Tuesday, April 29, 2008

The Latest on Adoptions and Holds

Well, Henshaw went home last Wednesday night along with Hilde. I hope poor nervous Henshaw has settled in at home and is not too frightened. His new dad seems very kind and patient so I am sure it will work out.

Lots of holds this week! Holds were put on Harry, Sally, Smitty and Crunchy. Crazy Crunchy's applicant was approved and he is going home tomorrow night. A woman put a hold on Harry and decided, with reservations, to also put a hold on Sally as she did not want to see the two separated. However after giving it more thought she elected to only adopt Harry so the hold on Sally has been pulled. The application for Harry was approved and he is going home tomorrow night as well. The application for Smitty is being processed.

The applicant for Corey was notified by the Shelter but he has yet to supply any of the required paperwork. Perhaps we will get him a home with his brother Moe after all.

This weekend is the Adoption Event at PetSmart. Several of us will be there with dogs and additional visiting cats. Dogs will be on hand both Saturday and Sunday from 12:30-3:30pm. In addition four cats will be spending the day with us and two cats will move in to replace Henshaw and Hilde. Let's hope we find some forever homes for these dogs and cats!

Two new cats arrived on Sunday...Snowdrift and Travis. Both are very shy and will need some time settling in. Snowdrift is a young male who is gray and white. Travis is also a young male and is a gray tabby.

Only one opening on the May schedule...the morning cleaning on Saturday, May 31. Please let me know if you are available. Look ahead to June as the schedule is filling up!

Here is Snowdrift and Travis:




Sunday, April 20, 2008

A Busy Weekend!

Angelica and Miles went home on Saturday. Both are going to homes that have other cats so they will have company. Angelica went home with a teenage girl who could not be happier. She will be treated like a princess! Miles went home with a true cat lover! Her new mother had recently lost a cat who apparently looked just like Miles. When she spotted Miles in the cage she instantly fell in love with him. I packed him up in her carrier and he was so good about it! She was all smiles when she left the store.

We took two holds over the weekend - one on Henshaw on Saturday and one on Hilde on Sunday. Henshaw's applicant is a single guy who also recently had a cat pass away so he came to PetSmart looking for a companion. He came into the store during the week and saw Henshaw and he told me, "He gave me a double wink and I knew he was the one." Henshaw is so nervous and he seemed to calm down when he met his potential new dad. I think it will be a good match. Both applications are at the Shelter being processed.

Just a reminder....If you take a hold on a cat please make sure it is accompanied by a completed application and let me know there is paperwork that needs to go to the Shelter. I will make arrangements to get it. A hold without an application slows down the process. The next hold is then treated as a second hold yet the Shelter does not have an application to review and evaluate. Even if the people insist they will complete it and take it to the Shelter themselves advise them how our process works and get ALL the forms completed right then. Should they continue to insist have them go to the Shelter during regular hours and complete their paperwork right there. Also, if you take an application please make sure a hold is completed as well.

Three new cats came today. They are litter mates Harry and Sally and a big old tomcat named Smitty. Harry and Sally will be sharing two cages. They are both gray and black tabbies. Initially Sally was a tad nervous but settled in just fine along with Harry. Smitty is a big orange tabby with alot of personality. He was an outside cat for a while and then was brought to the Shelter. You know how long these big orange toms last at PetSmart!! He also settled in without a problem.

Here they are:

Monday, April 14, 2008

A Handsome Young Man & A Single White Female

Big Sunny and Socks went home on Wednesday night. Sunny's new family brought a carrier so fortunately the big guy did not have to be stuffed into a cardboard carrier. Socks will be joining a home with two dogs so it looks like he will have someone to play with. I know alot of you will miss this rambunctious guy! It is nice to picture him free to run about a house!

Also, on Wednesday night our newest volunteer, Joann, joined Barb A and between them they did some nail clipping. Barb assured me no feline or human blood was shed. Miles, Crunchy, Corey and Moe survived their manicure. Thanks, Joann, and welcome aboard!

If you contacted me with hours you would like to help at the adoption event the first weekend in May then I added you to the calendar. If I made any mistakes please let me know. If you have not committed yet but would like to you are more than welcome to join us!

So, as the title of this post suggests, a young male and a young female cat arrived at PetSmart on Sunday. Angelica is all white and is very friendly and very pretty. She settled right in and did not appear to be the least bit nervous. She actually permitted Crunchy to groom her for a while but then there was some hissing so they were separated. Henshaw, on the other hand, was very afraid. He is a gray tabby with some white. You can see from his picture below that he is a scaredy cat. I know this group can make him feel better in no time!

Since both of the new guys are smaller they are in their own cages for now. As we monitor them this week and get to know them we can decide if the door can be opened between their cages. Right now Milo and Crunchy each have two cages, Corey and Moe are in the big cage, and the rest have separate quarters. I am sure there will be some mixing and matching by the end of the week.

Apparently Hildie showed a bit of attitude on Sunday and growled several times at BlueBell and then cornered her. The door was shut between their cages. Poor BlueBell! When they first arrived they huddled together in the cubicle and comforted each other. Some thanks BlueBell gets, huh!

The May calendar is complete with the exception of the following three dates.
Please let me know if you are available:
Sun, May 18, Adoption Table (yes, I will accept an offer to clean/feed only)
Tue, May 20, Evening cleaning/feeding
Sat, May 31, Morning cleaning/feeding

Meet Angelica and Henshaw:

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Webbie, Tiger and Iago Go Home!

Webbie went home Wednesday evening as scheduled. Also on Wednesday night Sashimi's owner, Lavendar, Scout, and Sassafrass's owner, and Traveller, Merlot, and Otto's owner all stopped by the adoption table to say "hi". Barb A said Sashimi (Triscuit) and her owner are very happy! Such good news!

Tiger and Iago left on Saturday. Tiger struggled a bit and did not want to get into the carrier but with the help of her new dad the little girl was packed away and went home. Leona said that Iago was a perfect gentleman and calmly allowed himself to be put into a carrier. I am not surprised! (Kudos to Leona for doing a wonderful job her first day at the adoption table!)

On Sunday Socks got a hold and the application is at the Shelter being processed. I will keep you posted on its progress.

Wait til you see Sunny! I brought him to PetSmart Monday afternoon. He is a massive orange Garfieldish cat! He is 26 pounds and very sweet and gentle. He is nine years old. His owner passed away six months ago and a family member originally took him but for whatever reason it did not work out. Poor Sunny was subsequently relinquished to the Shelter. He has been an inside cat his entire life. He seems depressed but, hey, who wouldn't be! Of course he had to go in the big cage with Socks who welcomed him with open paws. He just arrived at the Shelter so I do not have a picture of him.

Along with Sunny I brought Bluebell, a grayish blue female torti and Hildie, an orange and white female. These two are also very sweet. They were a tad scared and nervous on their first day. They are sharing two cages and seem to find comfort in each other. They both got into one cubicle and then turned their backs to the window. I do believe they will settle in but it will take a few days. For now keep the door closed to Crunchy's quarters until these girls feel more at ease.

PetSmart managers have asked me to pass along a couple of things. Please make sure that all the cats are in the cage area and the big door closed before opening the door to the adoption room that leads to the store. We have had some escapees!! Also, we are going over budget with supplies. There are several scratching pads in cages now as well as some in the cabinets. Please just use what we have and do not take any more of these from the shelves. Finally, some of us are not initialing the Adoption Center Maintenance Checklist. You will find this on the clipboard on top of the cart. We are responsible for the daily pre-opening cleaning duties and the nightly cleaning tasks. Make sure you initial the top block and draw a line to the last block. The managers initial the other areas.

The adoption event at PetSmart will be on Saturday, May 3, 12:00 - 5:00pm and on Sunday, May 4, 12:00 - 4:00pm. If you would like to help out with either day please let me know. Also, please be specific about what hours you can do so I can make a schedule and get everything covered. The Shelter will receive $15 for every animal adopted during the adoption event as well as for any animal adopted during the week preceding it. While you are cleaning and feeding during the week please keep this in mind should anyone engage you in conversation!

Just a reminder...the clear plastic litter pans are doubled up to make them stronger. If the top pan is soiled please be careful and do not throw both away!

The May schedule looks great! There is still four openings (excluding the adoption weekend). Please let me know if you can do any of them.

Here is our new shy girls - Hildie and BlueBell.

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Sweet Bettina Goes Home!

Bettina went home on Saturday. She is such a sweet cat and not a bit of trouble. I am sure her new mom will be very happy she made the decision to adopt her.

Webbie's application was approved and she is going home on Wednesday. She is going to a home with no other animals and the family is very excited to have her. She is so shy and timid and this home sounds like the perfect environment for her to find comfort and learn to trust.

Iago has two pending holds. I will keep you posted on how that is going. For now he is bunking with Socks.

Four new cats came from the Shelter on Sunday. They are brothers Cory and Moe, Miles and Tiger. Cory and Moe are young male tabbies. You can tell the difference by their noses. Cory has a pink nose and Moe has a dark nose. They are both easy going and settled right in. Needless to say they shared accommodations at the Shelter and will continue to do so at PetSmart. Hopefully they will find a home together. Miles is also a male tabby. He looks allot like the brothers. He, too, settled right in and has an easy going disposition. Tiger is a young female tabby and the poor little girl is very shy. She is very pretty and has long hair. Please be patient with her and help her become adjusted. She was very afraid on Sunday.

No need for me to even comment on the April schedule! It's complete!

Here's the new guys: Cory, Moe, Tiger & Miles