Just Cabana Once Again

After one month with us, our overweight foster cat Velveeta got a new home! She didn't lose much weight yet, but the shelter vet said to strive for just 1 pound of weight loss per month. I do think she probably lost about one pound, so we were somewhat successful. Velveeta is on a healthy diet of Wellness kibble mixed with raw food medallions, which she will continue at her new home. Wellness even graciously donated a large bag of their Healthy Diet food for the new owner--I'm so grateful to them!

Velveeta learned to play and was slowly becoming more active. Sure, she lounged around for about 23.5 hours a day, but for that 30 minutes each day, she walked around, went upstairs and down, played, and used her scratching pad. It was progress.

One of my biggest concerns with having a cat in the house was the litter box (our previous cat never used a litter box, preferring to go outside). Knowing Cabana has a penchant for eating cat poop, I didn't know how I was going to keep Cabana away from it. We started out with a hooded litter box, but the high sides kept Velveeta from getting in and out of it comfortably, resulting in many accidents. I switched to a lower open-top litter box, and surprisingly, Cabana never even went near it! Cabana was the best host ever, always giving Velveeta space and respect.

Velveeta will be living with a 5-year old boy. Here they are, meeting for the first time. Right away, it seemed like they had known each other for years. Last night, I got an update from Velveeta's new owner, saying that Velveeta only spent about an hour underneath a bed, then came out purring, ready to play, eat, and get brushed.

When we first brought Velveeta home, which was at the insistence of my daughters, I thought, good lord, what have I done. Who is ever going to want this 12-year old, extremely obese cat? I feared we would have this cat for months, if not years! But Velveeta's new mom has had big fat cats before and adores them! And Velveeta's easygoing temperament is just right for a little boy's first pet. It all worked out--and there's nothing as rewarding as that.

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Big News, and I Mean Really Big

24-pounds big. That's how much Velveeta weighs. She is an overweight cat that we started fostering this week. The shelter was in a quandary over what to do about Velveeta. When she was kept in the cat room with the other cats, she would sit on top of the food and not let the other cats eat it, obviously so she could eat it all herself. When they put her in a cage so they could control her portions, there was no room for her to get any exercise. For the past few weeks, the shelter kept asking for a foster family, but no one had stepped up.

My daughters have been missing our cat Angie, who passed away last February. When I mentioned the idea of fostering Velveeta, they didn't hesitate for a second. Tiny kittens may be adorable, but these girls are all about helping the underdog...or undercat, in this case.

Velveeta is no shrinking violet. It only took her about a day to come out from hiding under one of our beds. Since then, she has surprised us with her ability to get around. Despite her enormous size, she can squeeze into some tight spots. She can climb the stairs, and to my amazement, she even jumped on top of our piano!!

I don't think Velveeta was an outdoor cat before because when we first brought her outside, she ran right back in! But our backyard is enclosed with 6' high fences, and because we need to encourage her to exercise as much as possible, we will take her on "outings" when we are able to supervise her (she's already surprised me with her nimbleness, so who knows, she might be able to climb our fence).

Velveeta is a very pretty cat and super sweet. Even when I've had to perform unpleasant but necessary tasks on her, she never scratches me. She did hiss at Cabana once to tell her to keep her distance, and Cabana, ever respectful, has complied.

I don't know how long it will take for Velveeta to lose enough weight to be adopted. A healthy cat weighs between 8-10 pounds, so she is 2-3 times as big as she should be, and her stomach is just shy of dragging the ground. If you'd like to follow her progress, I've started a Facebook page for her. Hope you'll "like" it and root Velveeta on to a healthier life and a wonderful new home!

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When Harry Met Sally...and Zoe

The other day, Cabana and I paid a visit to my wonderful friend Peg, who fosters golden retrievers. She's especially fond of elderly and special needs dogs, who likely won't ever get adopted. Or at least, they usually don't--but her previous foster, 10-year old Hunter, got adopted by a family with two young boys. They live right by a beach, so Hunter will get to spend the rest of his life racing through the waves of the Pacific Ocean. Not too shabby!

Hunter's adoption made room for Sally, 14 years young and still plenty sassy, despite some health problems that are typical for dogs of her age.

Peg is also fostering Harold, who is 10-years old and 40 pounds overweight. He was never taught anything, not even "sit". He has obsessive issues--for instance, he likes to try to fit as many balls in his mouth as possible. Two seem to be his limit, but that doesn't keep him from trying to squeeze in a few more. And if all these issues weren't enough for one dog, Harold also has cataracts and is blind.

The two senior citizens get along alright, except when Harold trips over Sally because he can't see her. Let's just say Sally doesn't respond favorably, and boy, does she let Harold have it! It's mysterious, though, because Harold gets around extremely well for being blind--he chases tennis balls as well as any dog. He compensates with his other senses, especially his sense of smell, so you'd think he could detect Sally laying in his path. At the same time, Sally likes to position herself right smack in the middle of everything, maybe hoping that she can make Harold trip and then have a reason to let Harold have it. I thought that kind of crotchety behavior was a human trait, but I guess canines are not above it either.

As if two very large golden retrievers weren't enough, Peg is also taking care of Zoe, a whippet/chihuahua mix, whose owner is in the hospital. Before Zoe was rescued by this owner, she was used as an ashtray, leaving her coat riddled with cigarette burns. It's no wonder that Zoe is fearful and ornery (although she did warm up to me after a while--but Cabana wanted nothing to do with her and kept her distance).

Taking care of three dogs, none of which belong to her--that's my friend Peg. She's got a heart the size of California, even though she lives in a one-room cottage and has a 10-square foot backyard. She takes them for several walks every day and tires them out with a bucket of tennis balls in between.

Cabana didn't quite know what to do with herself at Peg's house. So many dogs, so little space, and so much commotion! Even though Harold couldn't see her, she kept her head down in submission to him.

And look how far away she skirts from Sally to let her pass! While Cabana may be a bit timid and aloof, she's also very appropriate and respectful--I'm proud of her for that. I hope to take a page out of Cabana's book and show that same deference and respect to Peg for her loving devotion to these dogs...and likely, to many more dogs to come.

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