It's already been a week since Huggy "Mama" Bear left for her new home. Where did the time go! Just last week it was August, I swear!

Huggy has been renamed. I'm a bit sad about this change. Normally it doesn't bother me that cats have new names in their new home, but Huggy was such a special kitty, it would have been nice to leave things as they were. Her new name is, Holly. Nice name and gee, I guess only a few letters away from her old one.

Oh yeah, we're cool now that we're adopted and all! I am not sure who took this photo. Either I did or Ryan, my nephew. Hmmm.

As you may recall, Huggy, er, Holly and the boys all went to the same home. I drove Dash (renamed, Dash!) and Snuggles (renamed, Turk) to their new home last Thursday night. I HAD to clear the house to make room for two more fosters, so I offered to do a late night drop off. The one thing I didn't figure on was, yeah, it was DARK outside at 8:30pm! No one has house numbers and all the mailboxes are on ONE side of the street, not both, so even with GPS there was no way to figure out which house was #8! Of course, stupid me, I forget to bring the phone number of the new owner! I had to spend $150,000.00 (maybe I'm exaggerating a tiny bit) to call Directory (Rip off) Assistance only to find out that NO ONE WAS HOME!

So we sat there in the car and waited awhile. Sure enough, I recognized the car and like a good stalker, followed them into their driveway once I had them in my sights.

I felt badly bringing the kittens over so late at night, but the Dad, Chris was really nice about it. He unlocked the door and we entered his home. His son was wearing his Boy Scouts uniform. Looked really cute. His pants needed to be hemmed. I have no idea why I would notice that, but I did. I guess it made him cuter. Anyway, Chris called out to Huggy saying she had been sleeping with him and his wife and was doing well.

Huggy was NO WHERE to be seen! Chris called and called to no avail. Huggy had vaporized into thin air.

I felt a bit uncomfortable about all the fussing to find Huggy. I didn't want to stress her out and I didn't want Chris to feel bad that I wasn't going to see her. Then, as I stood at the bottom of the stairs, I saw Huggy RACE down the stairs from the second floor where Chris had been looking for her. She FLEW right past me. She was hunkered down LOW, scared out of her wits. The house was big and wasn't packed with stuff so sounds really carried. I could see why Huggy/Holly would be frightened.

Resigned to not getting to say hello, I asked if there was a small room to put the boys into and Chris just said to let them out and to first show them the litter pan. He walked us into another room and there it sat, the one thing I did NOT want to see!!!!!...one of those monstrous "automatic" poop scooper litter pans. As Chris blithely lowered Snuggles/Turk into the pan I told him that those pans have the highest rate of causing inappropriate elimination of any box. Kittens can also get hurt in them. Well, Chris was havin' none of that. Saying Huggy was using it (what choice did she have?) and it was fine. (ok, call me when the cats start peeing all over the house). Also, there was only ONE pan for all THREE cats. Hmmm...

I realized that this was the FIRST home visit I've ever been on. I had to wonder how many other adopters I'd be rudely telling to ditch their litter pan setup or more? I shudder to wonder.

Litter pan blunders aside, they are super nice people and I just heard that after a day Holly (see, I can remember things!) began to recognize the boys and all three are back to their lovey-dovey selves.

Hopefully, I'll get more updates on the kitties in the coming months. It's funny how anticlimactic the entire farewell was. The boys found the litter pan, then Dash ran off (dashed off?) to explore. I waved to the boys, knowing I'd already loaded them with kisses before I left my house and called out to Huggy (she was STILL Huggy then so there!) hoping one day I would get to see her again.

So we're done. Three lives that surely would have ended in a Kill shelter in Georgia, to three lives that get to be lived fully, with two happy children and two parents who will give them all the love and good things every cat deserves.

Yes, these cats definitely won the Lottery. That's for sure.

Okay, so I didn't do a write up about the Feline Forum yet, but in lieu of proper review, here's a tidbit to tide you over from a brochure I picked up at the Conference:

I'd like you all to check out Alliance for Contraception in Dogs & Cats. Their mission is to find a non-surgical solution to humanely control cat and dog populations around the world. Imagine, a simple shot, given to a puppy in a third world country where Vets are in short supply and funds to pay for neutering are nil. Imagine a way to control feral cat colonies in a way that's safe and less stressful for all concerned, also, the money saved by not having to pay for surgeries could be used for educational programs or to put towards emergency medical costs.

Instead of imagining all of this, there is already a product being used in male dogs under 10 months old called, EsterilSol™/Neutersol® (who comes up with these names!). I hate to tell you that this, but the drug is delivered via a shot directly into each testicle. Over time, the testicle withers away. Boohoo. Bye bye teste! (Sorry to my male reader/s!) I kind of wish I had this shot for a few of my ex-boyfriends! Also, I'd like to see them try to do this to a cat! Yeah. I knew I shoulda got those Kevlar lined, elbow length gloves I saw at the Feline Forum! (it's not FDA approved for cats just yet, by the way)

Thanks to Dr. Michelson, who is SUPER RICH and is a great advocate for finding a solution to the troubling problem of pet overpopulation, he's put up $75 MILLION BUCKS in grants and prizes to the first "entity to provide a single dose sterilant for male and female cats and dogs." If you're a super genius, visit Michelson Prize & Grants in Reproductive Biology for more info.

Maybe you're not an uber genius, but you want your shelter or rescue organization to support the efforts of ACC&D. They're looking for folks to join their worthy cause. You can find out how you can help by visiting HERE.

Imagine...no more need for KILL SHELTERS, followed by no more OVERCROWDED shelters...followed by?? What do you think will happen to the pet population if there one day IS single dose sterilization product for cats and dogs? No more shelters at all??

Six weeks ago, I was moved by a plea to help save a Mama cat who was notorious for "hugging" her kittens. She was called, Huggy and she and her two offspring were slated to be euthanized in a few days if no one stepped forward to help her.

At first, I thought we had an interested family in Indiana, so I started to put together a plan to help transport the cats to them, but it fell through. The person in Indiana never stepped up or even let us know she had changed her mind. Already involved, I felt it would be wrong to throw my hands up, say I did my bit and walk away. I just couldn't.

Many of you know what happened next: with what seemed like endless emails, questions, fears and hope, between myself, Winging Cat Rescue, Kat5 and a handful of helpers, we were able to rescue this mama and her babies, along with quite a few others.

I never did this before. I never pulled a cat from a kill shelter close by, let alone from 1000 miles away. I know many people frown on doing this, especially if the cat isn't even purebred and there are so many that need help right here in Connecticut. She's just an average domestic short haired cat, but a life is a life and I was in too far to turn back. Huggy's life was no less precious or less worth saving than any other cat.

I was told Huggy was friendly, but really, how could I know? I had no idea how old this cat was and without a shelter, how was I ever going to find her a home once she got here? Who adopts adult cats? I feared I would have her until, at least, the end of the year or longer. Something inside me said, yes, I need to do this, no matter what it takes. I need to make it right for these animals.

When Huggy arrived, there were plenty of problems. First, she had evidence of having had fleas. She had bad ear mites. Her chin was full of feline acne from eating out of a plastic bowl. She was thin. Her coat was rough and yellowed. Her kittens were odd looking and not that friendly. She was in much worse condition than I expected.

Huggy, day one.

Huggy also became seriously ill with mastitis, then had to be separated from her boys for two weeks, given meds twice a day and lots of rest. It was very difficult, but she never complained. She was easy to pill, she ate her food right up. She loved to lay on my lap, then attack my leg, letting me know she was still young and wanted play time, too. Only 1 1/2 years old, Huggy has a lot of energy and more and more as each day passed and she got stronger and gained her weight back.

Feeling Huggy's boobs.

Huggy showing Snuggles the ropes (pardon the pun)

Two weeks ago, Huggy was adopted, but it wasn't until today, that I finally got the OK from the Vet to let her go to her family. It's about as close to a magical experience as I think I'll ever get; seeing so many changes in this once tired, mama cat. Her coat is soft and clean, her chin is almost completely healed, her ear mites and fleas are long gone and her mastitis has resolved. She gained 1.50 POUNDS since she got here. She's at ten pounds now.

This photo ran in The Newtown Bee, which was how Huggy's new family first found her.

Since she arrived, there hasn't been a day when being around Huggy wasn't a joy. She truly is a sweet, mellow, feisty, cute, loving, chatty lady. Her new family couldn't wait to come get her once I told them she was ready to go. She'll be living with a Mom and Dad, their son and daughter. She'll have a wonderful home and all the good food and love she'll ever need. Although part of me wants to cry at seeing her go, I am SO VERY HAPPY that we made it this far, so quickly, seemingly as though it was all meant to be, that I can only smile. I am so grateful for everyone's support, so lucky a great family came forward- understanding that adult cats have a hard time finding a home and so willing to give her AND her two boys a chance.

This is the most rewarding work I have ever done. Each and every home I find for each and every cat fills my heart to bursting. When people ask me how I do this? I can only answer, how can I not? It's worth all the effort by tenfold.

Sleep deprived, just back from the Feline Forum, no makeup, but a GREAT a kitty in my arms; here's me giving out the hugs. (Photo by Ryan Feminella)

Huggy. You beat so many odds that I don't think there ARE odds for how lucky you are. From death's door to the lap of luxury. It doesn't get any better than this.

It's time to say Good Bye, friend. (Photo by Ryan Feminella)

Hugging Dash good bye. She'll be seeing him and Snuggles again in a few days. (Photo by Ryan Feminella)

Huggy, with some members of her new family (used with permission).

During the long drive down to Norwalk, Bob was mostly quiet, save for a few weird gasps or sighs or something. I caught him panting so I ran the A/C and he seemed more comfortable.

We got to VREC in good time and Dr. Whitney met with us promptly. We reviewed Bob's history, talked about ALTs being high, looked at his x-rays and discussed the big fall. After that we got Bob out of the cat carrier for an exam. Bob was so well behaved! Dr. Whitney was immediately struck by how lovely and nice he is-of course! She put him on the floor to see how he was walking. No sign of trouble. She squeezed and squooshed him all over and he didn't budge.

Looking at Bob's blood test from yesterday and taking into account his history, she decided to be safe, and suggested we do an ultrasound to rule out damage to his liver, but if it was bad, we'd probably already have seen him acting sick. She re-ran some blood work to check his ALT again and also his Free T4 because his thyroid might make his liver act up.

While I waited for Bob's test to be run, a woman walked in with three Chinese Cresteds. What a crazy looking bunch!

Apparently, two of them will be featured in Oprah's magazine very soon! Watch for the clothes issue? Fashion issue? For people, not dogs! The owner of the dogs should have been in the magazine, too. She was very artfully attired, had wild "cat eye" glasses and a HUMUNGOUS emerald cut diamond ring! I was dying to know what she did for a living, but I get a bit shy some times!

Oh, if only I hadn't cropped her ring out of this shot! Boohoo! You would have LOVED seeing it!

Once the glare of the big diamond wore off, Dr. Whitney returned with Bob and gave me the update on his condition.

Seems Bob is only lucky so-and-so. His liver looked about the same as it did a year ago, stomach lining about the same. Not fantastic but not bad at all. Blood work showed his ALT DROPPED to 520 (from 731 yesterday). His thyroid test would be back later and she'd call me about that. Bottom line is Bob appears to be all right! NO METACAM for him, by the way, too. She is not big on using it and that was all it took for me to not give it to him. He is sore, but not so bad that he's hiding or crying, so we both agreed to continue to let him take it easy, keep an eye on him and just let him heal.

So for $1000.00 I have peace of mind and can go to Chicago on Thursday without worrying about Bob. I just took my very first Xanax and suddenly, I don't feel scared about flying! We'll see how I do. I hate flying so much...ugh...I get traumatized if I have to do it and I hate that. I want to be able to fly, so I don't miss everything, but I sure love to be home. Ahh...so safe here!

On to the next thing...oh God. I shouldn't have written that...Thank you ALL again for your inspiring and loving comments! You are ALL THE BEST! Bob sends his love and thanks, too!

Dr. Larry didn't see anything that would cause concern on Bob's x-ray, but as you know, x-rays don't show everything. Bob's blood panel came back mostly just fine, but there was one serious value, that of his ALT or liver function. Bob's always had a high ALT, up to about 450 or so, when in the 20-100 is normal. Bob was on Denamarin for a long time, but when he was sick last year, I took him off it. Last May his ALT was down to 236, which we all considered to be good news. Today it was in the 700's!

I don't know if Bob's fall injured his liver or that his liver is in bad shape and it was just fate that we found out he was in trouble after his fall. Or, if Bob had a heart attack since ALT can raise from heart ailments, too.

Bob's already back on the Denamarin and to be extra careful, I'm taking Bob to VREC in Norwalk early tomorrow afternoon to get an ultrasound done of his liver. Going there means giving them my wallet, but so be it. I will do whatever it takes for Bob.

Bob's home. He ate well for me and then had a big drink of water. He's hanging out, watching what's going on. I wish he'd get on his fluffy bed and rest, but maybe it's good that he's alert.

Thursday I'm supposed to fly to Chicago to attend Petsmart Charities Feline Forum. I can't leave here knowing Bob's health is at risk. I hope to get some answers tomorrow and find out if it's OK for me to leave Bob for a few days. Sam will be here, but he tells me he'll be away from home for a long chunk of the day on Friday and he's busy with work. I'm really the hawk when it comes to keeping an eye on how the cats are doing.

By the way, we measured the distance Bob fell so I can tell the Vet tomorrow-16.6 feet. If he fell a few inches closer to the deck, he would have hit some large rocks. It made me sick to realize that. I just hope Bob will be all right. I'm scared to know what they'll find out tomorrow. I fear that this is the beginning of the end for him.

Many of you know that a few hours ago, my dear cat, Bob Dole, accidently slipped and fell about 15 feet off the deck, into some brambles and small rocks in the back yard. It all happened so quickly and so horribly. One second Bob was on the deck railing-which I HATE seeing him do, for obvious reasons. The next, he was gone.

I was making some lunch when I looked out and saw Bob drinking out of the bird bath. That water can be so dirty and filled with weird organisms that I quickly ran to the deck door to shoo Bob away from the water. He knows he's not supposed to do that. I didn't scream at him, but it was enough to startle him, which made him step back from the bird bath, slip, then, drop like a rock, off the deck. In that flash I saw the look on Bob's face-surprised and scared, while I simply screamed.

I ranl I ran down the stairs, into the basement. There's a room down there with a door to the back yard. I was barefoot, but I didn't care. I ran out, leaving the door slightly ajar in my haste, all the while being terrified of what I was going to see next-would I see Bob's lifeless body? I had no time to prepare myself. I burst out of the back door to catch a glimpse of Bob as he RAN around the back side of the house, up a big hill!

In a way I was glad to see him moving, but terrified that I would not be able to get him back home. He was very scared and just ran and ran!

I kept calling after him, begging him to come back, while my feet were feeling the ravages of all the rocks and thorny brush. Eventually, Bob took shelter under the smallest deck that's at ground level. I tried to cajole him into coming inside, but he sat there, frozen. I was afraid to startle him by trying to touch him, but I had no choice. I got down under the deck and pulled him out. He dug his claws into me, but I tried to be calm and get him into the house.

I got as far as the screen room that connects to the house and who do I see? Spencer. The little pouffball had squeezed through the opening in the door and got into the room. Had I gotten there one second later and he would have gotten outside, too. Then I realized, since I'd been chasing Bob for a good 10 minutes, that any number of cats could now be outside and I wouldn't know. I couldn't waste time looking for them. I had to get Bob some help, fast.

Poor Bob has a bloody lip!

Bob walked up the stairs on his own, great! I hobbled. Not so great. I called out to the cats. Shook the bag of dry food to get their attention and Bob came over, wanting to eat-another good sign. I put down a tiny bit of food for him while I washed my feet and tried to steady my nerves. I knew pretty soon I'd be a hurting unit, but for now all that mattered was Bob.

I was lucky today. I called my Vet and they could see us right away. I got Bob into the cat carrier, when I felt my back go out. I loaded him into the car, stiff with pain. I made it to the Clinic in good time. Not only that, but Dr. Larry was actually there! He normally has Monday's off. Also, Bob's best friend, Aunt Debbie (the super Vet Tech) was there! If I had to pick the two people I would want to look after Bob-they would be the ones.

While we waited to see Dr. Larry, I cried some more. I had called our Director sobbing about what to do and if I needed to get Bob somewhere that was open 24/7. I told her I couldn't account for 3 of the cats. She told me not to worry and was very calm when I couldn't be. She promised to help me find the cats when I got home, if I needed her. Then I started replaying the image of Bob falling off the deck. I felt so sick.

Bob was a good sport. He sat there and purred, just like he always does. He rested his head on my hand and laid down. I don't know if he was tired from the stressful experience or something worse. Dr. Larry came in and gave me a hug and proceeded to look at Bob. He was worried that Bob broke his jaw, a common injury after a big fall. Although his mouth was bloody, the jaw felt OKAY. Dr. Larry listened to Bob's heart and lungs and checked the function of each leg. Everything was all right, but that didn't mean Bob was out of the woods. Next, Bob would get a full body x-ray, they'd run a blood panel to make sure his organ function was all right and observe him for a few hours. I gave Bob a kiss and headed home to wait.

I'm in a lot of pain right now. I must have twisted my knee, thrown out my back and neck and have lots of cuts and scratches. I'm also terribly worried about Bob-that something will be missed, that this is the beginning of the end of his life. It wouldn't take much for him to have an internal injury and that is what I fear, because that is the toughest to detect. I don't even let Bob jump down from my own BED because I think it's too high off the floor. Bob is an old cat, but he IS a tough cookie, too.

When I got home, it took awhile, but I did manage to find ALL of my cats. Everyone was fine and looked at me like I was nuts. I suppose they are a better judge of my own character than I am.

I didn't expect I had the stamina to write all this down. I'm just wiped out. All I intended to say was a BIG THANK YOU to all the folks on Twitter, who have been so very kind to Bob and myself. Once I put out the word that Bob needed support, they rallied around us by including us in what they call, a "Pawcircle." They joined together to send their love and support to Bob when he needs it most.

I live a very quiet life. My parents are gone. I don't have lots of friends who live close by. When Bob fell, I had no one to catch me, too. I came home and went online and found that I was wrong. There were SO MANY good wishes for us that it's making me cry right now. I felt SO ALONE when this first happened and so scared. Your support and compassion is such a GREAT GIFT and means SO MUCH to me. I wish I could give all of you a big HUG and tell you to your faces how you not only helped Bob today, you helped me, too.

Thank you for doing for me, what I could not do for Bob today-catch him when he fell.

Trust me. Go see this video. Then answer this question: Is there something WRONG with this cat or is he just really QUIRKY?

Cat "Drinking"from a Faucet

This evening, the nice family that came to visit, decided they would like to offer Huggy her dream of a forever home. Not only that, but they generously opened their home to someone else you may know...

...DASH & SNUGGLES!

YES. HUGGY & HER KITTENS ARE ALL ADOPTED AND ARE GOING TO STAY TOGETHER!

I hope, hope, hope, that because I'm telling you this news now, just after the contracts have been signed, that the adoption won't get jinxed! Huggy still has to stay with me until she completely recovers from Mastitis and the boys have to stay here until their little nuggets drop and we can get them neutered. It'll be a week or two more, but certainly by the end of the month, everyone will be in their new home-and their new family doesn't mind waiting.

I'm not normally someone who believes that things are fated to be, but in this case, I have to say, maybe I'm wrong. All the things that had to fall into place, all the people who had to offer their precious time and money to make this happen-is this a miracle?

Whatever you choose to call it, this is one of the most precious, magical and amazing experiences of my life. I am so deeply grateful and happy.

...and to think...Huggy and her boys would never have made it this far, if it wasn't for all of us. Wow. That really gets the tears rolling!

Congratulations to Huggy, Dash & Snuggles!

ANDIE GOT ADOPTED!!!!

Seems Andie's luck had not run out. On Saturday, at our Adoption Event, Andie met a lady and her nice family. Apparently they had also been in line, hoping to adopt Andie a month ago, but were beaten out by another family.

As fate would have it, the adoption did not work out, as you may recall. I'm not sure if we contacted the second family or if they were watching out Petfinder list and saw her name come back up. Regardless of how it happened, I do believe, though, Andie is where she was meant to be all along.

I wish you could have seen this woman, cradling Andie in her arms. Andie meowed loudly, then got lots of pets. She relaxed, smiled, purred. She didn't want to be anywhere else in the world. She finally found a place where she was going to be happy. Her new owners already have a Tortie and know about their personality quirks. They don't expect Andie to fall in love with her new buddy, who was waiting for her at her home. They were fine with however things worked out. The Mom, Dad and Daughter all were smitten.

It's been a few days since the adoption and I haven't had an update yet, but I have high hopes that this adoption is gonna stick. Way to go, Andie!

We got the call. Huggy Mama did well over the weekend and is stable enough to come home! We ran straight over to pick her up. One of the cute Vet techs from Mill Plain brought her out to see us! Huggy looked alert and raring to go-a far cry from the limp, weak darling we left their on Saturday morning.

Huggy has to be on lots more Baytril and Amoxy-and Dr. Larry will love this, METACAM! After all my ranting about it, I have to give it to Huggy. Just a DROP for the next few days to manage pain. I had it out with the Vet at Mill Plain, but she also assured me that she's not seen any problems with it at a low dose for a short period of time and she reminded me that if either of us was in pain, we'd want something, too.

The worst of it, no surprise, Huggy MUST be separated from her babies. No contact. We can't risk them giving her another infection and she's gotta stop producing milk! Enough already! The kittens are well past being weaned. I have the big dog crate set up and the kittens are in it now. I can hear them banging around, trying to get out. I'll give them cage time, then swap them out, then lock up Huggy. I hate it, but it's got to be done. At least they can see each other.

Huggy's only been here for a few minutes, but already she started to "burble" the second she saw the kittens. They surrounded her cat carrier, wanting to get at her. I got them locked up and let Huggy out. I put out a big dish of food and she attacked it hungrily. I'll give them all some time to settle down. It's a perfect day, light breeze, warm temps, but not too hot. Will be a great day for Mama to rest in the sunshine and continue healing. In a week she goes back for a re-check. After that, if Huggy gets a good report card, she'll be back up for adoption. Then the crossing-fingers stage begins!

Thank you to everyone who sent such encouraging "Tweets" and emails. I know they must have helped Huggy. She is so much better today. It's like I got a new cat back from the Vet!