Day 72: Refused by pet adoption agency

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 72: Refused by pet adoption agency

Approximately eight years ago I started this blog, primarily to vent. A number of things angered me and a friend suggested I start a blog to blow off steam. Over the years I’ve started quite a few posts with “I’m ticked off”, “I’m angry” or even “I’m furious”. Apparently not much has changed because while I’m not exactly furious, or even angry, I am ticked off.

Where it comes to adopting a pet, I’m the first one to declare loud and clear that pets are not toys and should not be given as presents at Christmas, Easter, or a birthday.

However, I’m sure that during this Christmas season there were people with the best of intentions. People who wanted to adopt a cat, a dog, or another animal and were willing to give it a loving home for years to come. I should know because I was one of those people. All my cats are rescues, which is why I’m so ticked off that I was refused by an adoption agency.

After Mickey passed away, I subscribed to a website that notifies cat lovers whenever a cat or kitten becomes available for adoption. I didn’t have to wait long. Just three days later I received an automated message from the Toronto Cat Rescue that a kitten named Millie was looking for a home. Unfortunately, or fortunately depending which way you look at it, Millie generated quite a bit of interest and was adopted before I even had the chance to properly apply. Naturally, I wished Millie and her newly adopted parents all the best.

A few days later I received another notification. This time from Team Cat Rescue that three kittens were looking for a home. I applied for each of the kittens, hoping to get lucky with one of them. As it turned out, I didn’t get lucky with any of them and I stand no chance of ever getting a kitten or a cat from Team Cat Rescue.

In response to my application, one of the representatives stated that no cat or kitten is released to a home where there is a cat or cats older than five years. This made absolutely no sense to me. I’ve always had cats, over the years I’ve introduced plenty of kittens and never had any problems. What’s more, when I adopted Gabriel, Mickey immediately took him under his wing.

The representative further stated (rather cheekily I might add) that kittens have no problem being adopted, but that older cats are being ignored. This I’m afraid is true, and it breaks my heart that older cats are being abandoned, but I can’t adopt an older cat. I once tried introducing an older cat to my lot and it didn’t go well.

I don’t know where the older cat came from, but I found him in the garden of our condo building. I took him in and introduced him to my cats, but there was a lot of growling and hissing. To cut a long story short, the cat met George, a paraplegic who was waiting in his wheelchair for his transportation. The cat jumped on George’s lap, George started petting him, and the two became inseparable. George named the cat Lucky, which indeed he was.

So, keeping this experience in mind I preferred to look for a kitten or a young cat, rather than an older cat because the chances of getting accepted were much better. The representative of Team Cat Rescue wouldn’t be persuaded though … no kitten to a household with cats older than five years. So that was that.

Not only was this disappointing to me, but I can well imagine that there are other people out there who have experienced or will experience the same problem. They want to rescue a cat or a kitten, but because they already have a cat who is older than five years, they will be refused.

If Team Cat Rescue wants to make a difference, they should place greater emphasis on pets being spayed/neutered and discourage people from getting rid of their pets when it no longer suits them. All too often people get rid of their cat(s) when a baby comes into the house. Little do they know that a cat will never harm a baby. On the contrary, a cat will cuddle up with a baby, keep it warm and sooth it to sleep. 

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Day 69: Christmas gifts to avoid

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 69: Christmas gifts to avoid

The number one Christmas gift to avoid is a pet.

Kittens and puppies may look adorable in the store or shelter, but they are not ideal gifts.

Kittens and puppies tend to grow up and then what?  Will the gift receiver commit to love and care for them for their entire life span?  Do they have the time and life style to care for a pet?

Many people travel for work and are often away for days or even weeks.  These people generally do not have pets as leaving them creates a problem.  Who will feed them?

Giving a bird, a fish or any other life animal is an equally bad idea.  They too need care on a daily basis and presenting someone with such a gift is thoughtless. 

Should you want to rescue an animal from a shelter and present it to someone make sure that the animal is welcome.

Another gift to avoid is fragrance.  Unless you are familiar with the fragrance the lady in your life uses, stay away from the cute little bottles.  Something may smell nice to you, but that does not necessarily mean that she will share your opinion. 

Come to think of it, stay away from the personal care isle altogether. Ladies are fussy which creams and lotions they use. Unless you are familiar with her preferences, do not take chances.

Ladies, the same goes for you. You may like a certain cologne, but does he?  The time that men had only a handful of colognes to choose from are long gone. These days the display cabinet of men’s fragrances is almost as extensive as the one for ladies.

Chocolates or other candy may seem like a good idea, but is it?  Perhaps the lady in your life is trying to lose a few pounds. Perhaps a certain type of chocolate makes her face break out in spots. She might even be diabetic.

Giving a woman who is a bit overweight a book on dieting, or giving a woman who does not like to cook a cookbook is an equally bad idea. You may think you are helping her, but she might just chuck it at you. If you want to give her a book, familiarize yourself with her preferred authors.

Do not give her clothes, unless you are certain of her size. If the garment is too small she will be disappointed; if it is too big she might be insulted. And even if the item is the right size, will she like the color or texture?

Knock-offs are best to be avoided too. Whether it is a Guess handbag, or a Gucci watch, if you cannot afford the real thing, stay away from it. Far better to buy something cheaper, but for it to be the real thing.

Before setting off for your Christmas shopping, listen to the receiver of your gift, she might just drop a hint.

Or, if you are totally clueless, ask her to draw up a wish list. Whatever you decide to buy, play it safe and keep the receipt.

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Attention Cat and Dog Owners

Earlier this evening I saw a post on Facebook of a cat owner announcing that her cat was pregnant. She mentioned to please not post any negative comments. She knew she should have had her cat spayed, but the pregnancy was an accident. Kittens would go to a good home.

A post like that bothers me. How can a pet owner claim the pregnancy was an accident? Anyone with an ounce of responsibility knows that pets should be spayed/neutered at an appropriate age. It’s that simple.

Don’t claim that you don’t have the time. You don’t have to do the procedure yourself, you make an appointment with the vet, hop in your car or call for a taxi, and take the pet to the doctor.

Others claim they don’t have the money for such a procedure. In that case, don’t have a pet. When you adopt a pet, you accept the responsibility for his wellbeing. That means three sets of inoculations and the pet being spayed/neutered.

One shouldn’t just think of the animal, but of the litters that just one cat, or one dog, can produce. If one cat or one dog has 5 litters of 6 kittens or puppies, that’s 30 kittens/puppies. If each of those 30 cats/dogs has 5 litters of 6 kittens/puppies that’s 900 kittens/puppies.

When someone stated that unspayed/unneutered pets should be kept in the house, another replied that it’s cruel to keep a pet indoors.

I remember my father saying much the same, when I told him of my indoor cats. He said that surely they miss walking the neighborhood and feeling the grass under their paws. So I asked him ... “Dad, do you miss climbing Mount Everest and feeling the snow crunching under your feet with every step to reach the summit?” “Of course not,” he said, “I’ve never climbed Everest so how can I ...” And right there and then he understood that it’s not cruel to keep a cat indoors. The animal cannot miss what it never experienced.

Finally I want to address the matter of finding good homes for kittens or puppies. Never assume that when a person shows up to adopt a cat, he or she has the pets’ best interest at heart. Before allowing someone to take a kitten or puppy, you have to screen that person. Pet adoption agencies do it, so why not you? How can you be sure that the little one goes to a loving home?

Adoption agencies almost always rule out homes with young children. When I pointed out that young kids can be cruel to pets, I got a flood of protests. One woman asked if I had kids myself; another said that she found my comment offensive; while others still posted pictures of their children lovingly holding a cat or a dog.

First of all, I said “some” kids and second, the pictures that were posted were of children 6 years and up. I had young kids in mind, toddlers specifically.

Toddlers have no real understanding of right and wrong. By holding a kitten or puppy too tight they can hurt or even kill the little one. That’s the message I was trying to get across.

The point is, if you have a cat or a dog, and you love the animal, have it spayed or neutered. Don’t hide behind lack of time, money or the silly notion that a pet has to be free. Think of the pets’ offspring and what might happen to those hundreds of little ones. Will they find homes, or will they end up in animal shelters where they will be put to death?

The Toronto Cat Rescue is a NO KILL cat shelter. Please pledge your donation today.
https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/toronto-cat-rescue/bowlathon/team/grumpycats/

Spay/Neuter Incentive

He said he loved me

He sang to me and whispered in my ear

All the words I wanted to hear.

He was so handsome

So utter gorgeous if truth be told

We talked and kissed, danced and rolled

When we made love

I lost myself in his eyes and in his arms

Succumbing to his considerable charms

I thought I was safe

But all too soon I found to be

The result of that love growing inside of me

When the babies were born

Their daddy was long gone

And all alone I had to be strong

I was not the only one

Others like me had to find a way

To deal with the consequences of mating day

How many babies died?

How many will grow up to be

Fools in love, just like me

If only those who loved us

Had taken the time to take us to the vet

The fling I had would be easy to forget

As it is and pay attention now

This spring fling of mine

Can result in 420,000 babies over time

We are helpless, but you are not

The pet population needs your assistance

Because when spring comes around, it’s not in our nature to keep our distance.

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