Weekly Rescue Updates!

Cat of the week: Nebula

Nebula's kinda just a cat, but she's pretty

Randy bit the heck out of Celeste, so she's at the vet for two weeks. Extremely rude, Celeste is meek and skittish and so I 100% blame Randy for instigating.

Mew got onto another volunteer's back, and when the manager tried to get him off he just clawed down and hung on. I came over and fully scruffed him and manhandled him and that worked. Drew blood in a couple spots but she was alright.

Nova is back from external quarantine (somebody took her home for a month or so). She used to be my favorite, so it was great to see her again. She was in a bad mood and she is also a cat, so she didn't particularly care to see me.

I spent time working with some of the less social kitties. Minnie I got to touch but she acts like I have cooties and makes me feel bad for trying. Momo almost seemed to like being pet, but he's not super consistent. Mystic is really hard to read, being a long-haired black kitty in a dim corner, so I didn't make much progress. Mickey is still Mickey, but his hidey hole from last week got covered by somebody else so that was good to see. I got Rocky to sniff my finger but he didn't seem interested otherwise.

This week's Tam Tam petting timer surpassed 15 minutes. God I love that cat. Today I introduced two handed petting and some body petting, rubbing my hand along her back (and she does the back arching thing and eeeeeeeee it's so cute). She went outside for a little bit today but she still doesn't feel safe with people out there too, so when I came looking for her she ran back inside to safety. But she quickly readjusted and let me get close and pet her again after that, so no harm.

Helped with the kittens again (mostly played while 'teaching' somebody else what to do hehe), and gave Nova her gabapentin. She wasn't happy about that either.

This week we have Rocky and Mystic. I've almost got everybody fully catalogued (pun intended) but I need to make a list to be sure. Not many left.

Cat of the week: it's Tam Tam again, I just can't help myself

Silly Tam Tam getting herself cornered again without committing to escaping.

Some organizational changes to the rescue, making a bit more room in the house for the kitties to spread out in the AC. No more litter boxes indoors, yay.

Brushed the heck out of KT this week, but he still looks a bit unkempt. I got Kiko a little bit too but he's long haired and not patient, so I didn't actually make much progress. Mickey got a new spot way down in a dark corner where it's impossible to get to him without extreme risk of loss of life (or finger scratches). If he's there next week too I'll figure out a way to evict him, that's too hidey-hole to promote socializing. Things seemed pretty normal otherwise in gen pop.

Tam Tam is getting very friendly with me. She's still skittish but is really starting to trust me, and I'm more comfortable approaching and being able to pet her pretty much whenever. I got in a good solid 5 minute extreme rubbing-all-over-my-hands and turning upside down and being Obnoxiously Adorable and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa i love her so much. It's so good to make such progress. I want so much to pick her up and squeeze her and have her on my lap and etc etc but I know that's gotta be on her terms.

Bubbles got ringworm so she's quarantined now too, we were almost in the clear dang it. I still got to help out, I was called in to evict Mazy from on top of the condos. Thankfully she's quite socialized now, but I still had to take a few attempts to scruff her and get her back to normal elevations. Always a bit sketch doing that to a cat for the first time. The two new kitties from last week were moved into the med rooms just to make space in gen pop. The one in the pic from last week is just... I love their face so much. The gorgeous eyes, the high cheekbones, they're so regal. Not sure if they have names yet. The second one is apparently FIV positive, we have one other kitty with it so maybe they can be friends.

Others this week are our two look-alike aloofs, Buddy and Bootsy (Bootsy has the clouded left eye); and Leo, a once-menace now good kitty.

Surprise kittens!

Did the kitten shift this week, so I got to spend some time to finally learn their names (and take pics ofc). Denton is easiest, the tuxedo. Gabby and Larry are gray with white, Larry has Less white. Moggy and Jamie are fully gray, Jamie is just a bit more filled-out looking in their face.

Cat of the week: Simba

Simba came in with another kitty named Nala, but they were barely siblings and definitely not lovers. He was really good friends with Spring, but she got adopted last month :( He's a pretty average (good) kitty, our second heaviest I think

First week back into the normalcy of med room shift, good to be back in the AC lol. Buck sat in my lap for a few seconds, he was quite lovey today. Holly was making biscuits on a new crinkly toy, very cute. One more week until I can pet Mazy again. Carolyn was sitting in a high traffic spot and hissing at others who came near, silly girl. Boo Boo Kitty and Buck stared at each other through the bars of a cage without any signs of major distress, so we plan on trying to formally introduce them on a play date and hopefully that works out nicely.

Squish and Marshy got adopted, but the other kittens are still there. I'm officially on call to fill in kitten shifts in emergency situtations (so probably never, but it's nice to be able hehe).

Two kitties got dropped off, no names yet. Lovely dark amber eyes on the one in the first pic (no pic of 2nd, but they're a black kitty). Second pic is Jamie, one of the kittens. Third is Zeus, the reigning heavyweight champion.

Officially passed 4 years of volunteering here 😺

Cat of the week: Randy

Randy is a cool cat, except he sprays. Being pissed on once is once more than I wanted, and I do hold grudges. Any time his butt is facing my direction, I move quickly. He's nice otherwise.

Willi's paw is healing up just fine. I brushed off half of Reggie's coat, now he is all shiny again. He was way more into it than I expected, wormin and squirmin into the brush all cute like. He maintains his #1 ranking. Tam Tam was amenable to pets again, which is awesome for me. Wait is Tam Tam #1... two #1 spots, sure. Leo might get adopted soon, he's a hoot. Oscar as well.

I got to help in the med room, ringworm is down to one last quarantined little Mazy, so minimal precautions should keep it contained still. Rachel is the name of the cat I forgot last week. Runner and Buck are becoming fast friends, I saw them roughhousing several times. Runner definitely needed a buddy. Boo Boo Kitty got some free time, he's FIV positive so he can't be out unsupervised; great kitty though. I forced some chin scritches upon Madison, she didn't bite me but she didn't seem into it either. Zeus, our 25 lb cat, was up on top of one of the condos. What a treat it would have been to see him jump up there.

I also got to help with the kittens! Squish is being adopted soon, so I might not see him again. Marshmallow was soooooooo sweet omg ugh. The rest of the guys and gals are cute sure, but lil Marshy's got my heart. They're all So Much, it's wonderful.

Pics this week are of some of our resident troublemakers. Kiko, our instigative heel, since he never seems to actually win a fight but picks them all the time; Tiger Lily, just a pompous ass ngl; and Oscar, an angsty teen.

Cat of the week: Mamma Mia

Mamma was my second love, very demure, very sweet. If I ever take home a kitty she's high on the list.

Normal week, nothing too crazy. Willi has a sore on his paw, who knows who he pissed off this time to earn it. Inky is already out with the rest of the gang, hiding up top but doing well. Mickey is Mickey. Joy got adopted, I arrived just in time to say goodbye. She's apparently doing very well in her new home already, moved herself right in. Lots of adoptions recently. Spring and Kosmo and the cat Kosmo came in with who I don't remember her name I'm so sorry. Let's call her Wanda.

Oh yeah, I also PET TAM TAM. RAAAAAH. For like a good two minutes too, it was amazing. She wasn't too interested in any more attention after that, but I kept saying hi and letting her sniff me throughout the shift. She got herself into a bit of a pickle, in a corner where she was kind of in the way but didn't quite commit to escaping, so she'd climb halfway up the side of the cage, turn around and look at me until I was far enough away, then climb back down. We did that a few times because she was right where I needed to be. Silly girl. A little exposure therapy probably might help with the anxiety, who knows.

that's hank

Cat of the week: Kitty Girl (KG)

Kitty Girl is my journal buddy, who sits in my lap while I do big thinks.

Gave Reggie a good brushing; he needed it. Didn't spend any time with Mickey today, and only a little with Tam Tam, so no big progress there. One of our shy kitties, Mystic, got evicted from their hiding spot that they've had for Months so I got to the rescue and was chillin and there was a strange cat who I couldn't place, but I hadn't heard anything about a new cat being with us so I was just confused for a while. I've never seen Mystic out of their spot before, but eventually after looking at them long enough I recognized them by their eyes (and by process of elimination). They're less shy than I expected, not friendly but not run-away-at-first-sight.

Since the manager is working herself ragged without as many people able to help with the med rooms while it's quarantined, I got to go pick up medicine for the first time. It was nice to contribute in a new way, but also to do something unfamiliar and not overthink it. A win against the social anxiety demons.

Others this week, in order: Holly, as promised (I got to sneak past quarantine, with permission); Inky, a new kitty, surrendered by their owner; and KT, a silly goose (it was his medicine I picked up) (I poked him to make sure he was alive. He was.)

Cat of the week: Reggie

Reggie is a teensy tiny all black kitty, he's my current favorite bc he's a secret lovebug and is just a cutie. Reminds me of me fr.

No Holly pic this week bc the med rooms are now under quarantine 😭 Ringworm spread to another cat in there, so they're limiting access to try to prevent it from spreading even further. Apparently ringworm is also athlete's foot and jock itch both. The more you know... It's difficult mentally to readjust to changes in the status quo, but I spent more time with gen pop today. Kitty Girl (terrible name but I didn't choose it) sat on my lap for a good 30 minutes while I journaled some. Now that's therapeutic. She's pretty new, a cute soft calico. Nice to see her be so social.

I sneakily touched Tam Tam and she hissed at me but didn't Freak out and was still fine the rest of the day, so I still think I'll get her to come around soon. Mickey was a little bit testy, some hisses but no swipe attempts at least. As long as he's hungrier than he is angry, I'm safe lol (they can free feed dry food but have to come down from their hiding spots to do so, so giving them wet food is usually effective). Santi, one of our trouble kitties, nicked me in the finger trying to reach past her for a water jug. Rude. I caught myself being a hypocrite when I snidely asked her if she's gonna hate everybody for the rest of her life. I wish I could lash out and still be taken care of for the rest of forever, no questions asked. Must be nice to be a cat.

Other pics of the week are some of the other tinies. Little Boo is the grey, Runi is the brown. She's little Boo because we have a Baby Boo that is much bigger than her, and a Boo Boo Kitty (who names these cats???) who is bigger still.

Cat of the week: Tam Tam

Tam Tam is the cutest fucking cat to ever live, she's sooooo pretty 😭 she's definitely making a lot of progress socializing, I got Very close to petting her today. Soon I will get her.

New cat! Holly. I showed up and she was there chillin in a condo (our better-connotated word for cage), but she didn't seem too interested in me and kinda seemed out of sorts so I left her alone. I figure she just came from the vet and is high as hell or whatever. Then when the manager comes in like 2 hours later, she asks me if I met Holly and it turns out she's BLIND so my dumb ass holding out my hand for her to sniff earlier obviously had zero success. But she's really sweet, loves pets and purrs. 15 years old, obviously was taken care of bc she is like fully fully blind. Forgot to grab a pic. Next week.

Worked more with Mickey. Mickey is scary because he has almost no Tells for when he's gonna go after ur ass. He's not afraid, he doesn't airplane ear, he doesn't hiss, he's just ready to fuckin go at a moments notice. He will very very slightly prepare to pounce and that's all the warning you get. If I know a cat is scared, I know eventually they'll get less scared, but with him it's like, he's pretty comfy and that's just how he's gonna be I guess. I probably won't ever pet him but at least working with him makes it safer to be near him at all lol. He didn't hiss at all today and I stood near him while he ate some wet food about a foot away with my hands in view (he hates hands). Only goal is to not have to fear for my hands when giving him food.

I did get to pet Mazy! and no hisses from her today either. She's such a cutie, very young, her kittens got aborted and she got spayed right before we got her. She'll make a great cat once she adjusts.

and I got to go in with the kittenssssssss. The four girls are out at the vet for their spays tomorrow, so it was the three boys being boys. Very wily, very kitten, very cute, very sharp teeth and claws that come out for no reason lol. Such rascals.

Bonus Cleopatra! Such a queen.

Cat of the week: Mickey

Mickey got shot with a 9mm but he's fine now. He still needs a lot of socializing but making some progress. He's not scared of me really, he just doesn't want me near him lol.

Kittens still have ringworm, but I got to let them play with me through the screen door a little which was cute as hell. Tam Tam was evicted by Mickey but they're getting a little less scared as well, got a couple sniffs of curiousity and no hisses. Similar with Mazy, started off with a few hisses but eventually got her comfortable enough to roll around and be upside down even with my hand in the condo with her.