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If this is in the wrong place, please feel free to move it. Or shoot me. Whichever impulse comes first. XD

My partner and I attended the Adoption Day today, held by the Albury Cat Rescue and the Albury/Wodonga Animal Rescue. We'd stayed up late the previous night making desserts to be sold ((though we didn't end up making as many as we'd hoped, as we suck at mass production)), with proceeds going to the rescues. When everything had been set up, we stayed pretty much in one room of the vet clinic, overseeing a few cat cages containing cats from the ACR, as they held cats that Fred adored and knows lots about.

At some point, early on, a man came in from a local kennel with two kitties to put into the giant, two-doored cage at the bottom of the cage pile. He explained their situation ((which was rather aweful, I thought)), gave me the kennel's card, and after agreeing to do all that we could to ensure they found a new home and promising to call him at the end of the day with the results, he left.

From the moment they got into the cage, I couldn't help but marvel how calm these large cats were. A lot of the cats we had put into cages had spent a great deal of the morning complaining about life, and while it was obvious they were a bit unsettled with their situation, they stuck together and eventually nodded off to sleep for the rest of the day.

This brother and sister duo, Torte and Ginge - not very original names, I know - recently lost their elderly owner. Both are desexed and vacc., but we're unsure about microchipping ((we'll find that out at some point)). They had been surrendered to the kennel, I guess, who then passed them onto the ACR, because the family of the gentleman who died refused to have anything to do with the cats and wanted them put down. This meant that Torte and Ginge were looking at a Do or Die scenario; Do find a new home today, or go back to the kennel and Die.

Horrified by this news, Fred and I made sure each person who came by our cages looked in at Torte and Ginge. Of course, we held back on informing people about their ultimatum, and we happily gave information about the other cats there; Fred even managed to "sell" Hamish and Charlie, and we convinced a couple to contact the ACR about Sahara once they return from a 10-day trip to Sydney, so that's 3 out of the 4 ACR cats in our room with potential homes!

Still, the inseperable Torte and Ginge waited. The information note the kennel man had given to us was stuck to their cage door. Many kids tried to pat them. Many adults shook their heads once they read about their age and the fact that they need a new home together. A few people showed interest, but couldn't because of various circumstances.

The event ended.

The moment had come for all cats to return to their rescues, barring those that were being adopted and picked up the next day. Torte and Ginge still hadn't found a home. They were doomed to return to the kennel to be put down ...

But we said no. None of us at ACR that knew the situation could send them back to be killed, and the kennel people certainly didn't want to see it happen. So I stuck up my hand and said that we'd foster them.

It wasn't exactly how I'd pictured Adoption Day to go. I thought we'd sell some raffle tickets or something, buy some food ((which we did)), then go home. I didn't think that once Eva, the manager of ACR, arrived, one of the doors on her cat cages would fall off and the cat would make a run for it, resulting in Fred chasing it down and Eva bursting into tears of fear and relief. I didn't think I'd buy myself a sausage sizzle instead of having soup, as I rather detest sausages, but wanted something more solid for lunch. I didn't expect a 4-week-old kitten to be found in a gutter and handed over to Eva as everyone was packing up, and wanting SO BADLY to take it home and give it a bath and care for it ((one of the other volunteers is caring for it)).

And I certainly didn't expect to bring home two adult cats!

Nevertheless, it's happened. ((Just thank goodness my work hours have gone full-time on casual pay, so we can cover the extra food and kit lit we'll need!)) Now it's up to us to ensure their story gets out there and that someone will be willing to love and pamper these two, gorgeous, 8-year-olds.

If anyone is following our Kitty Horde page on FB, we would really appreciate you sharing their post. If it goes around a lot, it may just come across their future family.



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Now, a bit of a question to those of you who foster ... Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you absolutely MUST foster an animal, so nothing horrible happens to them, at a time where you weren't expecting to foster an/another animal? I can't help but notice that this is the second time we've stuck up our hands to care for an animal in a tight situation; first street-living Tansy with a belly full of kittens, and now two kitties on death row. I don't know if this is going to become the common theme of our fostering ((I rather thought we wouldn't foster again until the next kitten season so we could take on another expectant mum, with more finances in our pockets)), but we seem to be coming across dire-need fostering situations more than I would've expected this early on in our caring years. It had been hard enough to find someone to care for the gutter kitten, so finding someone to take on two older cats would have been virtually impossible, especially as Eva already has 90 cats at her house and seems to be trying very hard to not take on any more at the moment, as she needs to go to the big smoke soon for a few days for medical reasons. We couldn't just abandon them to their fate either, so we're going to do out best to find them a home.

They are gorgeous.
If they're really calm/mellow and have good temperaments, maybe talk to long-term care/assisted living/seniors' homes about them. I know the ones around here often have a cat or two about (even the hospital has at least one resident cat in my town)

Does ACR do any sort of "seniors for seniors" program (for the elderly still living in their own homes)?
ex: "We supply (& can deliver) all food, litter, blankets and toys, and will take care of any medical bills. All you need to supply is a safe indoor home, and a warm lap to curl up in. Our Senior cats are free to Seniors looking for loving companionship, and they can be returned at any time for any reason." (Whisker Rescue's, where I got Saphi from)
The Edmonton Humane Society (another shelter near me) has a similar program, but I'm not sure if they do the "we pay all expenses" thing too, or if it's just free placement (it says you have to call for more information)

-I know that eight isn't that old for a cat, but for whatever reason places have set six-plus as being a senior-

I shared it on Facebook, but living in the States, I dont know how good it would do. D: If someone here wanted them, I dont think it would be probable. (I looked into it when I wanted Foxglove, and the process is RIDICULOUS.)

Post stuff in grocery stores too!! Someone is bound to nottice them.

Whoops! I'd forgotten I'd made this post!

A lady came over earlier this week, possibly on Tuesday, while I was at work, so I didn't get to meet her. Fred met her though, so she can explain what she's like if requested. She had just lost her cat of 18 years and needed companionship in her empty house while she worked, and didn't want to just get one cat or they'd be lonely. She liked the look of Reggie and Torte and took them home yesterday afternoon ((again, while I was at work)), so the pair of 8 year olds that had been doomed to death got adopted in just 19 days!

That's awesome and amazing that they found a home so quickly.