Two More Go Home - Two More Arrive

Fritter and Tippy went home on Wednesday night. Once again poor Angel loses a roommate! For now she is on her own in the big cage. I sure will miss Tippy's big hugs!

Whitney is very sloppy! Be sure to not have her food and litter in the same cage. Yesterday she managed to fill two water bowls and two food bowls with litter! It was impossible for her to eat or get a drink.

There are holds pending on Diana, Senora and Ariel. So far there are issues on all three. Be sure to take another hold on any of them should the opportunity arise. The Shelter is still waiting on paperwork for Ariel. The applicant for Diana is out of town and the application was not complete. The applicant for Senora is hesitant to provide necessary paperwork so more than likely that hold will be pulled.

When you take an application be sure to review it and make sure all the questions are answered. Please note on the application that the person was advised that they must provide certain documents proving they either own their residence or that their landlord allows pets and the documents will be provided. There is a copy machine in the manager's office should someone be able to immediately provide proof.

Due to a cancellation coverage is needed for the morning cleaning on Saturday, May 5. Please let me know if you are available.

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I was at the Shelter today when Valentine's new mom called. She said Valentine has a new name - Princess! I guess we know that cat is getting the royal treatment! You go, big girl!

The two new arrivals at PetSmart are Traveller and Marbles. Traveller is a young male and is in the Open Your Heart and Home Program. He looks just like Tippy and is just as full of hugs! Marbles is a friendly and loving female who is a couple of years old. She is a sweatheart.

I know that being involved with animal rescue is difficult and takes a special kind of person with a special kind of heart. Sometimes this work can make us really sad and make our heart break. Recently, after expressing this heartache to a friend, she shared the following story with me and I'd like to share it with you.

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Once a man was on the beach, where countless thousands of starfish had washed up, their life and water ever so slowly ebbing into dust. The man was picking up a starfish at a time and throwing it into the water. Someone came along and asked him, "What are you doing? Had you the rest of your life to spend doing this you would not scratch the surface of the dying starfish. You cannot help more than a drop in the bucket. Why do you think it matters?" The man calmly, patiently, bent over, took a starfish and threw it up in the air, arcing as it came down to splash into the life giving water. "It mattered to that one, " he said.

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Remember, you mattered to Valentine, Tippy, Fritter, Hooper, CB, Becky, Nero, Bob, Smudge, Freckles, Gus, Sasha, Tasha, Atlanta, Atlantis... and our list goes on... Thank you.

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Meet Marbles and Traveller:

Weekend Update

Hooper went home on Friday. His new owners started feeding Hooper when he showed up on their porch one day a few weeks back. He was a skinny little bag of bones. The family was going away on vacation and were at a loss as to what to do. They notified animal control who brought Hooper to the shelter. The family promised Hooper they would adopt him if he was still at the Shelter when they returned from their trip. True to their word they took Hooper home!! He will be living with another cat and two little girls who could not have been more excited!!

Tippy got a hold on Friday. He is so funny!! He just goes limp when you pick him up! The application is at the Shelter for review.

Tracey took a hold on Ariel today. She said it is a perfect match. The only other animal in the house is a guinea pig. We all know Ariel does not play well with other cats! Apparently she sure turned on the charm today when she crawled into this woman's lap and purred and snuggled!! That application is also at the Shelter.

I have not been told the application for Fritter was denied so the hold is still pending.

I put Angel in with Fritter and gave Whitney two cages so she can have a big litter box. She is so messy and that little litterbox was simply not doing the trick.

The May schedule is complete and looks great! We picked up another new volunteer this month. Welcome aboard, Karla!!

If all goes well Ariel and Tippy will go home Wedneday night and new guys will arive on Thursday. I will keep you posted.

Gus & Freckles Finally Go Home! Meet Ariel, Hooper and Fritter!

Yes, finally, Freckles and Gus have gone home. If you are wondering if it seemed to take a long time for these two you are not mistaken. Gus arrived at PetSmart on February 10 and Freckles on January 28. They are both going to good homes so it was worth waiting for. Gus' new owner adopted a dog, Binx, from the Shelter in the past. Barb A said Binx looks great and is doing well. Now Gus will join the family!

Three new cats were brought to PetSmart today. Fritter is an orange and white male who is just over a year old and is very friendly. His roommate is Hooper, a gray and white tabby who is young, under a year old, and is also very friendly. These two will have run of the big cage for a while!

The third arrival is Ariel. She is a Siamese mix and is an older cat. She has beautiful blue eyes like you have never seen before. She is really pretty and quite striking! She loves people but is not crazy about other cats. Keep this in mind when you let the guys out for exercise. Introduce her slowly to others at first. Sometimes these guys eventually come around and can play with others but sometimes they don't! She is a "senior" cat and we do not want to stress her out too much!

Don't forget to let me know what you can do in May...

The new guys:

Three New Cats & Two New Holds

Freckles and Gus both got holds over the weekend. Unfortunately not together, however both applications appear to be very good. A PetSmart employee put a hold on Gus Friday night. On Saturday a woman came in and said she had originally met Freckles while she was in the Shelter before Christmas. She and her daughter then saw Freckles at PetSmart and decided that the time was right to apply for the adoption. Both applications are at the Shelter for processing.

Tippy, Diana and Roxy arrived on Saturday. You will love all three!! Tippy is a big black male who walks right out of the cage for hugs. He is really friendly. Diana is quite vocal and Roxy is a sweetheart.

Freckles does have a weepy eye right now and a runny nose. The medical staff at the Shelter have been advised of this and will see to her on Monday. The woman who applied for Freckles saw that her eye was weeping and was told it would be reported to medical staff. She did not seem overly concerned as she went ahead with the application and even returned half an hour later with tax documents.

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Here is Roxy, Diana and Tippy...

Three Go Home Wednesday Night!!

Looks like April is proving to be better for adoptions than March!! Last night Valentine, Bob and Elise went home. I know Valentine will have a wonderful home. She is joining a Chihuahua, another cat who reportedly looks like a small, skinny version of her and a couple of birds. Lots to keep her occupied. She can finally be active and maybe shed a few pounds! There is a fifteen year old girl in the house who could not wait to share her room with Valentine.

Bob's new owner applied to adopt him before he even came down to PetSmart. The Director just approved the application on Tuesday.

On Tuesday a woman called the Shelter and said that Elise was her cat which had disappeared after the summer. If you remember, Elise was left at the Shelter door in a box back in September. Her owner theorizes her neighbor may have done that!! Elise (aka Zena) is back home where she belongs. Maybe that is why she seemed so unsettled - she was trying to tell us she already had a home!! Fortunately she leaves us microchipped so this should never happen again.

On Tuesday, April 17 at 7:00pm I am teaching a Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return seminar for the Cape May County Animal Shelter Alliance. TNVR is the only effective, humane solution to controlling the stray and homeless cat population living outside. I will demonstrate several traps and provide tips and information on every step of the process to include trapping, vet appointments, transportation, recovery following surgery and release. (Plus, there will be snacks!) The seminar will be held at the Old County Court House at 11 North Main Street in Cape May Court House. If you know anyone interested in attending please tell them to call the Alliance at 465-6388 or have them e-mail me directly.

On Saturday I am bringing four new arrivals to PetSmart. Look for a blog update introducing them!

Hey, this update wouldn't be complete without some reference to the calendar....please look forward to May and let me know what you can do as soon as possible. Also, Jen and Lauren need coverage for the evening cleaning on Thursday, April 12. Please let me know if you are available to handle that.

I hope the Easter Bunny is good to each and every one of you!! Thanks for your continued help and compassion for our furry friends!!

Welcome Valentine & Whitney

Our new arrivals came today to PetSmart. Valentine is a BIG girl who is very sweet and very nice. Wait til you see her!! She is too big for one cage and would get stuck in the hole if given two cages. So, into the big cage she went. We tried to keep Angel with her but decided it was not a good idea. We no sooner put her in the cage when a mother and daughter instantly fell in love! They put a hold on Valentine and completed the adoption application. It was amazing how Valentine took to this family after just arriving at the store. She was not the least bit shy and rolled over to have her big belly scratched. Unfortunately (actually fortunately for Valentine) some of you may not have the pleasure of meeting her. I am hoping she can go home Wednesday night.

The other new arrival is Whitney. She is a sweet calico and is about a year and a half old. She is quite vocal! She is very friendly and appears to have settled right in.

To accomodate Valentine we did some rearranging. A couple came into the store and were interested in both Freckles and Gus. The two interacted very well together when introduced to the potential adopting family. We decided to put them in three shared cages. Should they go home together they will already be well acquainted. Should this couple decide not to adopt them hopefully someone else watching their antics will take them as a package deal. (By the way...Freckles' adoption fee was reduced to $35 since she is just over a year old.) Remember, should someone adopt two cats the second adoption fee is cut in half.

The store was busy today. Lots of lookers and lots of interest! We had a couple interested in Bob and a young man interested in Senora. Hopefully they will be back.

Please look at the April schedule and make sure your dates are accurate. I accidentally deleted some dates and had to rely on memory and some old e-mails to fill the calendar back in. There is still two open Saturday mornings.

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On Saturday a new volunteer joined our force. She was trained in the fine art of cleaning a cat cage and I think she picked it right up!! She swallowed her fear and signed on for a few shifts in April. Welcome, Paige!! It was a pleasure meeting you!

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The new guys: