral cats should live in homes like pet cats, just like wild animals shouldn't live in homes with people.
Yes, outdoor life is full of dangerous, but at least these ferals are now:
a.) fixed, so they can no longer create more cats to compete with for resources, and no more cats to live their life of uncertainty;
b.) vaccinated;
and c.) given the chance to live happily in the environment they know & are comfortable in--outdoors.
I dont know how long they will survive, but they at least have a chance. There are thousands of homeless cats in this country, hundreds alone in the city these cats were in. The likelihood these cats would even be adopted is slim to none. Plus, no rescue or shelter had space to take them, and I was no in the position to take on that task. And add to all that the fact that they were scared of humans and unhappy indoors.
I am confident these cats will not starve. They were alive and healthy when I moved in, and were alive & healthy before I moved out even though I rarely fed them (one meal, once a week). I am pretty sure at least one neighbor was feeding them, and Im sure they scavenged food all around the neighborhood. Plus they live in a climate that is dry & warm, & supports tons of birds, rodents, and other things they can easily catch & eat year round (and I know they did cause we found the eaten carcasses).
I did all I could and more for these cats. I bonded with them and loved them. I honestly would have taken them in if I could have. I hate that there are so many ignorant morons in the world that think it is okay to allow intact cats outdoors to reproduce and now we have a world full of homeless feral cats living the dangerous life of wild animals. But none of that is my fault. All I can do is keep helping as best I can; TNR ferals I find, donate money when I can to help groups help others, and EDUCATE people of the importance of spaying & neutering, and the plight of feral cats.
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