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While adopting an adult cat (or cats in my case) was not my choice last year...I'm thankful for people in the world that open their homes to these wonderful pets!
After a long wait of over 1 year in the shelter...my girls' Momma was finally adopted this month! I could not be happier!
I've visited with her several times over the last year and she is the sweetest thing. I'm so happy that she found her forever home - and will be forever grateful to her for giving me three of the best kitties I could ever ask for...
Doing the happy dance!!! This is indeed something to celebrate, so happy to hear this lovely girl went to a good home.
I volunteer at a no-kill shelter and I know all too well the kittens don't stick around long, but the adult cats stay for years.
I've jumped for joy this year seeing so many of these deserving angels get adopted after living in the shelter for so long. The best adoption was of a senior at 17 years old, and the wonderful woman returned and adopted one of my favorites at age 15! We have a Facebook page, and the best is when the new pet parents post updates on them.
Adult cats are the best, they are most often calmer, already trained and you know what you're getting. I really believe they know they are being given a second chance and are so appreciative and grateful. I've adopted an 11 year old, and two at age 7. I normally don't adopt kittens, but I did adopt my youngest at 6 months. He was on death row from another shelter in NYC and was going to be put down the next morning. He is such a joy to have in my life.
After Nic died, I knew I wanted to adopt an adult cat. I have to admit I went to the shelter looking for a male cat, preferably thin, maybe black and white or gray and white- in other words, I was looking for Nic in a way.
So we're looking over the cats and some of them were absolutely gorgeous. Then we saw her...tucked away in a side cage, but doing everything she possibly could to get attention. A drab chunky brown tabby with a notch in her ear and buck teeth. She kept sticking her paws out through the front of the cage and 'making biscuits' like it was the day before a school bake sale.
So we brought home Robin- who couldn't have been more different than Nic. I swear for the first two days we had her home I wasn't sure she could walk. If you looked at her, she would instantly flop over on her side and start with the crazy paws. She's a total lap cat, but she can't sit still- she has to flop all over you, sneeze in your face, and 'swim' with her feet.
Congratulations to Hera for getting her Forever Home!
My last two, but one, adoption/rescues were adult cats. And I cherish them for the special kitties they are. The Kitten was not planned. However she was placed in my path in a way that it was very clear to me that it was meant for me to rescue her, the little baby girl, and I don't regret it for an instant, though she has already cost me a small fortune in health issues.
I completely agree that there are unparalleled benefits to adopting an adult cat. I'd never, ever adopt a kitten when there are so many wonderful adults just desperately hoping for a warm lap, regular meals, a cozy bed and a forever home.
We decided earlier this summer to adopt a buddy for our adult cat. We had tested the waters, so to speak, when our daughter and her two cats stayed with us for several weeks, and while Finn wasn't overjoyed about the interlopers, he also wasn't antagonistic toward them. And when they left, he really seemed forlorn; he'd prowl the house, looking for them, and he got really needy with us. So we felt reasonably sure that as long as any new adoptee was fairly laid back and willing to get along with other cats, he'd do well.
We started with our local Humane Society, and through them we found a local cat rescue group that takes in and fosters hard-to-adopt cats. We met with the head of the group, described what we were looking for, and she introduced us to Colonel Snuggledorf.
Col. Snuggledorf, or Dorfy as he is known to friends, was picked up as a stray last November. He was turned over to the Humane Society, and after a few weeks, they were on the verge of euthanizing him because of persistent diarrhea. As a last resort, they asked the folks at the Happy Cat Club if they'd like to try fostering him, thinking that perhaps with more individual care, the problem would resolve. His foster mother put him on grain-free food, and guess what? The diarrhea ended immediately, never to return. Go figure...
So Col. Snuggledorf, of uncertain age (though we think he's probably around 5 or 6, just like Finn), missing his two upper canines, and carrying an extra three pounds or so of fat, joined our family in mid-July. We kept him in the spare bedroom for the first week, exchanging smells between him and Finn each day, and I slept in that room each night to get him accustomed to the people in the household.
When the week was up, we brought him out of the spare room and introduced him to Finn for the first time. There was a hiss or two, but no puffy tails, no arched backs, no caterwauling - and within 24 hours, they were playing "king of the castle" on the living room chairs. Within a week, they were wrestling, chasing each other, playing tag with a sparkly ball, and vying for salmon nuggets whenever I'd call out "treats!" And now a month in, I find them grooming each other, collaborating on the usual Sunday morning project of getting the humans out of bed to feed them, and generally acting like long-lost brothers.
Speaking of long-lost brothers, what I find most amusing about this whole process is the fact that when you look at them, they look as though they COULD very well be long-lost brothers. They're both handsome classic tuxedos, short-haired (Finn has a little more fluffy undercoat), both about the same age, both unable to digest grains, both extremely talkative and friendly - in short, we seriously wonder if we somehow wound up adopting Finn's litter-mate.
This is a photo I took of the Colonel right after he joined us:
He was still really pudgy then; we had him back to the vet recently for another check-up and weigh-in, and he's lost 7 ounces since coming home with us. We're planning to keep him on a gradual weight-loss regimen until he drops a total of about three pounds, which I expect to take at least a year. I don't yet have any photos of our two tuxedo boys together, but I'm expecting that once the weather cools down, I'll start finding them curled up together on the sofa in a big pile of black-and-white fur. I can't wait!
We started with our local Humane Society, and through them we found a local cat rescue group that takes in and fosters hard-to-adopt cats. We met with the head of the group, described what we were looking for, and she introduced us to Colonel Snuggledorf.
Best name EVER
That's all I have to say, really.
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YAY HERA! 
