Visited the pound today, and they had plenty of room. One of the employees said that the two cats who were no longer available most likely had been adopted. Their website is done by volunteers, who don’t always update it frequenly and don’t always get the details straight.
I played in the “interaction room” with some kittens who needed the activity. I had noticed on my first walk-through, though, a very small, mostly black Tortie kitten who was staying pretty still. I took her to the room, she snuggled into my arms, and she began to purr. We spent most of the time like that. Near the end of the visit, I put her on the floor to see what she would do. She walked around the floor and sniffed things.
I asked the staff on duty about the circumstances of her surrender. She was brought in just a few days ago by a woman who found her and her sister in an abandoned house with no momcat in sight. They were full of fleas and worms, for which they received veterinary treatment. The sister died the day before yesterday. She only weighed 13 oz., and the vet said the deworming may have been too much for her–but then, so would the worms have been. They figured out that this little girl was born the week that Gabie died. She hadn’t even been named yet, so I told the staff her name is Greta. They liked that.
I’m planning to go back tomorrow afternoon. One thing that’s accurate on their website is that they are desperate for non-scoopable cat litter. I’m going to take them a bunch of small bags of it, because the surgeon told me not to lift more than 20 pounds. I want to visit a kitten to whom I overheard them talking, telling them that he makes such a mess of his kennel that no one wants to visit with him. I also want to visit two young adult cats who have “Go Slowly” posted on their kennels. One of them in particular is a cream-colored male, 1 to 2 years old. He was surrendered by his owners because he fought with their other cats, but HE IS NOT NEUTERED!!! DUH!!! The staff said he is calm and sweet with them, and when he gets neutered he should do fine. There is some concern, though, that he may have picked up FeLV, FIV, or some other nasty thing in his fights. They test asymptomatic cats for that sort of thing after someone has applied to adopt them.
I haven’t received the letter from my landlord yet, so there is time. I haven’t come to a clear decision anyway, but I think I know one thing. I think some very small pawprints are in my heart.