Hi,

On May 27/08 my husband and I came to your centre and adopted our male cat whom you called Sidney.  He’s an approx. 3 yr. old brown mackerel tabby.  I’ve attached two photos. We have since renamed him Teddy as he’s just like a big adorable teddy bear and with an appetite of one as well!  When I told my husband that we’d get a male cat so he wouldn’t be the only male in the house, I didn’t realize the new male would have an appetite like my husband’s too.  Teddy has settled in, as if he has always belonged.

Our other cat, Tabitha (12 yrs old) thinks he can return to where ever he came from, as she wants nothing to do with him and ignores him when she isn’t swearing, cursing, hissing or batting at him, especially when he tries to play with her.  She carries on as if she’s being murdered, and I had been hollering at them to stop, but quit that when I notice that Tabitha would go right back and “sit” in his face just daring him to try anything.  Next thing you know, they’re both curled up on the bed together, not close, but about a foot apart.

Tabitha never slept close to our other cat, Tinsel, who we lost to cancer in early April after a lengthy illness, either.  They tolerated each other, but weren’t cuddle buddies. She was 10 yrs old and is greatly missed.  Tinsel was 2 yrs. when we got her from a friend who also died of cancer. Teddy loves sitting at the back door and watching the chipmunks and birds in the back yard, playing with his toy mice and when he bored with these, then there’s always the old crab (Tabitha) to tease. 

My morning routine after breakfast used to be go sit on the couch and read the newspaper, but now it’s cuddle Teddy time instead.  He won’t take no for an answer, and of course in typical cat fashion, just sit’s on top of the newspaper if it’s in his way.  He has to get as close to my face as he can, wrap his front paws around my neck and be cheek to cheek with me or tuck his head under my chin.  This lasts for about 1/2 – 1 hour and then he’s had enough and I can finish my newspaper.

Our cats get a bedtime treat and about 12:30 (our bedtime is 1:00 a.m.), Teddy comes into the computer room where I’m at and starts loudly meowing for his snack, running back to the door, back to me complaining that he’s starving and can’t I PLEEEEESE HURRY UP, before he fades away.  Once I do go into the kitchen, he’s almost in panic mode about his treat.  I have never with all the cats I’ve had over the years and that includes 17 yrs of breeding and showing Himalayans, had a cat that is so obsessed with food.  I don’t know if he had a period in his life where he was actually starving or not and this is the result, or if he’s just a born glutton.  We have to watch him around our food as he doesn’t mind sticking his face in our plates if given the chance.  Supper is around 5 p.m., but he starts laying by their supper dishes around 3 p.m. waiting and everytime I go near the kitchen sink he starts meowing that he’s starving.  Since they have their cat crunchies free choice all the time, that’s certainly not the case! 

We had his shots updated the end of June and he weighed in at that time, 17 pounds.  He is a big boned boy, but he probably weighs about 20 pounds now.

We are very happy with him and Thank You for our lovely boy.

Sincerely,

Valerie & Bill

This beautiful girl lived at Animal Aide from July 19, 2006, until her death on September 9, 2008. Paige was first found raising her kittens in and around Pinafore Park. All of those kittens have been adopted including Key, who remains in our care the longest and is now on our Happy Endings page. Paige was very slow in trusting and often shied away from a human touch, at first. Paige became a favourite of one of our volunteers who took it upon herself to work with her nearly every day until Paige not only trusted her enough to be petted, but also picked up and cuddled. Eventually, most of the regular volunteers were able to pet her. She would roll upside down for a tummy rub, if she particularly liked you. She was a staple of our center for 2 ½ years and most of us looked forward to seeing that gorgeous face of hers. She is sadly missed at Animal Aide and will be remembered fondly by all who knew her. Unfortunately, we knew something was wrong when Paige stopped eating. We will miss you for a long time to come, sweetheart!

Poor Gomer was sad, scared and ill when we met him. We hoped against hope that we could help him feel better and give him a reason to fight for his life. Unfortunately, Gomer’s health problems were just too big to fix. Although it would have taken his life at some point, Gomer chose to speed up the process by not eating. We believe he did this because he was unhappy and ready to end it. While his illness was serious, we firmly believe that Gomer didn’t die from it; he died from a broken heart. We became quite attached to Gomer in the very short time he spent with us. Gomer was a very sweet, loving boy whose last days on this earth were not spent in a loving home, but with strangers – in a new place where there was nothing familiar. It is a reminder to us that when an animal is in distress or suffering from an incurable illness, the best thing we can do for them is take them to a vet and let them go, with dignity and love.