Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Jaguar

This is post #5 in the series. You can read post #6 at A Tonk's Tail...er, Tale...

Today's guest blogger is Kathryn Bloomer. She's the hostess with the mostess for the kitty parties during the mornings at Wayside Waifs. She spoke with Jaguar who is available for adoption at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. This is what he had to say about his situation:

Hi, I’m Jaguar and I’m a 12-year-old shelter cat.  That makes me a senior cat, and it’s not easy being a senior shelter cat, because, well, seems like everyone wants a kitten.  But we seniors have our attractions as well, the first being – we’re not kittens!  No curtain climbing, no screaming banshee raids from room to room, no sudden ankle attacks – well, not usually.  We senior cats know how to savor life one dignified step at a time.

I can tell you from experience that shelter life isn’t easy for us seniors.  For one thing, being a senior is a little like having a hangover 24/7.  You know – everything hurts, you hate bright lights and loud noises, you’re a little cranky, the brain is a little fuzzy, you don’t want to have to learn anything new, you don’t move very fast, and most of all you just want to go home and go to bed. So we senior cats are usually to be found napping.

We senior cats might act a little depressed here at the shelter, missing the old life maybe. And if we look a little scruffy, well, sometimes it’s hard to get excited about grooming when surrounded by a new environment, new faces, and the occasional noisy visitor who likes to poke us to see if we’ll respond.  Just ask my friend Annabella about the visitor who kept poking at her just to see her slap at him.  “Oh, I like to box with cats – they enjoy it!” the guy said.  Grrrr.  Is it any wonder that we get a little swatty sometimes? 

But just because we might get a little grouchy at the shelter doesn’t mean we will stay that way.  I mean, you get cranky at work sometimes don’t you?  And then you like to go home to the cozy sanctuary of your home?  It’s like that for us, too.  We just want to go to a quiet, cozy home, where we can nuzzle you in peace, climb into your lap, and give you the loving that you deserve.  Then we will blossom.  We will get a new spring in our step, take extra care in our grooming and probably look and act years younger.

I’ve heard some visitors say that older cats don’t bond as well to new people. Excuse me?  I don’t know about you, but when I meet that special someone, I don’t care how old I am, I’m gonna love on them like crazy – make up for lost time, you know? 

It takes a special person to adopt a senior cat.  I may not have as many years left as the younger cats, but we indoor cats have pretty long life spans – 16, 18, maybe 22 or 23.  And then after I’m gone, that will make room for another sweet kitty in your life. 

How will you know that I’m the senior kitty for you?  Just come and visit me. I’ll look up into your eyes, and you’ll know…you’ll know.

Thank you Kathryn and Jaguar! I can understand where Jaguar is coming from. When Mom adopted me I was 7 years old. Not elderly, but certainly not a kitten. She saw the benefits of adopting an older cat and we have lived in harmony ever since!