Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Alex the Wobbly Cat

This is post #15 in the series. You can read post #16 at A Tonk's Tail...er, Tale...

Today's guest blogger is Bonnie Still who leads the Feline Comfort Crew at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. All the kitties tell her their special requests. She's going to share about Alex, who was adopted despite being "less-adoptable."

For 1 week, I fostered a 10 month old kitten named Alex.  He had been surrendered to Wayside Waifs in Kansas City, Missouri because his owner had to move.  Before I met Alex, one of the ladies I work with told me I would immediately fall in love with him, but did not mention anything “different” about him.

Photo by Bonnie Still.

Alex was in the C.A.T. room (Cats Awaiting Transition), one of the rooms new cats are housed until they are ready to move to the adoption floor.  I walked in and said hello to all the cats, including Alex.  I didn’t notice anything “different” about him, he was lying down watching everything.  My co-worker had said Alex was fine to be let out into the room, so when it came time to clean his kennel, I opened the door, and out walked this shaky, wobbly, kitten.  I then looked at his paperwork and saw that he had Cerebellar Hypoplasia aka Wobbly-Cat Syndrome.  The vets told me Alex’s condition was mild.

Definition of Cerebellar Hypoplasia adapted from Wikipedia

Symptoms

Usually symptoms of cerebellar hypoplasia can be seen immediately at birth in cats, but sometimes can take two months or so to become apparent in dogs. Cerebellar hypoplasia causes jerky movements, tremors and generally uncoordinated motion. The animal often falls down and has trouble walking. Tremors increase when the animal is excited and subside when at ease.

Causes

There are several bacterial infections and viral infections such as feline panleukopenia, caused by feline parvovirus,[1] that can result in the disorder in both cats and dogs. However, the disease can also be caused by malnutrition, poisoning, injury or general accidents during development in the fetus.

Prognosis

The disease does not get better or worse with age, but the cat or dog can usually learn to somewhat compensate for it and should have a normal lifespan. Most afflicted animals can lead a fairly normal life if special considerations for the animal's disability are taken by the pet's owner.

I had seen much younger kittens with CH at the shelter before, but this was the first time I’d seen an older cat/kitten.  For some reason, this made me more emotional towards a cat than normal.  Maybe it was because he wasn’t a stray that had been brought in, but someone had owned him, and gave him up. 

I watched Alex walking around the room.  I realized he was wobbliest when he first came out of his kennel, but as he continued to move around, it lessened.  I picked him up and snuggled right into me, purring and making biscuits (kneading with his paws).  Yep, I fell in love completely.

Photo by Bonnie Still.

The following day, I found out that before Alex could move to the adoption floor, we had to know for certain that he could use his litterbox consistently.  I offered to foster him, and within a few days, I was able to take him home with me.

Alex did very well in my home, using the litterbox consistently and properly.  He enjoyed snuggle time and play time.  It was a new experience for me.  I was used to allowing a cat to go wherever s/he wanted in our basement, but I couldn’t do that with Alex unless I was there to supervise him.  He was not afraid or timid of anything, I was the one constantly worrying!  Nothing stopped Alex. When he first saw the stairs, his eyes lit up.  He was cautious at first, and then became so confident that I had to stop him before he would overdo it and possibly hurt himself – he was not happy with me for that. 

I had researched CH and found a fantastic yahoo group devoted to CH cats.  http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/chkittyclub/  These cat owners are phenomenal!  I was blown away by their passion for these cats, and the extremes they would go to for them to have a safe, comfortable, loving home.  They offered so many wonderful tips.  One of the most important ones I probably never would have thought of – CH cats can not have their nails trimmed short – they need them to pull themselves up onto furniture.

Our last day together in my home, I brought him upstairs into our den.  I watched him shakily reach up to look out the window, and then pull himself up onto the futon to curl up next to me for a nap.  That is one of the sweetest fostering moments I have had and will always cherish.

I love all the cats that I have fostered, but there is definitely a special place in my heart just for Alex.  He taught me to not feel sorry for him, but to encourage and help him.  I also learned it takes a special person to adopt a CH cat.

Thank you Alex, for allowing me to be a small part of your life.  Alex was adopted a few weeks after being fostered!

Thank you, Ms. Bonnie for telling us about Alex and CH. I bet you miss him, but you helped him find his forever home by sharing yours with him for a week.

CH kitties need a little more supervision, but an experienced cat owner could be a great match for a wobbly cat. Please consider these special kitties when looking for your next family member!

Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Divas

This is post #11 in the series. You can read post #12 at A Tonk's Tail...er, Tale...

I welcome Michelle Cour as guest blogger once again.

Hey there, Halley here!  My name was formerly Luna because I had a crescent moon shaped patch of light fur on my dark fur. One of mom’s roommates used to call me Lunatic and unfortunately the name fit, so I had to get my attitude adjusted and stop being such a diva. I whined a lot at the shelter and wanted tons of attention from everyone, but nobody wanted me. I missed my family I had for 11 years and had to come to Wayside Waifs because my owner had to report for basic training. It would be fair to say I was rather cranky, and some people called me a diva.

Photo by Michelle Cour.

I’m Hannah (formerly Josie). I loved free time out of my kennel and I’d purr like crazy for anyone who took me out and gave me loving, but then I’d swat them when it was time to put me back. I didn’t get it that my behavior discouraged them from letting me out, which I loved. The worst was when I slapped a nice lady who fed and cared for me because I was mad she brought kittens to live next door to me. I wasn’t getting enough attention already, and kittens are huge competition for a scrawny 10 year old like me. I wasn’t very friendly and made little effort to meet adopters. Lots of people called me a holy terror.

Photo by Michelle Cour.

I’m mom. I adopted these two. They needed and deserved a home, and I knew their behavior was most likely due to the stress of living in the shelter so long, more than 6 months. Halley was 11, a tortoiseshell which many people don’t find attractive, and black too; 3 strikes against her. Hannah also a senior was skinny and swatty. I’m an experienced cat owner so took a chance knowing life in a shelter can turn even the sweetest cat into a diva. Hannah has only swatted me once, more than a year ago. Halley whines far less often and learned to share my attention with Hannah and Harrison, my male cat.  We’re all good!

No happy ending so far for Annabella, who’s available for adoption at Wayside Waifs. She’s also 10 and wouldn’t have been given up but for the failing health of her owner.  She’s an example of a cat who sometimes behaves like a diva, but actually is a very nice cat. She acts territorial about her kennel, (hey, it’s all she has left after losing her person and her home) so is particular about who can visit her at her kennel and how they interact. She also doesn’t like the Comfort Crew changing her litter or cleaning the kennel. She hangs out in the sunroom while they work and grouches if they put her back in her kennel. If they leave the door open, she goes back in on her own, especially if they leave a few dry treats for her.

Photo by Cathy Sherman.

I’d encourage anyone who’s an experienced cat owner and open minded to consider Annabella. It’s tough on some cats, with different volunteers and adopters walking through all the time. It’s too busy and noisy a place for some, so they can begin to act out. When our “diva” cats go to their forever homes, we almost always get a note or email how the cat’s personality changed once they got in a stable quiet place with a person of their very own. And the adopters? So happy they chose them.

I sure hope somebody adopts Annabella from Wayside Waifs very soon! Too much time in a shelter can make any cat a little grumpy, but once you get settled into your forever home, you start enjoying life a whole lot more!

Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Bombay the Black Cat

This is post #7 in the series. You can read post #8 at A Tonk's Tail...er, Tale...

Today's guest blogger is, once again, Michelle Cour. She spoke with Bombay, a three year old cat available for adoption from Wayside Waifs in Kansas City.

Hi, I’m Bombay and I’m an all black domestic shorthair cat. As cute as I am, you’d think I’d have found a home by now, but I’m still stuck at the shelter. We black cats have a really hard time finding families. Some people never got over that old superstition of black cats and witches (witches, really? – this is the 21^st century, folks). Some people may have been outside when it’s dark and one of us walked in front of them. Scared them too; not because we’re snarly or evil, they just got startled they didn’t see us coming. And some folks believe that deal about good guys - white hats, bad guys - black hats. It wasn’t true for cowboys and it ain’t true for cats neither! Thanks for letting me vent. I needed that! Ahem…

Okay, I admit sometimes it’s hard to see details of our pretty faces clearly. A black nose no matter how cute doesn’t stand out very well against black fur. And unless our photographer takes us into a sunny room for our photo shoot, you really don’t see all the beautiful coppery brown tones in our fur and underfur. Gorgeous! You’d pay hundreds of dollars for highlights like this at the salon, ladies! So please, next time you’re shopping for a cat, please consider us.

Here are the top 10 reasons to own a black cat:

10.  You can always find your black cat in the snow. For Florida, easy to find on any light colored surface such as carpeting or the beach.

9.    Black goes with everything and it’s a powerful color. It's true. You know it. We know it. You've got your black power suit, your little black dress, best black heels etc.

8.  Black cats look like little panthers. Their regal breeding is very apparent under their sleek black coats.

7.  A black cat will match any décor. You won't have to redecorate your house to coordinate with your cat. They go with gold brocade, white velvet, pink moiré etc.

6.  Black is beautiful. There's deep auburn black, blue black, the black with tiny white highlights, sleek black, fluffy black, the black with bunny-soft fur, you get the idea.

5.  Black is slimming. Hold a black cat on your lap and you look 10 pounds thinner.  

4.  Black cats have more fun. You only thought it was blondes that had more fun, look at their black roots.

3.  Black cats try harder to make up for the image they somehow got of being scary or evil. We’re nothing like that. We go overboard to be as affectionate and loving as any fluffy white, pink-nosed bunny kitty could be.

2.  Love knows no color! Black cats don’t care what color YOUR hair is! Turning grey or falling out? Fine with us.

And the # 1 reason to adopt a black cat is that Black Cats are the least likely to get adopted! We need you. You seem like a really nice person reading about us, kind and open-minded. So come meet a few of us and take one or two home today. Otherwise, I’ll have to put an evil spell on you.      Just kidding!

Thanks Bombay and thanks again Michelle! So many great reasons to adopt a black cat. If you're not in the Kansas City area to give Bombay a forever home, there are always plenty of black cats to choose from in your area.

Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Snowflake

This is post #3 in the series. You can read post #4 at A Tonk's Tail...err, Tale...


Today's guest blogger is Michelle Cour, one of the dedicated volunteers at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. Michelle is known for getting the inside scoop from the Wayside kitties. She spoke with Snowflake, a two year old male, domestic shorthair, FIV+ cat available for adoption, and has relayed his story for me.

Hello

My name is Snowflake and I’ll bet you can guess why if you look at my photo. Yep, all white with beautiful blue eyes, very soulful people say. I’ve had kind of a hard life living on the streets getting bitten by another stray, and having to find food where I could. Things are better now with regular meals, medical care and nice people to talk to and play with me. But I could really use a permanent home.

The one challenge to quickly finding me a family is that I’m FIV positive. Don't be a scaredy cat! Many people don’t understand it and are afraid, so let me explain a little. It’s not a death sentence for me and doesn’t require expensive meds to keep it under control as is often needed with the human form, HIV. Feline Immunodeficiency Virus is an active viral infection causing an increased susceptibility to other infections. I can live a long healthy life if you take me to the vet if I develop an infection, like respiratory or urinary tract, easily curable with low cost antibiotics.

FIV isn’t communicable to dogs or humans; only to other cats through bites, not through sharing food or water dishes. If you would like a cat and have none, I’d be a super sweet and special friend, so come meet me today! In fact, why not take me and one of the other FIV positive cats too? Two is always more fun than one. Also, cats who test positive can develop neutralizing antibodies and clear the infection. Yep, it's true, so I should be retested about 3 months after the initial test that confirmed my FIV positive diagnosis. I might be just fine. Please come meet me. You won’t regret it and you’ll be my hero forever.

Until later!

Snowflake

Thank you Michelle and Snowflake! I hope they cleared up any confusion about FIV+ cats and their adoptability. If we get information out about FIV, more people would probably adopt cats like Snowflake.

I hope you consider an FIV+ cat the next time you're in the market for a new family member. If your local shelter has any FIV+ cats, please help spread this message:

Day 3 of Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Capone

It's the third day of Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week and I'm writing about another doggy that I want to #BeTheChange for. His name is Capone and he's a 7 year old Rottweiler mix. He's available for adoption at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City and has been waiting for his forever home since early June. He's got a great video! Check him out in action!

Capone could be considered less adoptable because of his breed, his coat color or his age. But after watching his video, his age clearly isn't a problem! He's as active as a puppy! His former family had glowing things to say about him:


Doesn't Capone look like he would make a great pet? I think so and so does Mom. In fact, she said if we had a house, we would adopt him ourselves. *sigh* I guess he'll have to make a fun pal for someone else.

Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week: Jazzy

Today I'm featuring a very special dog for Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week! Jazzy is available for adoption from Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. She is a one and a half year old, white Pit Bull who is deaf. (By the way, it's also Deaf Dog Awareness Week!) Not only is she less adoptable because of her special needs, she may be a victim of breed discrimination. It is also noted on her paperwork that she needs to go to a home with older children (kids 12 and older only).

She's lovely, though! Did you notice her different colored eyes? What a beauty!

A dog like Jazzy will need special consideration while training. She may be a good candidate for obedience training through sign language. There are resources out there for owners of deaf dogs. Check out Deaf Dog Education Action Fund.

Who will #BeTheChange for Jazzy?