Hello everyone,
I hope this is the right place to post - I lurked a bit yesterday and noticed that there are a great many dedicated cat rescuing folk here that seem to be doing a grand job of re-homing cats. As I am looking to HOME a cat, I thought it might be worth posting here . . . although I really should apologise for the following lengthy post javascript:void(0); (get a cuppa and a biscuit . .!) Please bear with me . . . .
We are looking to re-home a PERSIAN cat - and I thought it might be helpful if I tell you a little about ourselves:
Our love affair with the personality of the Persian breed began in 1993 when we went to a local cat rescue with the intention of getting a ginger
moggy. We actually came home with a black Persian named Leo (he chose us) who sat on our shoulders like a parrot, retrieved items, followed us around like a dog and was, quite simply, the best little cat in the whole wide world. In 1995, a move to a larger house meant that we were able to add to the 'family' and so we contacted a Persian rescue centre and adopted Marble, a dilute calico who was the LOUDEST cat we have ever ever known and who could tell the time; she would shout at us if it was even just 2 minutes past her usual supper time. She and Leo got on very well together.
Sadly, in early 1997, Leo was diagnosed with Eosinophillic Enteritis and we were told that he had only a couple of weeks to live. We were
devastated but did our very best to find out how we could treat the condition and, much to our vet's amazement, Leo responded to the
treatment. In fact, Leo surpassed all of our expectations and finally passed away of a totally unrelated condition in October 2002, aged around 16 years. (He was a rescue cat and so we weren't sure of his age when he first came to us.)
Marble lived as the only cat in the household until November 2006 when we adopted not one but two more Persians from the RSPCA; Mahla, another dilute calico, and Anoosheh, a blue point. They had been found wandering around a caravan park in an appalling state and were dematted, de-flead and neutered by the RSPCA. They were still in a mess when we first saw them but their amazing characters and friendliness meant they were the ideal little additions to our family. Little did we know that they both had ringworm (which they also shared with us) and which took 2 baths a week for a number of months to clear up (not much fun bathing 3 cats, twice a week!). They fitted in straight away, as if they had always been here and doubled their weight by 6 months.
Marble sadly passed away peacefully at home last September. We really don't know how old she was but think she was about 17. She had been
slowing down and her coat was getting paler and paler in colour and she died with us all around her, early one morning. She hadn't been
unwell, she was just old and we felt a huge loss that this little loud cat was no longer shouting at us after over 12 years of her company.
At the same time, Mahla started to change; a very bad tummy episode prompted an immediate trip to the Vet and all sorts of treatment was tried until eventually it was decided she needed some internal exploration. The week before Christmas, Mahla was found to have many
large and inoperable tumours in her bowel, intestines and stomach and we had to make the painful decision not to wake her from the
anaesthetic. It was awful to lose her so soon after Marble. That night, I took her collar home and put it on a shelf in our living room. Anoosh howled all night and the following morning I found the collar in the bed that they both used to share. It was heartbreaking.
Since then, Anoosh has followed us around like a little dog. She has become more vocal and seems to be permanently by our sides. My husband
works from home and I work part time and so there is always someone around which I think has helped her not to feel so alone.
It has now got to the point where we are thinking about adopting another Persian into our lives. The four who have come to us in the past have all been from rescue centres and so we are looking around now to find a centre that might think we are suited to one of their cats. We would never consider getting a Persian kitten as we don't want to perpetuate the supply/demand of a breeder when there are plenty of existing cats in need of somewhere to be loved and to live out their days.
I'm sorry for the length of this email but I know that rescue centres need to know a little about people apply to adopt before they release a cat into their care. I suppose, in a nutshell, we are:
* Persian experienced household (4 cats over 15 years)
*'rescue cat' experienced (health/socialising/stress issues)
* someone is in for at least half of the day
* sensible 6 year old 'bred' with Persians around her!
* one friendly cat (used to being introduced to other cats, no problems at all)
* high walled secure garden allowing SUPERVISED access if appropriate (cats don't go out unless we are in the garden too)
* prepared to travel to see a cat (we live in Brighton)
* RSPCA home-checked but happy for further suitability assessments.
* Fantastic vet; same one for 15 years, utter trust in his ability
* all our cats are covered by insurance
* if we go away, our cats stay in our home and someone comes to stay to care for them - they never go to a cattery
* we live on a quiet tree lined street - no busy roads.
The only thing is, unless the cat was a PERFECT fit for us, we would NOT really like to have another self-black / calico / blue point as those colours have a lot of meaning to us and I think it would be difficult for us. Does that make sense? Even now, after 5 years of not having Leo, if I see something black like a rucksack on the hall floor, I think it's him!
Ideally, we would love to have that ginger cat that we first set out to adopt - only this time, the combination of red cat/Persian cat would be perfect! And we are not so keen on ultra faces; all of our cats have been slightly more open types - although I am sure that we may fall in love and be surprised should we meet such a cat! Age of the cat would not be so important although I think around 5/6 would be better for Anoosheh? (We are not sure of her age but were told she was around 4 when we got her just over a year ago - she is, however, still REALLY kitten-y in behaviour.)
Whatever happens, we would love to have a cat that is happy to be a knee cat, happy to be a companion to our existing cat, and not have too many major health issues. Litter trained would be a huge advantage - stress weeing we can deal with until settled but we would like to know that the cat is clean!
So, if anyone comes across a Persian that might be needing a home, I'd be very grateful if you would bear us in mind. Although we are in Brighton, we are more than happy to travel . . . although maybe not up to Scotland! We have also contacted all of the dedicated Persian rescue centres and our local shelters so are hoping that our blanket approach turns up trumps !
Okay, thanks so much for sticking with this post . .javascript:void(0); . promise they won't be so long in the future!
Best wishes!
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