Thursday, March 28, 2024
rescue stories

Rescue Families

Kittens lined up and reflecting in a mirror.
Kittens lined up and reflecting in a mirror.

Yes, sometimes it really does seem like the kittens are hidden in the closet spontaneously reproducing as if their reflections became new kittens.

There’s often a bit of a break in the early part of the year, before the cat breeding season starts, but kittens are still moving in from the outdoors, in and out of the shelter and foster homes. The three above, along with the fourth below, were four more hissy kittens removed from a shelter where they had no foster families and no volunteers to work with them to socialize them for the adoption floor, and we know what that means. They are safe in foster, but got themselves in a little bit of a jam and because they are not terribly friendly it took a little planning and a few people to get them out of this predicament. We managed to arrange things and move the mirror they were hiding behind so they would run right into a carrier, which they did, but they gave me an opportunity for a one-in-a-million photo, that’s for sure!

fluffy orange kitten in carrier
I doez a better job on your fingerz next timez.

The kitten above had his own way of getting himself into trouble and in the process of chasing him around the room I got my hand tangled on a blanket or sheet while scruffing him, which gave him the opportunity to turn around and bite me when I lifted my fingers to let the fabric loose. He got away, but not for long. All ended up in carriers and I got them on their way.

When I got home everyone carefully inspected me and Bert and Ernie supervised the cleaning and bandaging of my finger (and that was when Ernie’s toes looked so adorable I stopped cleaning and took photos).

two cats watching
Bert and Ernie supervising the care of my finger.

I may not be able to foster in the numbers I once did in this house, and that’s fine with me, but I’m happy to use the time I’d be spending with my own foster cats helping others with their foster cats, and their cats in general. Just lately several friends are losing cats or have lost cats, cats who’ve shared their lives in good times and bad, and making decisions about everyday care, palliative care, and end of life is never easy. I’m honored when a friend calls me with a question, or just to talk, and I can provide tips for care, explain what might be happening with their feline companions, and just listen, remembering those felines who shared my life, taught me what I needed to know and left me with the knowledge, certain other cats would benefit from I’d learned.

A few friends are considering adoption as well, and of course I’m marketing my fine fosters too. And always there are questions about behavior, socializing and integrating kittens and cats, food and litter decisions and everyday health questions. On Tuesdays I usually publish rescue stories, but lately, and today, I’m thanking those who I rescued in all the years I had a house full and bursting with cats. Thanking them for bringing their problems to me? Not at the time perhaps, but for the opportunity to answer a phone call or an email with an explanation of how a particular medication works, a “yes you need to run to emergency” or “no, just keep watch for this…”, and a few questions to ask the veterinarian learned from experience and working closely with my own veterinarian. Yes, now I can thank those cats, and all the people who had their part in giving me the information I needed to care for my own fosters and my permanent collection, and then to help others.

The end goal of it all is for cats to have a safe and loving home and a long and healthy life. That’s what we wish for our own cats, that’s the goal of rescue and foster, and by extension by helping even one cat we make change and help conditions for them all. For that reason I also thank all the people who I can help because they are out there managing the heavy lifting, whether they agree to take one homeless cat into their home and provide shelter and love until a forever home can be found, or they go the full gamut and undertake to trap and care for large colonies and hordes of foster kittens, and those who adopt rescued cats, especially those bearing the scars of life before rescue.

I hope that someday there simply aren’t so many cats to rescue and we can enjoy them all the more, on the other hand I can’t imagine my life without any of the cats who came to me, even if there are a few I really can’t remember. But the best part is the chance to remember the times, good or bad, with one of the cats who spent a portion of their lives with me, and share just a little piece of them and what they brought to me whenever possible.

six cats on bed
All six of my cats at the time on the bed, June 2007: Lucy, Cookie, Peaches, Kelly, Namir and Mr. Peach.

Read more stories in my weekly Rescue Stories series
and read about my Rescue Stories series.

All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop or Fine Art America profile to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.


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Weekly schedule of features:
Sunday: Essays, Pet Loss, Poetry, The Artist’s Life
Monday: Adoptable Cats, TNR & Shelters
Tuesday: Rescue Stories
Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork
Thursday: New Merchandise
Friday: Book Review, Health and Welfare, Advocacy
Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats
And sometimes, I just throw my hands in the air and have fun!
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Bernadette

From health and welfare to rescue and adoption stories, advocacy and art, factual articles and fictional stories, "The Creative Cat" offers both visual and verbal education and entertainment about cats for people who love cats, pets and animals of all species.

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