Monday, September 27, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Who Would Have Thought....
....a few months ago we could not get anywhere near Franklin, the feral cat.
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Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Quandary!
For more than a year now, we have been caring for two or three feral cats from the neighborhood. Now one of the cats, Franklin, has begun to really trust us. We had a breakthrough today; Franklin let both my husband and me pet him, without any food nearby. He let us scratch his ears and pet his back. This would have been unheard of just a few months ago.
Before we had Franklin neutered and vaccinated with the help of The Cat Connection, he was a pretty ferocious stray cat. He once launched himself nearly five feet up at our window and yowled at one of our indoor cats, who was sitting in the windowsill. We saw him wandering the neighborhood, looking ragged and lean, but we couldn't get anywhere near him. Once we saw him limping badly with a swollen elbow joint on one leg, but no effort to catch him succeeded. We thought that was it, and were astonished a few weeks later to see him again, walking on all fours.
This was a tough cat, and he had the scars from street battles to prove it. We were worried that his time would run out, between the danger from cars, human beings, and coyotes, and the diseases he could catch. When some kittens were born into the neighborhood we couldn't wait anymore to take action. We were determined to get all of the strays neutered, and the youngest ones adopted to good homes if they could be tamed. We helped save quite a few little lives in the process.
Once we humanely trapped Franklin and had him vaccinated and neutered, everything changed. He was too wild to be tamed and adopted into a home, but he calmed down, began spending time in our yard (we agreed to feed him and the other feral cats in exchange for participation in the program) and slowly began to gain weight, relax, and trust us.
Today Franklin avoids any confrontation with our cats, even if I bring them outside on a leash and halter. He never attacks. He gives way if necessary. He snoozes on our deck, and keeps me company in the mornings when I write outside. Petting him never seemed to be an option, but now we can even do that.
Here's the quandary: we've learned that Franklin is FIV positive, probably from his years of battles on the streets. Cats can live a long, normal life with FIV, it is not a threat to humans, and it is not easy for cats to catch it from each other, but they can pass it on if there is a fight and a serious bite. Our indoor cats are not FIV positive, and knowing this, we don't think we can risk trying to bring Franklin indoors, especially because one of our indoor cats is a territorial male who would never stand a chance against Franklin.
Franklin also is best buddies with a little white feral female who follows him everywhere. She is so sweet and fun, but she won't let us anywhere near her. So if we brought Franklin in, or found him a home, we know she would be lonely.
What to do, what to do! What if we move away some day? I could never leave Franklin behind! But the little white cat can't be tamed. There are no easy answers, but for now I know this: Franklin is healthy, happy, and well-fed, and a lot better off than he was before. We'll figure something out.
Before we had Franklin neutered and vaccinated with the help of The Cat Connection, he was a pretty ferocious stray cat. He once launched himself nearly five feet up at our window and yowled at one of our indoor cats, who was sitting in the windowsill. We saw him wandering the neighborhood, looking ragged and lean, but we couldn't get anywhere near him. Once we saw him limping badly with a swollen elbow joint on one leg, but no effort to catch him succeeded. We thought that was it, and were astonished a few weeks later to see him again, walking on all fours.
This was a tough cat, and he had the scars from street battles to prove it. We were worried that his time would run out, between the danger from cars, human beings, and coyotes, and the diseases he could catch. When some kittens were born into the neighborhood we couldn't wait anymore to take action. We were determined to get all of the strays neutered, and the youngest ones adopted to good homes if they could be tamed. We helped save quite a few little lives in the process.
Once we humanely trapped Franklin and had him vaccinated and neutered, everything changed. He was too wild to be tamed and adopted into a home, but he calmed down, began spending time in our yard (we agreed to feed him and the other feral cats in exchange for participation in the program) and slowly began to gain weight, relax, and trust us.
Today Franklin avoids any confrontation with our cats, even if I bring them outside on a leash and halter. He never attacks. He gives way if necessary. He snoozes on our deck, and keeps me company in the mornings when I write outside. Petting him never seemed to be an option, but now we can even do that.
Here's the quandary: we've learned that Franklin is FIV positive, probably from his years of battles on the streets. Cats can live a long, normal life with FIV, it is not a threat to humans, and it is not easy for cats to catch it from each other, but they can pass it on if there is a fight and a serious bite. Our indoor cats are not FIV positive, and knowing this, we don't think we can risk trying to bring Franklin indoors, especially because one of our indoor cats is a territorial male who would never stand a chance against Franklin.
Franklin also is best buddies with a little white feral female who follows him everywhere. She is so sweet and fun, but she won't let us anywhere near her. So if we brought Franklin in, or found him a home, we know she would be lonely.
What to do, what to do! What if we move away some day? I could never leave Franklin behind! But the little white cat can't be tamed. There are no easy answers, but for now I know this: Franklin is healthy, happy, and well-fed, and a lot better off than he was before. We'll figure something out.
Monday, September 6, 2010
The Future of Our Place to Paws
I've been spending some time contemplating the future of "Our Place to Paws." As regular readers know, this happens now and then. Our little website was launched about four years ago, and in that time we have posted a lot of information about pets and wildlife, have created a Facebook Group that now has more than 330 members, have added many new "animal columnists" and have enjoyed photo submissions from friends and fans.
The truth is, though, we still don't have a major amount of visitors or blog readers on a monthly basis, because Our Place to Paws is a part-time labor of love, not a full-time business with staff. It does cost money to keep the site running, so every few months the question comes back -- should we keep going? Is there enough interest?
I have always believed that if even just one person is inspired to love an animal, volunteer at a shelter, or join a cause in the name of animal welfare because of our site, then all of the work and investment has been worth it. Seeing the occasional posts and comments on Facebook shows me that there are people out there who enjoy the site. And we have a few die-hard fans who love it and participate on a regular basis.
Every time, so far, I've considered taking the site down, I've decided against it. I'm making the same decision this time -- keeping Our Place to Paws going for those of you out there who enjoy it. But please tell your friends about the site, leave comments on the blog, join the Facebook Group...and if you know of advertisers who might be interested in supporting us, send them our way!
Onward!
The truth is, though, we still don't have a major amount of visitors or blog readers on a monthly basis, because Our Place to Paws is a part-time labor of love, not a full-time business with staff. It does cost money to keep the site running, so every few months the question comes back -- should we keep going? Is there enough interest?
I have always believed that if even just one person is inspired to love an animal, volunteer at a shelter, or join a cause in the name of animal welfare because of our site, then all of the work and investment has been worth it. Seeing the occasional posts and comments on Facebook shows me that there are people out there who enjoy the site. And we have a few die-hard fans who love it and participate on a regular basis.
Every time, so far, I've considered taking the site down, I've decided against it. I'm making the same decision this time -- keeping Our Place to Paws going for those of you out there who enjoy it. But please tell your friends about the site, leave comments on the blog, join the Facebook Group...and if you know of advertisers who might be interested in supporting us, send them our way!
Onward!
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