C
Carl & Polly & Bob (GA)
I wasn't really sure where to post this. It isn't a "health issue", but I wanted to make sure that people would see it.
On my birthday, my ex-wife asked if she could take me out for dinner. Yeah, it's a weird dynamic. We got divorced last December after a two year "estrangement", but we remain very close friends, and we still work together. Anyway, she had been doing volunteer work at a place called "Palmetto Animal League" which is a no kill shelter and adoption center. I asked her if instead of just dinner, if she would take me there. I wanted to donate food, litter, and other "cat stuff" that had been Bob's and Mullet's but nearly new. She thought that would be a great idea, so that's how I spent my birthday.
And it was such a big help to me. They have over 90 kitties up for adoption. And I met half of them that day. It was two hours of nothing but "healing". I had cats crawling all around and all over me.
So I get home, and the next day I go to their website. And I am completely overwhelmed. On the way home, my ex looked at me and said simply "Carl, you need another cat". She was right. I had not been "catless" for 35 years. And the last "new kitty" I had gotten was Bob and Lillian 13 years ago. So I'm looking at the site, and remembering some of them who had left a "special impression", and all I can think is "how do I pick one? The right one? Too many of them seemed to pick me. How do I know???" I was overwhelmed.
And I was also trying to answer "what kind of kitty do I want or need right now?" What I came up with was "I need a kitty who isn't sick. I need a kitty who isn't elderly. I just need a kitty to love that loves me back that I can have a nice normal relationship with." I wanted an adult, female, healthy kitty who just needed a home.
Flash forward to this past Sunday -
I get to work at noon, and I'm working in the campground. I walk into the store in the campground which my ex is the manager of. And I see a lady I haven't seen in months, Samantha, who is here to talk to Paula about selling some of her custom made jewelry. Samantha used to work here at our Nature Center, and she's one of our most active "Turtle Volunteers". Besides making custom jewelry, she also works at a local vet clinic. And Samantha doesn't know that I lost Bob and I'm looking for a new kitty. So out of the blue, we're just chatting, and she mentions this kitty who is their "clinic cat". Her name is Polly, and she's been there for 6 months. They think she's 4-5 years old, but not sure. They only know that she was turned in to the Humane Association by a local family after they found her abandoned in an apartment recently vacated. Her name was given to her by the clinic staff, because she was "Jane Doe Kitty" when they got her. They chose Polly because she is "polydactyl". She's a "Hemmingway Kitty". Samantha is describing this kitty, and all I can think of is "wow, this sounds like the kitty I've been looking for?" So she gives me a website address where I can see and read about Polly.
Here's the summary on Polly -
She's poydactyle.
She's a black and white tux.
She is shy and needs to be an "only".
She is around 5 years old.
On the website, I see that I have to fill out an application to foster or adopt, so I figure, I might as well fill it out just in case. I figured it would be days before I heard back.
About two hours later, I got a reply email from their "cat advocate". It wasn't just a standard "we got your application" email. It was almost as long as this post is right now. ;-)
And the woman who responded told me what she knew about Polly's history and personality, and she'd be thrilled if I were interested in Polly. No pressure, take her home for a couple of weeks as a foster to see how things worked out. I'm blown away not only by the content of the email, but by the fact that she responded so quickly, and on a Sunday! This is a person who loves and is devoted to her job and her kitties.
So I send her a reply, saying that if possible, I'd like to go Monday morning and meet Polly? She said "absolutely, you can do that".
So...
Yesterday, I drove to the clinic. I knew what to expect, because I'd seen her pics on the website. So I walk in the door, and right next to the door there's a chair, and right next to the chair is this two story "condo". Living room and dining area up top, and restroom below. And there's this little beautiful girl sitting in her bed looking at the door saying "wassup? Are you Carl?" I melted on the spot. OMG. So I sit in the chair, and reach my fingers in the cage, and get a "head bump hello". She doesn't make a sound, just looks at me. So I talk to her, and the lady behind the counter said "can I help you?" I introduced myself, and she said "oh yes, we heard you were coming to meet Polly. You can take her out if you want to." And I said "No that's okay, I'd will let her come to me".
So I open the door of the condo, but I don't intrude on her space. She gets up, arches her back, and bumps my hand.
"Polly, I'm Carl. Would it be okay to pick you up?"
Polly says "Duh, isn't that sort of the reason why you're here?"
So I pick up this dainty little gorgeous girl. Instantly the paws and extra toes go up to my shoulder, and she buries her head in my neck. And the only sound in the entire world at that point was "Prrrrrrrrrrrrrr". And then the moment was broken when a guy walks in with a tripod German Shepherd (who was also beautiful in spite of being a drooler), closes the door too loudly, and Polly says "OK, gotta go back in my house!" and jumps back in her bed. :lol:
I spent a half hour with her. I told her all about Bob and Mullet, and told her I knew a great place for her to spend furever if she was interested. She seemed interested. And she showed me her extra toes on the front feet. And she let me pet her and hold her feet. Then she demonstrated that if you pet her long enough, she will show you her belly. And even let you rub it! I haven't had a "belly kitty" in decades. Mullet would eat your hand if you touched his belly. And Bob only permitted it when he was asleep. All I got from Polly was "yes, it is quite the pretty belly, isn't it???" :lol:
Polly is teeny. She could have rode Bob's back and he might not have even noticed. I'm guessing 8 pounds? That's half of Bob. But she doesn't feel "skinny". I guess that's what "normal" feels like? Her fur is dense and silky, sort of "gooshy".
On their site, it says she needs to be an only. She's okay with people once she warms up to them. But shies away from other cats or dogs. She has the ability to roam the clinic before they open or after they close, but she stays in her condo by choice, and won't come out if any dogs or cats are visible. Which is fine with me. She's going to be an "only" here.
They have her listed as a "special needs" kitty. I wondered why? It just says she needs to be an only, and she has extra toes. Apparently extra toes are an issue to some adopters? I'm thinking "how cool are extra toes???" That's a bonus!
So I talked to the staff, and I told them that I definitely want to bring Polly home. But I can't do so until Wednesday morning. I need to get the house and a room set up for her. I need to make sure she doesn't sense "other kitties" when she comes in the door. And I have to go out of town this evening for several hours and I didn't want to bring her home today and have her "alone" for five or six hours in a new and strange environment.
So tomorrow morning, I will go sign adoption papers, and she will be micro-chipped. Screw the "foster" waiting period. I'm "in". I have faith that she feels the same way, so what's the point in a "trial period"?
I am not sure if she will remain "Polly". I like the name, but if she tells me her "real name" which is unknown to anyone besides her, I will call her what she wants to be called. But for now, it will be Polly.
Here are some pics of her. All I can keep asking myself is "How in the world could anyone have walked away from that face and leave her in an empty apartment to fend for herself?" What if someone hadn't found her? This is the same thing that happened to Boots thirty years ago, when my ex found her in a vacated apartment with three kittens after three days with no food, and no water except the toilet bowl. What the hell is wrong with people?
So, everyone, say "Hi" to Polly!
I will post more pics once I get her home and settled.
On my birthday, my ex-wife asked if she could take me out for dinner. Yeah, it's a weird dynamic. We got divorced last December after a two year "estrangement", but we remain very close friends, and we still work together. Anyway, she had been doing volunteer work at a place called "Palmetto Animal League" which is a no kill shelter and adoption center. I asked her if instead of just dinner, if she would take me there. I wanted to donate food, litter, and other "cat stuff" that had been Bob's and Mullet's but nearly new. She thought that would be a great idea, so that's how I spent my birthday.
And it was such a big help to me. They have over 90 kitties up for adoption. And I met half of them that day. It was two hours of nothing but "healing". I had cats crawling all around and all over me.
So I get home, and the next day I go to their website. And I am completely overwhelmed. On the way home, my ex looked at me and said simply "Carl, you need another cat". She was right. I had not been "catless" for 35 years. And the last "new kitty" I had gotten was Bob and Lillian 13 years ago. So I'm looking at the site, and remembering some of them who had left a "special impression", and all I can think is "how do I pick one? The right one? Too many of them seemed to pick me. How do I know???" I was overwhelmed.
And I was also trying to answer "what kind of kitty do I want or need right now?" What I came up with was "I need a kitty who isn't sick. I need a kitty who isn't elderly. I just need a kitty to love that loves me back that I can have a nice normal relationship with." I wanted an adult, female, healthy kitty who just needed a home.
Flash forward to this past Sunday -
I get to work at noon, and I'm working in the campground. I walk into the store in the campground which my ex is the manager of. And I see a lady I haven't seen in months, Samantha, who is here to talk to Paula about selling some of her custom made jewelry. Samantha used to work here at our Nature Center, and she's one of our most active "Turtle Volunteers". Besides making custom jewelry, she also works at a local vet clinic. And Samantha doesn't know that I lost Bob and I'm looking for a new kitty. So out of the blue, we're just chatting, and she mentions this kitty who is their "clinic cat". Her name is Polly, and she's been there for 6 months. They think she's 4-5 years old, but not sure. They only know that she was turned in to the Humane Association by a local family after they found her abandoned in an apartment recently vacated. Her name was given to her by the clinic staff, because she was "Jane Doe Kitty" when they got her. They chose Polly because she is "polydactyl". She's a "Hemmingway Kitty". Samantha is describing this kitty, and all I can think of is "wow, this sounds like the kitty I've been looking for?" So she gives me a website address where I can see and read about Polly.
Here's the summary on Polly -
She's poydactyle.
She's a black and white tux.
She is shy and needs to be an "only".
She is around 5 years old.
On the website, I see that I have to fill out an application to foster or adopt, so I figure, I might as well fill it out just in case. I figured it would be days before I heard back.
About two hours later, I got a reply email from their "cat advocate". It wasn't just a standard "we got your application" email. It was almost as long as this post is right now. ;-)
And the woman who responded told me what she knew about Polly's history and personality, and she'd be thrilled if I were interested in Polly. No pressure, take her home for a couple of weeks as a foster to see how things worked out. I'm blown away not only by the content of the email, but by the fact that she responded so quickly, and on a Sunday! This is a person who loves and is devoted to her job and her kitties.
So I send her a reply, saying that if possible, I'd like to go Monday morning and meet Polly? She said "absolutely, you can do that".
So...
Yesterday, I drove to the clinic. I knew what to expect, because I'd seen her pics on the website. So I walk in the door, and right next to the door there's a chair, and right next to the chair is this two story "condo". Living room and dining area up top, and restroom below. And there's this little beautiful girl sitting in her bed looking at the door saying "wassup? Are you Carl?" I melted on the spot. OMG. So I sit in the chair, and reach my fingers in the cage, and get a "head bump hello". She doesn't make a sound, just looks at me. So I talk to her, and the lady behind the counter said "can I help you?" I introduced myself, and she said "oh yes, we heard you were coming to meet Polly. You can take her out if you want to." And I said "No that's okay, I'd will let her come to me".
So I open the door of the condo, but I don't intrude on her space. She gets up, arches her back, and bumps my hand.
"Polly, I'm Carl. Would it be okay to pick you up?"
Polly says "Duh, isn't that sort of the reason why you're here?"
So I pick up this dainty little gorgeous girl. Instantly the paws and extra toes go up to my shoulder, and she buries her head in my neck. And the only sound in the entire world at that point was "Prrrrrrrrrrrrrr". And then the moment was broken when a guy walks in with a tripod German Shepherd (who was also beautiful in spite of being a drooler), closes the door too loudly, and Polly says "OK, gotta go back in my house!" and jumps back in her bed. :lol:
I spent a half hour with her. I told her all about Bob and Mullet, and told her I knew a great place for her to spend furever if she was interested. She seemed interested. And she showed me her extra toes on the front feet. And she let me pet her and hold her feet. Then she demonstrated that if you pet her long enough, she will show you her belly. And even let you rub it! I haven't had a "belly kitty" in decades. Mullet would eat your hand if you touched his belly. And Bob only permitted it when he was asleep. All I got from Polly was "yes, it is quite the pretty belly, isn't it???" :lol:
Polly is teeny. She could have rode Bob's back and he might not have even noticed. I'm guessing 8 pounds? That's half of Bob. But she doesn't feel "skinny". I guess that's what "normal" feels like? Her fur is dense and silky, sort of "gooshy".
On their site, it says she needs to be an only. She's okay with people once she warms up to them. But shies away from other cats or dogs. She has the ability to roam the clinic before they open or after they close, but she stays in her condo by choice, and won't come out if any dogs or cats are visible. Which is fine with me. She's going to be an "only" here.
They have her listed as a "special needs" kitty. I wondered why? It just says she needs to be an only, and she has extra toes. Apparently extra toes are an issue to some adopters? I'm thinking "how cool are extra toes???" That's a bonus!
So I talked to the staff, and I told them that I definitely want to bring Polly home. But I can't do so until Wednesday morning. I need to get the house and a room set up for her. I need to make sure she doesn't sense "other kitties" when she comes in the door. And I have to go out of town this evening for several hours and I didn't want to bring her home today and have her "alone" for five or six hours in a new and strange environment.
So tomorrow morning, I will go sign adoption papers, and she will be micro-chipped. Screw the "foster" waiting period. I'm "in". I have faith that she feels the same way, so what's the point in a "trial period"?
I am not sure if she will remain "Polly". I like the name, but if she tells me her "real name" which is unknown to anyone besides her, I will call her what she wants to be called. But for now, it will be Polly.
Here are some pics of her. All I can keep asking myself is "How in the world could anyone have walked away from that face and leave her in an empty apartment to fend for herself?" What if someone hadn't found her? This is the same thing that happened to Boots thirty years ago, when my ex found her in a vacated apartment with three kittens after three days with no food, and no water except the toilet bowl. What the hell is wrong with people?
So, everyone, say "Hi" to Polly!
I will post more pics once I get her home and settled.
and yes most Hemmingway's know how to use them. Our Hemmingway Patches is affectionately know as Patches the Paw because there isn't a door, drawer or pull tab can he can't open lol 
