Good Friday - Gordie

For reasons that elude me, Maddie’s is teaming with customers Friday. I guess people have the day off, or there’s something about the Easter holiday. Anyway, I’m kept busy showing kitties. Happily, both the cats and customers behave well, although one woman seems a bit fixated on sanitary issues and finds six different ways to ask if the cat she’s checking out sprays (he doesn’t, he won’t).

While I'm visiting Gordie, a couple with a kid want to see both him and Loverboy, who's farther along in the same hallway. I take them to be a family, though the guy later refers to his girlfriend, so maybe the kid is just hers. Anyway, he comes in to visit Gordie while the woman follows another volunteer down the hall to Loverboy.

Gordie’s big eyed and shy, a silky soft black and white boy who mostly hides. It had already taken me several minutes to coax him to my lap, and he skitters back to his safe spot when the guy comes in the condo with us. But the man is mellow, soft spoken and comfortable with cats, and Gordie slithers back out and immediately over to his lap.

At that point the child enters. He’s kind of big, maybe 4 or 5, a basic kid who’s loud and not very aware of animal issues (asking me if the litter box is a food tray, for instance). Gordie scoots away as the dad whispers to the child to stay still and lower his voice. The kid backs himself into the man’s lap, and then Gordie – who’s been watching anxiously – makes a slow move back to lean on his other leg. It’s really cute. But as soon as the kid moves again, the cat scurries away.

They go down the hallway to Loverboy, who’s new to the shelter, an aptly named young tabby. He’s a really sweet boy, less shy and more playful, seemingly at ease with the kid as long as he’s occupied both purring and chasing a dangling toy.

A little later the man wants to meet another shy cat. He tells me he prefers the quiet mellow cats, while his girlfriend likes them active. Outside in the hallway, the child announces that he wants a dog. The girlfriend pokes her head in to say that another couple wants to adopt Loverboy so they’d better hurry.

The other couple have already started the paperwork, and it's first come first served. Maybe it’s just as well – I’m not sure the kid is quite ready to for a household cat. It’s a shame when more than one family wants the same cat, which happens only on our busier days. Good news when there’s quick turnover at least; the homeward bound tabby didn't even stay at the shelter a week.

The Boy Next Door - Cassie & Travis

The shelter always provides a relief in one way or another. This week, it’s about the only place where no on is talking about $4000 hookers named Ashley and the downfall of arrogant men with power.

Toward the end of my shift – lots of sweet kitties but only a few customers, and half of them camera toting tourists – I visit Cassie. She’s mostly white with tabby markings, a petite, young, pretty girl (er, who doesn’t charge by the hour). I’m surprised she’s been here for so many weeks, actually. She was quite shy at first, but now she’s her quirky self – skittish, playful and charming in her own way.

She doesn’t get along with other cats though, and that’s often a sticking point for people considering which cat to adopt. So it’s unfortunate that her next door neighbor, Travis, is extra interested in her.

Maddie’s was designed for the animals, and the cat hallways are filled with windows. People can see in each condo, the outer ones all have good bird watching potential, and there are windows with small shelves between many of the condos, so the cats can keep an eye on each other. On the occasion that a cat is uncomfortable with its neighbors, staff post up a temporary hanging to cover the window.

Well, Travis is having none of it as far as blocking his view. As I sit playing quietly with Cassie, his paw shoves the curtain on his window aside, and his droll gray face pops up. When that gets no reaction, he taps his paw on the window, cocking his head back and forth. He could be the neighbor who talks too much that you try to avoid.

Unable to tune out the batting paw and eager head, Cassie loses interest in our game. She hops up to the shelf on her side and bears her teeth at him. Travis stares at her in utter surprise; clearly he cannot imagine himself as being received as anything but a charming new pal. Their two feline expressions are a comical study in contrast.

It’s amusing to me, and probably to cheerful Travis, but no so much to Cassie. Hopefully one or both of them can get set up in their new homes soon.

Lucky Girl - Katie

The SF SPCA runs a popular and well regarded summer camp for children. Kids learn about animal care and behavior, interact with the cats and dogs at the shelter, and do some more traditional “craft activities” like making photo frames for the condos. (When I think of camp, I think of leaky boats and pup tents at lakes, roasting marshmallows and so on – but this is the big city. Camp is just another term for out of the house, and this camp is competitive and costly.)

It’s good for everyone involved. The kids are energetic, motivated, and really do learn a lot. The rest of the adults can’t help but have some of this enthusiasm rub off on us. And the animals benefit from both the company and getting used to being around young people.

My first summer at the shelter, I became acquainted with one of the campers and her mom.

Actually, it began with Katie the cat. Katie was a large long haired, somewhat cantankerous calico. She was 13 years old, and her age along with her haughtiness made her hard to place. I liked her immediately though – I liked her attitude and thought she was very smart. She made good eye contact with me. There was something about her.

Chloe the camper fell for her as well. She was a sweet, smart, city kid. Naturally, she made a case to her mom to adopt Katie. But they already had a cat, and the mom wasn’t ready to make this commitment (and face the potential loss not too far in the future, she confided). However, Mom made a deal with Chloe: they would continue to check in on the cat until she was adopted by someone else.

Chloe created a lovely portrait of Katie to hang on her condo door, expounding on her good qualities. They did indeed visit regularly, which is how I met them and heard the story. It was interesting to see how Katie treated us differently too – with me alone, she was basically a big purring lap cat. With the girl, she became more playful.

Weeks passed and summer turned into fall. But one morning I arrived and found that Katie had been adopted a couple days earlier. I hurried to the front counter to make sure they could let Chloe know. “You’re the second person to say that,” I was told. “We’ve got the number, we’ll be sure to call. Who is Chloe, her former owner?”

Nope, just a kid. And one lucky kitty’s champion.

Wisdom - Chloe

Got my that’s-so-cute fix before I even made it in the door this time. A young woman had brought her dog to meet the shelter dog she was thinking of adopting. Some kind of spaniel mix, white and tan with fluffy fur and floppy ears, wriggling and pleased with all attention. Can’t imagine she’d have trouble getting along with anyone.

Well, that’s dogs for you. Cats are more particular about almost everything. They are complicated the way people who’ve lived a long time are. Dogs remind me more of children – fun and cute and everything, but not that deep.

Inside Maddie's, I spent extra time with Chloe. She’s a lovely bright and extra soft Torbi. But she’s got a couple strikes against her – she’s 12 years old and declawed. Nonetheless, I think she’ll make a great companion for the right people. It’s just that both they and she need to understand who calls the shots. (Need I add, that would be Chloe.)

She does so with me, starting by standing up and pawing on her door, demanding some face time, as I enter her hallway. First on her agenda, lap sitting and pets – she climbs around until comfortable and then nudges my hand with her head till I understand the proper location and pressure to apply.

After awhile she allows for some play time. Her way again – I might slither the toy along the ground and dart it under and over her throw rug, but she ignores it in the air. When she’s had enough, she samples some kibble, which appears not to be fresh to her liking. Then back to the lap.

To just look at her, you wouldn’t guess she was a senior citizen. (Must be nice to have fur instead of wrinkles.) But that demeanor gives her away. Wisdom, knowing what she wants and firmly seeking it, taking no gruff. Good qualities, in my opinion. This pretty cat could rule the roost for some lucky folks for half a decade at least.

Cat Therapy - Clark

Supposedly we volunteers are here to help the cats, not to mention society at large. But I’ll readily acknowledge how much that quiet bonding time has comforted me these past weeks.

Thanks to the marvels of mass communication and the vagaries of journalism, the story I wrote about losing my precious girl appeared on SFGate a couple months after it actually happened. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/03/05/MNshelley.DTL So I’ve been able to heal a bit, and achieve some emotional distance.

But I was impressed, pleased and humbled by the feedback, which brought it all back to the fore. And touched by all the unique sweet stories people shared. There are surely some universals for all of us pet people. Thank you to everyone for your kind words and the heart rending tales of your own.

I did find solace with the shelter cats. My comfort kitties at Maddy’s have been the scared ones. The ones who need extra coaxing but reward me with hesitant trust, the ones where I know my time with them is well spent.

Clark is one of those. He’s a pretty sad eyed tabby who’s been at the shelter since last November, and when he got here he was oh so scared. All the noises and lights and other cats and people moving about just freaked him out. He’s had a stream of volunteers working with him, and he’s made some progress. He’ll creep out for pets, and he’s eating better. I try to spend extra time with him, not talking but just sitting there, letting him adjust to another being sharing his space. Isn’t that what it’s about, with people and pets?