Question:
Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match.
I read through this twice. I think my tears have dried up enough now that I can write. I’m so happy for Alex; though it’s sad for you, I know in your heart you’re happy too. It sounds like a wonderful ending to the story. If you can keep in touch with them, I hope you’ll tell us how they fare. (I’ve come to believe that most "Daves" are terrific guys!) Jeanne
Response:
<<<<<<<<snip "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered.
Ron, I am so happy for Alex and Dave and you. I was crying as I read the story. Dave is truly awesome. Alex will blossom under his care. I hope you keep in contact. And take pictures and keep us informed. We really need happy endings like this. Hmm, I only live 80 some miles from Denver. Maybe I could visit you some time when I go to Watkins to visit my sister? CATherine
Response:
Yipee!
Response:
*H*A*P*P*Y* *D*A*N*C*E* Oh happy day!!! Happy, happy, happy, happy!!!! *hugs* helen s Get lost before sending a reply Any speliong mistakes aR the result of my cats sitting on the keyboaRRRDdd
Response:
Great story with happy ending. — Larry Silkaitis (Owned by six cats: two grey, one black, white, black and white, and grey and white)
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
Response:
Darn it, I didn’t want to start today with tears in my eyes, but this did it. I am so glad Alex has found her forever home. Thank you for helping her get there, and thank Dave for being the one. Ginger-lyn
Response:
This is the first post I’ve read since we got our new server on-line finally today after no newsgroups since the 28th, and it was worth waiting for — I am so very happy to read this story, Ron, and I hope Dave and Alex have a long and wonderful life together — please let us know how things are going with her as I suspect you might get an update once in a while. Cheers and purrs from all of us! Christine, Omar, Midnight, Shetra & Oreo
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy?
… read more »
Response:
Oh, I was really looking forward to a new Dave in our midst 
. Ron, you are a wonderful person for thinking of Alex first and giving her time to bond with Dave. I don’t think I would manage to stay away if I were you since Dave lives so close to you. Best wishes and purrs (you are an amazing person and a wonderful artist both in photography and writing), — Polonca & Soncek
Thank you one and all for your support and for sharing in my joy at finding a good home for a worthy cat. It’s a beautiful thing. Dave promised lots of updates and promised to send photos of Alex in one of his many windows.
<snip
Response:
hlink.net… | Short version: | | Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a | truly purrrfect match. sounds like a true match and a true home for Alex! So happy to hear this news. More purrs and meatloafs for Alex and Dave. Well done Ron! =o) — lewe ‘o’< lewemi at yahoo dot se ‘o’<
Response:
This brings to mind the picture of Snoopy’s happy dance in the Peanuts comic strip. This is how I feel about it, too! — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – *H*A*P*P*Y* *D*A*N*C*E* Oh happy day!!! Happy, happy, happy, happy!!!! *hugs* helen s Get lost before sending a reply Any speliong mistakes aR the result of my cats sitting on the keyboaRRRDdd
Response:
tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered.
And where is the TW on this message? Thanks for sharing and thanks for looking after Alex while she was under your wing. Thanks for finding Dave, I’m sure they’ll be very happy together. — Victor M. Martinez, Jr. | The University of Texas at Austin http://www.che.utexas.edu/~martiv | Austin, TX 78712 If we knew what we were doing it would not be called research, would it?
Response:
(snip of tugs-the-heartstrings narrative ) I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. Ron Z
Sniffle, where was the TW on this? I am so very happy for Alex and you and Dave. Congratulations to you all. Annie
Response:
TW for what? This is a happy story! Happy happy happy happy happy! — Ron Z Still doing his happy dance (modified). "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…." – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sniffle, where was the TW on this? I am so very happy for Alex and you and Dave. Congratulations to you all. Annie
Response:
Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match.
Sounds like I’d like Dave, too! Hooray for all concerned! Alex has met her human!!! Congratulations for the wonderful thing you’ve done!! Roger
Response:
I’m so glad that Alex and Dave bonded and Alex has found her home. I hope so much that it works out well for both of them. I know you’ll miss her, but you did a great job of helping her. Debbie Berry – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match.
Response:
Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match.
Hoody Hoo!!! This is so Kewl. I’m so happy for Alex, Dave (her new Daddy) and You. Is Dave going to let you keep in touch so that you will continue to know how Alex is doing? Congrats to you all, and I’m so happy to read a happy beginning for Alex. She’s lucked out twice now: first in meeting you and your misses, and now in being compatible with Dave. Thank you so much for all that you’ve done for her and for finding her only home. Pam and the Shirk kitties
Response:
<sob it’s just perfect……I’m so happy for Alex and Dave……you must convince him to get a computer so he can join the rpca family. We expect updates on Alex and her new found onetruehome. <sniffle — Kat Husbands are like children — they’re fine if they’re someone else’s (clean out the Kitty Litter to reply) http://photos.yahoo.com/kiffens
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the
… read more »
Response:
Oh, Ron, not only are you an excellent photographer, but you are an amazing story teller also. I love the tale and pics! There are so many talented people on rpca, you never cease to amaze me. Thanks for sharing, Ron, — Polonca & Soncek
<snip And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm .
Response:
Thank you one and all for your support and for sharing in my joy at finding a good home for a worthy cat. It’s a beautiful thing. Dave promised lots of updates and promised to send photos of Alex in one of his many windows. Dave has a large apartment with a sunroom, plenty of room for Alex to hide in for the first few weeks, and Dave seems to understand this is natural and ok. When I gave him my email address he remarked that he doesn’t have a computer. He was amused and interested when I told him that there was a whole community of cat lovers on the internet that was interested in Alex’s progress. Anyway, I’ll pass along any news, but I expect it to be a few days. He lives about 20 minutes from here, but I don’t think it would be in Alex’s best interest for me to go and visit soon. She needs to make a transition and I don’t think that my presence will help. I let Dave take plenty of her favorite toys so that there will be some sense of continuity, but she needs to forget me and bond with her new slave. Possibly by the time I visit I’ll be one of those strangers that Alex hides from. Or maybe she will settle down to more normal behavior. It will be interesting to see. Some people think they want a cat and some people understand that they NEED to have a cat in the house. This may be because they can communicate so well with them. Dave is certainly the latter and I am confident from my own experience that Alex will respond well to this :-) — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Oh, Ron, this is just so wonderful! I have tears in my eyes. I’m so glad you took the time to find the right person for Alex even though it was tough on you and on her. I don’t think Alex had a chance of finding her onetruehome at the shelter. But you were really patient and took the time to get to know her and could share the knowledge with people who were interested in adopting Alex. If you didn’t do all you did for her she would stay in the shelter forever I’m afraid. And what a treasure Dave is! I love kitties, but am not sure I’d be as patient as he is with Alex (patience is not my strong point unfortunately but I’m working on that). I just couldn’t be happier! Alex has found (or actually you found for her) the perfect dad. I can feel your loss, Ron, but I do hope you get lots of updates from Dave and that he is not living very far away so you can visit Alex. Do you think you can convince Dave to post here? If not, please tell him I said what a wonderful, patient, loving, caring person he is. Best wishes and lots of hugs, — Polonca & Soncek Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. <snip
Response:
Oh, Ron, this is just so wonderful! I have tears in my eyes. I’m so glad you took the time to find the right person for Alex even though it was tough on you and on her. I don’t think Alex had a chance of finding her onetruehome at the shelter. But you were really patient and took the time to get to know her and could share the knowledge with people who were interested in adopting Alex. If you didn’t do all you did for her she would stay in the shelter forever I’m afraid. And what a treasure Dave is! I love kitties, but am not sure I’d be as patient as he is with Alex (patience is not my strong point unfortunately but I’m working on that). I just couldn’t be happier! Alex has found (or actually you found for her) the perfect dad. I can feel your loss, Ron, but I do hope you get lots of updates from Dave and that he is not living very far away so you can visit Alex. Do you think you can convince Dave to post here? If not, please tell him I said what a wonderful, patient, loving, caring person he is. Best wishes and lots of hugs, — Polonca & Soncek
Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match.
<snip
Response:
<tears That was beautiful, Ron. If you get any updates from Dave, please let us know. And while youare sad, I think you know that Dave was her true slave, and you were just looking out for till he was ready. Bless you both, Yowie
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
Response:
Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
Response:
We will keep Alex in our prayers, but it sounds like the first ones were answered. Please keep us up to date about her progress with her new daddy. jazz and his Mama — Irulan from the stars we came, to the stars we return from now until the end of time
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
Response:
With tears of bittersweet happiness…..BLESS YOU!!! Karen
Response:
wonderful, will you get updates and visitation? Lee
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Short version: Alex went home today and it seemed as if we had found, against all odds, a truly purrrfect match. Long version: Read on. One day while shopping in PetCo for a toy for Penny the Kitten, I stoppedby the adoption center to look at the cats. Maxfund, a no-kill shelter in Denver, holds these events once in a while. There was a lovely Himalayan there, getting all the attention, but she stuck her nose up and ignored me. A few feet away, virtually ignored, was Alex. Alex was huddled so deep in her corner that I could scarcely tell what color she was. When she opened her big eyes they betrayed a mixture of fear and sadness. Her fur was a mess. She was, truth be told, the most miserable looking cat I had ever seen. Out of pity more than anything else I stuck my hand as far in the cage as I could to try to pet her. Alex sprang to her feet and arched her back to meet my hand which dutifully scratched while Alex turned and rubbed and purred. You might say we had a moment. Then Alex settled back into her corner, and gazed at me with those sad eyes, too afraid to hope. I was hooked. But not stupid. I bought my toy and left. When I got home I told I told my wife Chris about the sad and miserable cat I saw. Chris is a soft touch, like me, but without quite as much self control. Chris talked me into going back for Alex. But when we went back to the store we found Alex’s cage empty and eventually someone told us that she had become sick and was taken back to the shelter. When I called the shelter it took a while to find someone who knew about Alex, but we did discover that she had ringworm and an upper respiratory infection. The ringworm turned out to be particularly stubborn and required Alex to be kept in isolation. I left my phone number and eventually forgot about Alex until about 2 months later when the call came that Alex was finally healthy and was I still interested? Thinking that Penny about 8 months old now, could use some companionship, I said sure. I forgot to ask Penny. That was my big mistake. Right away it was clear that Alex was a damaged spirit. She hid for days until she learned the routine and when she figured out that I was the source of the food she began to trust me. When I reached out to pet her she would cringe. I couldn’t approach her at all if I was wearing shoes. Months later when she finally turned over and let me scratch her tummy I discovered that she still wore the stitches from her spay operation. After a quick but memorable visit to TED she seemed more comfortable and trusting. At first I thought that she and Penny would get along. That lasted about a week and then the fur began to fly. Eventually an uneasy truce of sorts was reached. And then Princess was born. Princess, if you must know, is the cat I was destined to have. You can read about it by following this link : http://www.ronz.homestead.com/files/cattale/cattale1.htm . This pushed Penny over the edge. While she seemed to sense that Princess was related to her (sister from a different litter), Alex was clearly the odd cat out and war was declared. Alex was much smaller and never had a chance. Speed and jumping ability were her only advantages. But Penny would ambush her at all 3 of our litter boxes as well as at the food bowl. After several months of this Alex began to lose weight. Penny was unrelenting and turned from being playful and loving to being mean and vigilant. There is a popular picture in my gallery at www.shuttercity.com that shows a close-up of Penny with a very stern look on her face. I titled it "Bad News for Mice" but what it really should have been called was bad news for Alex. The picture was made while I was trying to get a good photo of Penny and Alex suddenly wandered into view. Princess sensed Alex’s weakness and joined in the sport. Alex occasionally used Chris’ lap as a sanctuary, but when she began to urinate behind the TV I knew some action had to be taken. We have a spare family room in our fairly large house that Chris uses for sewing and ironing and so I set up a litter box there and closed it off for Alex. It worked. Alex immediately went back to using the box and ate everything we gave her. The biggest problem with this arrangement besides the extra work for us, was that Alex didn’t get nearly enough attention. I took to rising at 5AM to feed her and spend some time with her. She looked forward to these visits and always came over for attention and to play, but this was generally all of the time I had for her. Alex became quite attached to me, and I to her, but thinking of her best interest I began to spread the word that I had a nice grown cat, somewhat shy, in need of a home. Not an easy sell, but I hoped and prayed that Alex would somehow find her place in the world. This was last July. Just before Christmas a young woman named Connie came to look at Alex. She arrived with her boyfriend, Zack. I told them how shy Alex was and how it was best to let her come to them. When I took them into Alex’s room they immediately tried to confront Alex and get her to play. Zack was loud and direct. Alex cowered under a chair in terror. It was a disaster. They never called back and I was happy about that. Lately Alex showed signs of losing hope again. She wouldn’t get up when I came in with her food or come over to play. Then we heard about Dave. Dave is quiet fellow probably in his late twenties who several months ago had lost his cat of 13 years. He was more than ready for another. He was looking for a female and heard about Alex through a friend. I had this friend take him some pictures and he was interested right away. Chris came home that night and said that Dave was going to call at 7 and at 7 sharp my phone rang. I told Dave about Alex and how shy she was and invited him over with my standard disclaimer, "but don’t expect to see her." "These things can take time," Dave said quietly. "I can tell she needs a lot of patience." I liked Dave right away. I told him to come by Saturday at 10. Saturday at 10 our doorbell rings and Dave walks in. I’m playing with Alex but I know he has arrived because she suddenly slinks behind the couch and stays there. So I go upstairs to meet Dave. We chat for a bit and I tell him Alex’s story. He instinctively understands that Alex needs some special attention. I really like Dave. He is soft spoken and seems to understand cats. Finally I take him downstairs for the fateful meeting. As expected, Alex is nowhere to be seen. I find her underneath a chair, where she can hide unseen. Dave and I sit down and we chat some more as I explain about the things Alex likes and how I play with her. There is no appearance from Alex, so I begin trying to engage her in play, knowing she won’t be interested. Dave lies on the floor and after introducing himself reaches as far under the chair as he can and begins to pet Alex. He keeps at it, too. "You could reach her more easily from the back of the chair," I say. "This is ok," says Dave. "I don’t want to frighten her." I really like Dave, did I mention that? Dave seems content to lay on the floor, arm fully extended under the chair, petting Alex. "She’s letting me scratch her tummy," Dave says. I took me two months to get to that point. I decide to leave them alone for a while, so I excuse myself and leave the room. Dave would later tell me that Alex knew right away when I left the room and didn’t like it one bit. I go back upstairs where Chris is entertaining her friend who also came along. We swap cat stories for about 15 minutes while I wait for Dave to come out of the room, but he doesn’t show. Finally I can’t stand the suspense anymore and I open the door and creep down the stairs. I scurry back and quietly call Chris to come and look. Alex is sitting calmly in Dave’s lap while he strokes her fur. "Oh yeah," I say. "This is going to work." You could almost feel magic in the air. Since things were going so well, we left them alone again. About ten minutes later Dave comes out. "She really doesn’t like cages," he says (I already know this). "But I got her in." And that was that. I went back into the room with Dave and there was Alex looking very uncomfortable in the cat carrier which I had conveniently left in the room. I don’t know how Dave got her to go in there, and I wasn’t going to ask. I stuck my finger in the cage, much as I did that day in PetCo so long ago. Alex rubbed her face and chin against my finger and meowed pitifully in protest. I packed her toys and a bag of her favorite treats in a bag and said my goodbye. "Don’t worry," Dave said. "I’ll give her the love and attention she needs." I already know this, too. And so I held the door as Alex was carried out of my life, leaving behind a tiny hole in my heart, a hole now filled with hope. And that, my friends, is how prayers are answered. — Ron Z http://member.newsguy.com/~rzeidler Nosy? http://www.shuttercity.com/ShowPhoto.cfm?PhotoID=14373 "Wake up to find out that you are the eyes of the world…."
Response:
— Elise (supervised by Gossamer & Jeeves) 
. Male did, and was sooooo weebly-wobbly when he walked around his nestbox, the name stuck. I was originally only going to raise him & then give him away, but when he wouldn’t go to sleep after a feeding unless *I* was holding him, preferably next to my chest, I knew I couldn’t part with him. Fearsome Foursome (Eenie-boy, Meanie, Minnie-the-Moocher, & Moe) – Same feral cat again had kittens near our house (making them Weeble’s (half)siblings), this time I was able to grab all of them (and have still been unable to trap Mama – I’ve only caught raccoons (or the same raccoon over & over), possums, and a ground hog – also seen squirrels in the trap, but they’re not heavy enough to set it off – and fortunately no skunks). They are 10-11 weeks old, had their first set of shots, and are now listed on Petfinder.com. — The ONE and ONLY lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy former-blonde in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)