Featured Furry: Gretchen

MEET THE HELEN KELLER OF CATS!

Gretchen may be special needs, but she is absolutely not challenged! She is a one-year-old oriental shorthair mix available for adoption at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. If you watch her walk, you'll notice that her head kind of wobbles a little bit. After many tests, the vets figured out that she has limited vision and hearing, they figure that is why her head wobbles like it does.

Gretchen doesn't let that stop her though! Most days you will find her free roaming around the cat adoption area. She loves to explore and socialize. She is quite brave! She can also be very vocal and loves attention.

Because of Gretchen's special needs, she would do best as the only pet in the home. She would do okay with kids, but they would have to be mature enough to understand her situation.

If you are in the market for a special needs kitty, Gretchen would be a perfect addition to your family!

Featured Furry: Dusty

This week's featured furry is a special needs kitty. Dusty is a sweet girl who needs to go to the perfect home.

Dusty has been at Wayside Waifs since March and although all the volunteers there love her, they know she's been there WAY too long. It's hard to find the right home for a girl like her though. You see, her ribcage never formed correctly, so she has to be handled just so in order to protect her internal organs. There's a sign up on her kennel explaining her unique situation.

Oh, and that little kitty face in the sign? That's a magnet painted by one of the volunteers. Dusty's adopter will get to take that home too! That's quite a deal if you ask me! ME-WOW!

Do you know the right person for Dusty? She does like to play, but shouldn't be around young children or other pets that may accidentally harm her. Make sure to spread the word and let's get her out of that kennel and into her forever home!

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?

Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week

Mom received a new #BeTheChange challenge when she was at BlogPaws in Denver last weekend. September 19-25 is "Adopt A Less Adoptable Pet Week" as designated by PetFinder. The challenge was to put the spotlight on pets who might have a more difficult time finding their forever homes. Which pets fit this description? A pet might be considered "less adoptable" for a variety of reasons. Maybe it's a senior pet. It could be a pet with special needs. It might simply be the color of the pet's coat! Check out Petfinder's page to get the stats on these special pets. You might be surprised which ones are harder to place in homes.

Mom sees her share of "less adoptable" pets during the time she spends at Wayside Waifs. You can read about some of these pets Mom has cared for in previous posts of mine. Do you remember Luke or Thumper? Mom blogged about Annie, a long time resident at Wayside Waifs who finally found a home after a year in the shelter. All this week, I'm going to be featuring different pets who fall into this category.

Today, I'd like to share the story of Andromeda with you. Andromeda is a shy, one-year old girl who has been available for adoption since early July. When you approach her kennel, she will walk up to the front and and rub against the door. She acts like a kitty who wants attention. Unfortunately, if you open the door and reach inside, your hand is going to get swatted. Andromeda is afraid of hands. She is usually very polite and doesn't use her claws, but she makes it clear that you need to stay back! She plays very well with toys and seems to enjoy this kind of attention from people, but she isn't comfortable with you getting in her personal space.

It's hard for a family who is looking to adopt a pet to feel a connection with Andromeda if she won't even allow you to stroke her. She needs a special adopter who will understand her fears. She might also be a good choice for an adopter who is looking for a more independent kitty. Keep this in mind if you are looking to adopt: Pets are under a great deal of stress while they are in a shelter. Once they get into their forever home and have time to adjust, they will relax and may show a completely different personality!

It's possible that YOU could #BeTheChange for a pet like Andromeda! Please keep an open mind and an open heart when looking to add to your family.

Lovely Luke

Today I am sending Mom off to Denver to attend Blog Paws 2010 West. She's going out there to learn how to improve my bloggie. I can't wait to see what she learns and how we will change things. I'm hoping to be able to tell more happy stories about kitties at Wayside Waifs that have found their forever homes like I did. This is one of those stories!


Luke is a special kitty who did find his forever home recently. When he first arrived at Wayside, his right eye was kind of messed up. The V-E-Ts at Wayside had to remove it, so now he only has one eye.


When Mom met him he wasn't feeling very good and had a yucky tummy. He seemed so grateful to her to have a lap to cuddle in, rather than laying in his kennel on his towel. Mom sat on the floor and he got right in her lap and napped there for the longest time. Soon, Mom had to go home, but she kept thinking about Luke. She worried about his upset tummy and if the right family would come along to give this one-eyed kitty a good home.


Mom didn't have to worry for long though...she checked in with another volunteer a few days later and learned that Luke had been adopted! This makes me want to purr with joy! There are so many kitties in the shelter and some of them are a little different from other kitties or have special needs. I'm glad there are families out there willing to take in all kinds of kitties, even the one-eyed kitties like Luke!