This week has been an emotional one—the ups and downs are
hard core. On a very good note an adorable Maine Coon, Mason Gray, one of my
favorites, went home. He’s special because he’s shy and has been with us for a
long time, much longer than many others. I’ve been promoting him in so many
ways and making it known that he’s an amazing guy… and it’s worked. I spent
some time with his new person, and she promises to stay in touch and I do
actually think he finally found his calling. Mason’s departure is bittersweet… we’re
losing one we love but it’s positive because they’re going home.
Not every situation is like Mason’s though. There’s another
love of my life, Laney. She’s a baby Arwyn—our Lilac Point Siamese with a
personality and a heart bigger than any animal I know. We adopted Arwyn just
over two years ago and he has since made the family complete, bringing everyone
together and giving us a companionship that we didn’t know existed. Laney is
Arwyn’s identical twin in every way. She looks like him (but smaller), she has
his same personality, and she just wants to shower people with affection as
often as she can. Her challenge? She has a potty problem. She’s two years old
and has been adopted and returned numerous times, all for the same reason…. she
doesn’t always use her box.
At first we thought this could be a health problem. We’ve
run numerous tests, handled a couple of small infections, and monitored her box
use in a kennel…. everything has been fine.
Our second thought is that it may be behavioral. Perhaps in
a home with multiple pets was too much for her, or perhaps she wasn’t a right
fit for the family. Maybe a loud, busy environment stressed her out, or maybe
she didn’t get enough attention. It could even be because she is declawed on
all four paws—not something we as an organization or me personally believe in,
but yet it happens. However, she doesn’t appear to have a physical reaction to
the litter—as in, it doesn’t appear to hurt her paws.
So now we don’t know where to turn. Maybe it’s a deeper
health concern that we haven’t touched on yet, or maybe she’s just picky about
where she does her business. We had her in a kennel and she used the box just
fine. We moved her to a small room where she could roam free with no other cats
and she is using the box just fine. But given the multiple “reports” of her inappropriate
potty behavior she isn’t exactly adoptable.
My immediate thought? There’s an underlying health issue. My
second thought? She just hasn’t met The One. My goal? Well, something tells me
our house is full so I’ve got to find her a foster home. It appears she has
lived with other pets, so maybe a home with no other pets would be better. Or
maybe just making sure everything in her environment is just right…. we don’t know
if the homes she was in were busy, cluttered, or stressful. We don’t know how
often they cleaned the box, how many pets they really had, if she had enough attention (Siamese need attention), or if she was treated
nicely. The immediate reaction of most people who catch the dog or cat
urinating inappropriately is anger or frustration, which leads to more stress
for the pet, and anxiety. What’s to say Laney did this once and was scolded so
badly that she became terrified when she had to potty and instead of using her
box out in the open she found a hidden place to do it? We don’t know these things and therefore I am fighting for her.
She is young with an amazing personality and looks to match.
She deserves a home. As a foster, we’ll provide any medical care. We’ll also
provide food and litter as we can… and if we need a specialty litter we’ll work
on that too. Someone has to be able
to take her. Get her into a calm, stress free environment, with her own space
and lots of TLC… multiple potty boxes…. and see how she does. There are lots of
all natural calming aids and pheromone sprays which help—we’ve seen it work
with many other cats. But we have to try. I have to try.
Laney deserves a good life. She doesn’t deserve to be
considered less adoptable because of a challenge. Trust me, I get it and it’s
no fun dealing with this challenge, but I can’t help but feel that the equation
wasn’t right in some way, shape, or form. I understand that the families that
had her (and let me say they each had her very briefly—so a proper adjustment
to the home didn’t happen) did return her for the same reasons, but how do we
know what actually happened in the home? And until we have exhausted all
options how can we give her any less?
I realize my blogs are dark and emotional, but sometimes you
have to be real to get the point across. And sometimes animals have tough
stories and it’s my job to overlook that and help them find the love they
deserve… and I’m good at that.
Laney needs this chance. She’s my favorite four-legged
companion in need at the shelter and I’ve got to find her a foster home. We’ll
give you the tools to make it work, but she’ll make you fall in love with her all
on her own. Will you give Laney the home she needs…. and so deserves?
