Being a Responsible Breeder...

Well, I am getting another Furrydance kitty back due to "Inappropriate Urination". I just hope I am as lucky as I have been in working with these cats and he gets through Rehab with a Gold Star!

His name is Keyser Soze and I almost lost track of him once before! Right after Mike died, the couple who had Soze gave them to friends of theirs without letting me know they were having problems (their other cats picking on Soze). That angered me, as part of my contract says that I will take back a cat for any reason and then be able to chose the best home for them personally. They told me they thought I was having enough problems to deal with, and they thought they were doing the right thing...

They gave him to a couple who knew him and liked him...but he was going right back into a similar situation, multiple pets, and I just would not have picked that home for him, with his history of being picked on and maybe having self-confidence issues. But at least I was able to contact his new owners and chat with them, but they never did send back the Adoption Application form I emailed them and that was dissin' me, but at least they now had my contact info!

Then today I get a phone call that they have been having many months of problems with him, escaping outside, peeing everywhere and they are having to move into a smaller home for a while and knew he would only be under more stress there. And I am grateful for the fact that because I had kept in touch with them, that they knew how to get in touch with me and that I would take him back.

I asked them to fax all his vet records to the hospital where I work, so I can see what his healthcare has (or has not) been, and just like any time I bring a new cat into the house, he will be isolated and taken in to work with me on Monday for blood tests and parasite tests, so I don't expose my household to something he may have picked up on one of his ventures outside or from one of their other pets.

Then just like the cats I have Rehabbed before him, Jasmine and Nacho and Peachie and Disco...he will go through the "12 step program" to recovery. Well, it's not really 12 steps, that is just a reference to AA. It's 4 steps, each about 2 weeks long and a cat only gets to move to the next level if it's well behaved. Sometimes there is 2 steps forward and 1 step back. And sometimes (most of the time) there are anxiety meds involved. I follow the protocol of an animal behaviorist group that the cat hospital where I work uses.

Over then next few weeks, you will get to know Soze and wish him luck and send him purrs, but thought you all would like to see pix of him. He's quite the handsome boy, 4 years old and I am looking forward to getting to know him again and evaluating his issues and hoping like *&%#@ that I can help him...it's the least I can do!