daily dose of dogs (aka cats with your coffee)

Fannie

Today I will reintroduce you to Winnie’s Wisher Fannie.  Here is the beginning of her story, from July 2017:

My husband stopped by his brother’s house to drop something off.  As he pulled into the driveway, he noticed a cat way in the back of the yard.  He and his brother stood outside talking for a bit, and Husband asked BIL about the cat.  Can you touch it?  BIL said it runs from him.  Then Husband saw a second cat.  This one looked really small.  BIL said these two had been hanging out in his yard for a couple of weeks.    The two cats were quite a distance away, but Husband pulled out his phone and snapped a couple of pictures.  Then he started walking towards the closer one.  It darted away with the other one right behind.  Over a fence and they were gone. 

 

 

My husband did his duty.  He came home and reported.  He showed me the pictures on his cell phone.  We were moving around in the kitchen getting some supper ready.  I looked at the pictures and listened about the cats.  I thought about how my BIL now lives in a small town where there are lots and lots of cats living feral.  There isn’t just a feral COLONY in this little town.  There are feral cats ALL OVER the town.  There isn’t even the possibility of trying to TNR and do management.  It is literally the entire town.  It is overrun with feral cats and has been for years. 

I thanked Husband for asking questions and taking pictures.  I told him how I couldn’t, of course, try to trap those two cats for lots of reasons – the main one being that setting a trap with food in it would draw who knows how many cats.  Also – what difference did it make if I could get THOSE two.  What about the dozens and dozens and dozens more in that town?  It didn’t make sense to try to get two cats.  And also, I did not have one single spot for a new Wisher.  I’m at my absolute ceiling number.  Husband agreed completely and we sat down to eat.  It was a quiet meal.  Husband said a couple of things.  I nodded or mumbled in response.  I could NOT stop thinking about the pictures.  Those two cats were on property I could legally be on.   They were females (calicos).   They were living feral with never enough to eat and constant breeding.  Then the other side of my brain said – There are millions of cats all over this country in this very predicament.  You don’t have a single spot for them.  You CANNOT get them. 

 We cleaned up our supper dishes and shuffled off to our evening chores.  He did some weed eating and I watered my flowers on the deck.  As I watered, I had more than a couple of conversations with myself.  Finally, reason won over and I stopped ruminating.  Of course I couldn’t trap those two cats.  I simply did not have room.  My decision was made.

As Husband and I both headed into the house at the same time, I opened my mouth to tell him that I for sure wouldn’t try for the cats.  This is what came out instead – Can you take the trap on your way to work in the morning and set it back by your brother’s fence?   First he just stared at me, then he started to say something, then he opened the door and motioned for me to step on in.   Sure – he said.  I can do that.   

I was able to trap the two calicos.  The first day the trap was set I got a double catch.  The little calico kitten was in the trap WITH its long-haired tabby sister.

 

 

I got mom calico the next day. 

 

 

This mom cat (Fannie) was completely feral.  But she was not the type who nearly beat herself to death trying to escape.  Knowing what that town (the town Fannie came from) was like for cats, I couldn’t take her back.  She’s been here ever since.  Fannie is one of my small handful of cats whom I cannot touch.  But Fannie is warm in the winter, cool in the summer, parasite-free, comfortable and NOT living a life of breeding.  Fannie is home.

 

I can't open the gate to her kitty condo to get a picture. She immediately jumps out of her bed and runs.

 

She LOVES her outside deck. She is out there anytime the weather is nice.

 

Fannie - Winnie’s Wisher since 2017.  When you support Winnie’s Wish, you’re helping to take care of Fannie.  When you care about Winnie’s Wish, you care about Fannie.

 

Cole and Raven

For a little over a year now, I’ve been re-introducing you to the cats of Winnie’s Wish.  I wonder if you remember a TNR project I took on in the Fall of 2018?  Many of you helped me by giving your dollars to the cause.  That story played out on this blog over about three months.  The initial posts about that endeavor are here: 

Tip of the Iceberg (Two Black Puppies)

Finding a Way

During the course of those months of spaying, neutering, and releasing, I watched two tiny black kittens on the property.  They were way too young for surgeries but I wasn’t leaving a single cat on that property unsterilized.  I would wait until they were old enough and trap them, too.  If you remember, I was often leaving my trap set on the property and the man who lived in the house on the property was calling me when a cat ended up in my trap.  Here is from my post on  11-6-2018:

On one of my trips to the property, the older man who lives there told me he’d caught one of the tiny black kittens.  (There are two.  They are littermates and look exactly alike.)   He’d caught this baby in a net and then managed to get it into one of the carriers I’d left on the property.  I hadn’t planned to take those two little black ones (yet) because they are still way too young to be spayed or neutered.  But when I looked into the carrier and saw the condition of that baby, there was no way I wasn’t bringing him home.  This little guy was sick.  And I didn’t know just how sick until I got him home.

 

Poor little sick baby.

 

 One eye was swollen and inflamed.  He could hardly breathe at all due to a severe upper respiratory infection.  He was also super skinny.  He would not eat a bite of food.  I knew this was at least partially because he couldn’t smell anything.  He did literally nothing but sleep for the first 24 hours he was with me.   Older Daughter talked to her vet and we were able to get an antibiotic injection into him the second day.  Just when I was sure that Older Daughter was going to have to take him and start force-feeding, I got him to taste some kitten canned food.  One bite and he started inhaling the food.  He consumed the small amount that I had prepared with Viralys mixed in.  An hour later, I fed him again.  And after that he even started crunching dry food.  He is now doing so much better.  I’ve been trying to get his littermate.  I’ve seen it several times.  It runs and hides, but I’ve seen its face enough to know that it isn’t crusty and infected like the one I have.  I’d like to go ahead and get it so that these two babies can curl up together.  Keep your fingers crossed.

At the end of this post I was so happy to include this: 

[ADDENDUM:  Guess what has just happened?  The little black kitten littermate to the one I already had has been trapped.  It is safely here with me.  I don’t yet know if it is male or female.  It is NOT sick like its sibling was when I got him.  YIPPEE!!!]

 

 

I wrote this at the end of November 2018:  And just an update on the two youngest felines from the property.  I got the male black kitten first.  He was very sick. He is doing really well now.  Then I got the littermate – a little female.  I’m so glad they are back together.  I’ll just be keeping these two until they grow old enough for their surgeries.

 

 

In mid-December 2018 I wrote this:   Here are the two little black kittens (from the property) that I’ve had for some time now.  They are nearly old enough to have their surgeries.  I’ve been calling the male “Cole” and the female “Raven.”  They are not nice friendly kittens who could be easily adopted.  But now that they’ve lived here for so long, it would be heartbreaking to return them to the property. 

 

Baby Cole

 

 

Baby Raven

 

 

I looked back through the posts in early 2019, but couldn’t find where I had ever said with finality that the two black kittens would NOT be returned to the property.  They had been with me for weeks by the time they got old enough to have their surgeries (Cole neutered and Raven spayed).  They had learned what it was like to live indoors.  I couldn’t return them to the property.  They’ve been Wishers ever since but I’m not at all sure that I ever said that on this blog. 

Each of them will occasionally allow me to sneak in a quick pat or stroke.  They actually prefer me to just talk to them from a distance.  But they are cozy and warm in the Winter, cool and parasite-free in the Summer.  They romp and play with each other all over the place.   I know they could have been returned to the property like all of the others after their surgeries.  But these were babies when I took them in and they stayed here so long that they adjusted to the easy life here.  They will live out their lives at Winnie’s Wish Sanctuary.  Here they are now:

 

when they were about six months old

 

Cole

 

Raven

 

Cole and Raven - Winnie’s Wishers since November of 2018.  When you support Winnie’s Wish, you’re helping to take care of Cole and Raven.  When you care about Winnie’s Wish, you care about Cole and Raven.

See you next week.

 

Peeta

Last week I re-introduced you to Toast.  He and Peeta were adopted together five years ago and then recently returned to Winnie’s Wish.  Today I’ll remind you of how Peeta became a Wisher.

In June of 2014, Husband was helping his brother do some clearing after a big storm.  They were chain sawing in a thick patch of trees and brush on Brother-in-Law’s property.  And Husband discovered a tiny kitten.  The story continues from there but here is the relevant part for today’s post.  There were three very tiny kittens.  It took a little work but I was able to get all three without trapping (they were too little to trip the trap).  But we discovered a tortie mom cat during this rescue mission.  I knew I wasn’t going to let that mom cat continue to have litter after litter.  So after I had the three tiny kittens, I set the trap for mom.  On the day that we discovered mom cat in the trap, there were three more kittens all sitting around the trapped mom.  So these were mom tortie’s kittens!  And this group had already gotten old enough to be feral.  Oh dear.  Well, I couldn’t leave these three on the property to grow up and have scores of litters.  Winnie’s Wish didn’t need (now six!) more kittens.  But I didn’t have a choice of course.  So we started trapping for the three older kittens and eventually got all three.  As with almost every litter of feral kittens I’ve ever taken, I had to hope that ONE of them might tame enough to be adoptable. 

 

 

These are (left to right): Prim, Finnick, and Peeta.  Prim and Finnick never tamed enough to be adopted.  Of course, as you know, Peeta did.  He was adopted with Toast (whom I wrote about last week) and was returned last month.   I wrote Prim’s and Finnick’s reintroduction stories last year.  Prim is one of my very few who remain completely untouchable.  Finnick wants me to pour attention on him when I’m in his room, but he is completely terrified of all other humans.

When Toast and Peeta were returned, Toast started to come around pretty quickly.  But poor Peeta was SO traumatized.  He was even hissing and growling at Toast – the cat he’d lived with all these years.  It has taken three and a half weeks, but Peeta is very slowly starting to come around a little.  The other day he did something that he used to do here all of those years ago – he sat up on his hind legs and reached up to my hand to be petted.  I remember when he used to do that as a kitten.  I called him my orange squirrel.  I’m more hopeful now than I initially was that Peeta might eventually adjust to being back here.  Hopefully he and Toast will find a home in room number one of the cathouse.  Toast and Peeta together, with Toast’s sister Snowflake and brother Slate and with Peeta’s brother Finnick.

 

 

Peeta - Winnie’s Wisher since June of 2014.  Adopted and lived in a home for five years.  Now back at Winnie’s Wish where he will live the rest of his life.  When you support Winnie’s Wish, you’re helping to take care of Peeta.  When you care about Winnie’s Wish, you care about Peeta.

See you next week.

 

Toast

I have been slowly re-introducing you to all of the (now 33) Wishers.  These kitties will live out their lives here.  Over the last couple of weeks I have told the story of Toast and Peeta being returned after five years in a home.  This week and next, I'll do their “reintroduction” stories, as in how they got here.  I mentioned last week that they have returned to some relatives here at Winnie’s Wish.

Toast was one of four littermates who came here in June of 2013.  I’ve re-introduced you to the other three from the litter:  Smokey, Snowflake, and Slate.  Smokey and Snowflake have lived their entire lives here.  Slate went to a home for a couple of weeks but was then returned.  It was only Toast who was lucky enough to be adopted into a home of his own.

I wrote about this group on the blog in June of 2013:

My aunt had emailed that a feral mom cat had a litter under her deck.  My maximum capacity in the cathouse was 18. [This was many years ago.] There were 16 at that moment.  I knew I couldn't take those kittens.  It would push me over my limit, and I knew I would need those spots for sure since it was ONLY June.  But we needed a plan.  The mom would only have another litter and another.  And the babies would grow up and become part of the problem. The shelter where my girls work was completely maxed out and could not take in one more cat or kitten.

 We got the feral mom on a list for a private program in that town that traps and spays female cats. Then I called a trusty rescue friend, and she said that sometimes she can get kittens on a transport when they are very young. However, because we were already into Kitten Season, she wasn't sure. She would start working on getting them onto a transport.  My aunt trapped and ended up getting all four kittens.  Unfortunately, they had gotten too old to be accepted into any shelters my friend checked with.  They became Wishers despite my numbers.  And of course, they had gotten old enough to already have feral ways.  There was one in the group (as is so often the case) who tamed enough to be adopted . . .   Toast.

Here are pictures of the four siblings shortly after I received them.

 

Baby Toast

 

Baby Slate

 

Baby Snowflake

 

Baby Smokey

 

About a year after this group arrived, I did a post about Slate and Toast as both seemed adoptable.  Toast had become very friendly, and I felt like Slate could adjust in the right home.

 

 

As you know, Toast was adopted.  Smokey eventually moved into the third room of the cathouse where he is very happy with his roommates.  Slate and Snowflake live in the first room of the cathouse.   Toast has joined them and everything is going pretty well.  I know Slate and Snowflake can be bullies, but Toast is SO laid back that I think if any cat could successfully work his way into this room, it’s Toast.

 

Toast - Winnie’s Wisher since 2013.  Adopted and lived in a home for five years.  Now back at Winnie’s Wish where he will live the rest of his life.  When you support Winnie’s Wish, you’re helping to take care of Toast.  When you care about Winnie’s Wish, you care about Toast.

See you next week.

 

Toast and Peeta

I was heartbroken when Toast and Peeta were returned.   We had a rough start.   They’ve been back here now for about a week and a half.  Toast came around more quickly.  He wanted my attention so badly.  Peeta only hid (in the hidey-hole basket I put in his cage).  Over the days, Peeta stopped growling and hissing, but he would not come out of his “safe” place.   In just the last couple of days, Peeta is coming out to get attention from me.  He is in the “kitten room,” a small room that we added on years ago.  This tiny room can be blocked off from all cat traffic.  I guess Peeta finally decided that he is safe enough in this area to slink out and come over to me for some attention.  I brought Toast into this room the last couple of days to get the boys reacquainted with each other.  They’ve lived together for five years.  But Peeta was just too traumatized at first to take any comfort from having Toast around.  I have been sitting in this room with the two of them, telling them that things are going to be ok.  Toast rubs all over me, and Peeta is walking around a little and I am petting him.  I now feel like these two sweet sweet boys will be fine with me.  Getting them settled into the first room of the cathouse (and with the cats in that room) is another issue.

There is something interesting about Toast and Peeta going into the first room of the cathouse.  This is the room they started off in when they first came to Winnie's Wish.  The three cats living in that room now were also in that room five years ago with Toast and Peeta.  Those three cats are Snowflake, Slate, and Finnick.  So here's the thing.  Toast is the biological brother of Snowflake and Slate.  And Peeta is the biological brother of Finnick.  So if Toast and Peeta ever fully transition into that room, they will be with littermates from all of those years ago.  Keep your fingers crossed, Friends, that these two new sweethearts can eventually live in peace in room #1.   Now take a look and see how handsome these two great cats are.

 

Toast

 

Peeta

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last week I showed you the cat tree that Mell sent to Winnie’s Wish, but it was a picture from in my own house when the tree first arrived.  My cats swarmed it.  Well that’s the same effect it had on the Wisher kitties.  I barely got it in the front door and the cats were drawn to it like metal to a magnet.

 

 

See you next week.

 

Returned

This is how I ended a post in March 2015:  This is the BEST thing that can happen here!  The post was about two Wishers (real buddies) being adopted together.  Now I’m starting a post with the opposite of those words – This is one of the worst things that can happen here.  Those two kitties I wrote about nearly five years ago have been returned.  And they are as heartbroken as I am.

I received a message early last week that Toast and Peeta’s adopter needed to return them.  I’ll be honest; this one really shocked me.  My policy requires that Wishers come back here if their adopters no longer want them.  So of course there was no question about them coming back here.  But my heart was completely broken for them.  They were young when they were adopted.  And now five years have gone by.  I knew this would be devastating for them.  But we made our plans to meet for their return.

I took them back last Friday night.  I set up a cage in one of the cathouse rooms.   I knew they would need to be in a cage for a while until they and the cats in that room adjusted to each other some.  But before I continue that line, let me mention something else.  Winnie’s Wish is home to 31 cats (now 33!).  When I received word that Toast and Peeta would be returning, I realized I didn’t really have a place for them.  There are cats living in the office area of the kennel.  There are cats living in dog runs converted to kitty condos.  And there are three rooms in the cathouse.  Two of those rooms are larger; one is smaller.  The smaller room is just about perfect for five cats.  And there are only three cats living in that room.  This is the only spot here that could accommodate Toast and Peeta.  But as I explained last year when I was highlighting the three cats who live in that room, they do not welcome newcomers.  I’ve tried other cats in their room with them over the years.  They won’t allow it; these three only live in peace with each other.  But this is it!  It’s the only place here that has room for two more cats.  So that’s where I set up the cage, knowing this will NOT be an easy transition.

Toast and Peeta went into the cage Friday night.  They immediately started hissing and growling – at each other!  Finnick is the sensitive kitty in that room and it absolutely scared him to death.  I hated what Toast and Peeta (and Finnick) were going through, but there was nothing else I could do.  I sat in that room talking to everybody for a long time that night.  I finally had to come back to the house. 

I raced down to the cathouse early Saturday morning.  It was as bad as I had feared.  Peeta was still growling and hissing at Toast.  I don’t believe Toast had been off the top perch in the cage all night.  Peeta wouldn’t go into the hidey-hole bed I’d put in there for him.  He was still in the litter box where he’d been the night before.  No food or water was touched.  And the growling and hissing was really bad.  So I shot into action.  I got another cage cleaned and set up.  I moved Peeta to that cage in another room.  This is the “kitten room” addition to the office.  It’s a tiny room that can be blocked off from any kitty traffic.  I spent time with both Toast (in his cage) and then Peeta (in his cage).  I also had to spend time with Finnick who had been hiding since I’d left the night before.  He hadn’t eaten or used the litter box.  I moved things around in the room so that Finnick could get to a litter box, food, and water without having to get near Toast’s cage.   

A couple more days have passed now.  Toast is beginning to adjust a little.  Finnick doesn’t seem as terrified.  Peeta is still growling from inside the hidey-hole every time a cat walks by his cage.  I’m not sure how long before (or if) he will adjust.   I’m letting Toast walk around in the room when I’m there.  Slate has already hissed at him and smacked him.  I hope that Toast can safely transition into this room over time.  I just don’t know about poor Peeta.  Friends, please keep your fingers crossed.

 

Toast

 

Peeta

 

This has been a post of bad news, but let me end on a bright note.  Remember during the Holiday Season when Winnie’s Wish was the recipient of some wonderful Wish List gifts?  Remember one of those gifts was from Mell, adopter of Wisher Kismet.  There was dry cat food and canned cat food and kitty litter and kitty treats!  But that wasn’t all of Mell’s gift to the Wishers.  I had posted a cat tree on my Wish List, not really expecting to get it (it was just a wish).  Well, it has arrived.

 

My kitties approved before this great cat tree was moved to Wisher World.

Mell (and Kismet) – THANK YOU.

 

See you next week.

 

 

Tinkerbell

Tinkerbell became a Wisher almost 7 years ago.   She came on the Rescue Railroad from the abandoned hotel in Florida.  Most of you know the story of the hotel and our efforts to rescue a handful of cats from a terrible situation there.  As I started putting this post together, I went back and read the two posts from April 2013.  Wow those were some stressful days waiting to see if friend Cheryl could trap three cats AND if all of the legs of the transport would fill in time.   I can call it exciting looking back, but as it was playing out it was pure anxiety.  That story is in these two posts:  The Florida Hotel Cats  and   Florida Hotel Cats (Conclusion).

Tinkerbell came with her brother Peter Pan.  Cheryl named them Tinkerbell and Peter Pan because they were leaving Florida, the land of Disney World, to come to Winnie’s Wish in Illinois.  They were from a feral cat colony, but it wasn't long before I was able to pet them.  I hoped to possibly tame one or both enough to make them adoptable.  They came around quite a bit, and I advertised them for adoption for a long time.  They were never chosen.  Peter Pan died as a young adult from what was diagnosed as a congenital kidney disease.  That was really rough.  It was rough on me, of course, but it was also rough on Tinkerbell.  She adjusted, however, and has other friends now.  Her best friend is Theo.  In fact, they share a kitty condo.  (Theo is the last cat I wrote about here in the story  Christmas Cat.)

Tinkerbell is an odd one.  She begs for my attention when she is up on any surface – the sink counter, a cat tree, her outside deck, etc.  But if I reach to pet her when she is on the floor, she runs away like her life depends on it.  Silly girl!  She is happy, loved, and safe.  And she has a home here for the rest of her life.   (She is NOT one of my easy Wishers to take pictures of, but here are few.)

 

Baby Tinkerbell

 

 

with Theo

 

 

Tinkerbell - Winnie’s Wisher since 2013.  When you support Winnie’s Wish, you’re helping to take care of Tinkerbell.  When you care about Winnie’s Wish, you care about Tinkerbell.

 

Before I close, let me show you one final Christmas gift that arrived here for the Wishers.  You might remember Hershey and Frosting (now Felicity) who were adopted and made the long trek to California.

 

Felicity and Hershey

 

 

Mary and Tom, Felicity & Hershey - THANK YOU.

 

See you next week.

 

Happy New Year

 

Winnie’s Wish Celebration

Andrea’s Holiday Auction and Fundraiser ended last week.  I’m about to announce how much that auction brought in.  But first, let me say this.  I was afraid when I transitioned Winnie’s Wish from rescue/shelter to sanctuary, folks might not see the need to support the Wishers anymore.  After all, there are no new exciting rescue stories now.    What’s wonderful  is that this Holiday Season has brought gifts anyway.

I’ve spent the past many months re-introducing you to the kitties here who now call Winnie’s Wish their permanent home.   There are 31 Wishers.  I try to make their lives happy ones.  There are kitty beds (many heated), cat trees, outdoor decks, nooks and crannies, toys, and lots of room.  There is heat in the winter, air conditioning in the summer.  Fresh water every day.  Tons of food and kitty litter.  A few of the cats have special foods because of issues they have.  One cat has special food and even special water because of chronic UTIs (which are now completely under control).  Some of the cats, also because of special issues, have daily supplements.  And of course, there’s always vet care.  You can see why Andrea’s Auction is so appreciated!!  And here we go.  You ready?  The auction brought in . . .

 

(drumroll)

 

  $1700.00!!!!

 

Unbelievable.  Thank you again to everyone who participated.  And thank you from the bottom of my heart to Andrea.

 

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I was afraid that maybe people wouldn’t support Winnie’s Wish as much once I transitioned it to full sanctuary.  But if you look back at last week and take a look at the pictures below . . . .    well, Winnie’s Wish sure got plenty of support THIS Holiday Season.

 

You probably all know the blog – Animal Shelter Volunteer Life. Here’s what the note with this gift said – “Happy Meowlidays from Kevin, Tracey, Gracie and Ava."

Kevin, Tracey, Gracie and Ava – THANK YOU.

 

 

This gift came with a note that said it was from Schnitzel, Jackson and Riley of Cape Cod, MA.

 [I’m not sure who this group is.  Have I forgotten about some long lost kitty friends of Winnie’s Wish or is this a new group of friends?  Please send me your email address so I can send you a proper thank you.  Send to chrystaldparker11@gmail.com ]

Schnitzel, Jackson and Riley – THANK YOU.

 

 

From Jeanne and her Random Felines

Random Felines – THANK YOU.

 

 

Do you remember in the Fall of 2018 when I was spaying and neutering cats on a property where an older couple lived and were feeding?  Well you might also remember that one of those cats (she named him Kismet) went to Friend of Winnie’s Wish – Mell.  That story is here.   Mell and Kismet sent this to the Wishers.  AND THERE’S STILL A CAT TREE ON THE WAY TOO!

 

 

Kismet

Mell (and Kismet) – THANK YOU.

 

My wish for you and yours is that you have a beautiful Christmas, filled with love and joy (and dogs and cats)!

See you next year.

 

Christmas Cat

June 2017 – I see a cat in the deep grass beside the road near my home.  Set my trap for days.

July – A black cat shows up in my yard at the edge of The West Woods.  Set my trap for days.

October – Younger Daughter sees a black cat jump out of our dumpster.  Vigilantly monitored to see if it was eating regularly from the dumpster.

December 13 – Older Daughter sees a black cat on the road between her house and Younger Daughter’s house.  Then she saw it again that night in the edge of one of the wooded areas.  I set my trap for the next two days.

December 16 – Got home from doing a yard sale and spotted the black cat in the field in front of my house.  I moved my trap to that area.

December 17 – Trap is set.  I watch the cat hunt in two different fields.

December 18 – Trap is set.  The cat hunts in the field then disappears into a wooded area.

[A more expanded version of this story is here – The Elusive One.]

December 19 – Trap is set.  I watch the cat hunting in a field near one of the ponds.  Then he suddenly shows up very near my trap.  I watch through my binoculars, holding my breath.  Then he suddenly turns away and gets into stalking position.  At this point, I’m about to lose my mind.  For days I have set my trap.  I’ve watched this guy show up in various locations, always hunting.  How is it that I never have my trap in the field he shows up in?!  So I grab a jacket and head that way.  I decide I’ll pick up my trap on the way by and try to quietly set it closer to where The Elusive One is now hunting.  I manage to get to my trap and pick it up.  I walk quickly but as quietly as possible.  I’m thinking as I walk – where can I set the trap down?  I was trying to decide what direction the very tiny breeze was coming from so that I could send a whiff of canned cat food smell in his direction.  Then suddenly, he turned towards me and froze.  I froze as well.  But it was too late.  He tore away from me, running as fast as I’ve ever seen a cat run.  I was deflated.

I walked home and set my trap in the field across from my house.  Nothing was working.  I’d tried two different kinds of the smelliest canned cat food I had.  When that didn’t attract him, I’d used tuna.  I called Younger Daughter because I knew she was going to the grocery store after work.  I need something smellier – I said.  She said – How about sardines?  Perfect.

As the sun started setting that evening, I added a little dry food to the two different places I was leaving it out.  One of those spots was where my trap stayed the biggest part of the time.  I hoped The Elusive One would discover that food some night and then come back the next day to the same location and walk into my trap.  Late that night, I stepped out my front door and shined a flashlight across the road at the spot where the food was.  And Oh My Gosh there he was!  Of course the light immediately scared him and off he ran.  Hopefully he had discovered the dry food.

December 20 – Walked over to where I’d seen The Elusive One the night before.  The dry food was gone but could have been anything that had eaten that food.  However, I’d seen the cat in that spot the night before.  I set my trap – with sardines.  By this time I was completely convinced that he did NOT belong to anyone.  Too scared.  And way too much hunting.  Our closest neighbor doesn’t have cats.  But I called the next closest neighbor and asked.  Nope, no cats – he said.  How about your grandparents? (even farther away).   Nope.  No cats there either.  Now it’s just a few days until Christmas.  We’d had a very mild November and December.  But Christmas weekend was supposed to turn bad weather-wise.  I was beginning to feel desperate to get this guy before the ugly weather hit.  It had been SIX MONTHS since I first saw this guy!  It felt like an eternity, and I wondered if he would EVER be a Wisher.

Most days, it was about 2pm when I’d finally see him.  But on this day, December 20th, 2pm came and went.  Nothing.  3pm.  Nothing.  4pm.  Nothing.  I was sad that he hadn’t shown.  At four thirty I walked into the kitchen and didn’t even glance out the window.  I’d looked out that window at least two dozen times over the past two hours.  I knew I wasn’t going to see my cat.  Today would be a bust.  Husband called from the other room – The cat out there somewhere?  I automatically said No, then glanced out the window, then almost screamed YES!!!!!  And he’s RIGHT by the trap!!!!  Husband came running in and we stood at that kitchen window, breathless, watching.  The cat circled the trap.  He tapped it.  I actually started shaking.  If he started trying to reach in for the food, he’d trip the trap.  The noise would scare him to death and he’d never approach that trap again.  Another circle.  He wanted the sardines.  But he couldn’t figure out how to get to them.  We held our breath, and I stood there shaking, knowing this could be it, or it could be the end of our chances if he tapped that trap too hard.  A third circle around the trap and then he stuck his head in.  I literally was no longer breathing AT ALL.  He took another step.  He was cautious.  Please just one more step.  And then it was done.  The Elusive One stepped one more time towards those sardines and the trap slammed shut.  I grabbed a towel, took off out the door, across the road, and into the field.  He was beating himself up pretty badly.  I threw the towel over the entire trap and everything went still.  My heart was beating so fast I thought it would beat out of my chest.  Husband raced over and carried the trap (with cat) all the way to my kennel.  I set the trap on the floor and started getting a cage ready.  I couldn’t believe it.  I really really really couldn’t believe it.  It was done.

Christmas weekend came and went.  Temperatures dropped.  Then we headed towards the New Year’s weekend.  As with most of the country, our temperatures here plunged to record-breaking lows.  We had single digit readings with wind chill numbers between ten and fiften below zero.  But The Elusive One was in a cage in my kennel, cozy and warm.  After six months, he’d been rescued (finally) . . . just in time.   The Elusive One (Theo) would forever be THE Christmas Cat of Winnie’s Wish, and forever one of my favorite memories.

Theo is a sweet guy who is timid around other cats.  He has friends here (others who are timid like he is), and he LOVES me.  He is terrified of other people and breaks his neck to get away and hide when anyone other than me enters his world.  He is happy, safe, warm, fed, and the coziest Christmas cat ever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Winnie’s Wish received some holiday gifts.

 

The note inside said – “Hi Chrystal! Meowy Christmas from The Island Cats and mom Sue”

Island Cats and mom Sue – THANK YOU.

 

 

The note inside said – “Happy adoption day, Luna Rey (December 15)! Two years ago I received the best Christmas gift! My little Luna bug! I can’t thank you enough for all you do! Because of you I have a sassy, diva, baby girl who makes my life better! Thank you!" 

 

Luna (Annie when she was a Wisher) celebrating her adoption day.

Luna and Family - THANK YOU.

 

 

The note inside said – “Chrystal, Merry Christmas to you and all of the Wishers.  Thanks for taking such good care of them.  Beth and Mike

Beth and Mike – THANK YOU.

 

 

Also -  Heather, Zach, Forest, Jenny, Piper, and Floki – THANK YOU.

 

And - Annie - THANK YOU (in memory of Baby Boy).

 

And one final gigantic THANK YOU to EVERYONE who participated in Andrea's Holiday Auction and Fund-Raiser!  And to my wonderful Andrea for having this amazing event!

 

Thanks for reading here today.  Hope you have some favorite Christmas memories of your own to indulge in.