Saving Flower Part 2: Forever Home Needed

/ rachelgoes262 / 3 Comments

Flower was used as bait by a dog fighting ring. I have been very clear about that from day one. Some people have inquired about adopting Flower. I tell them she was used as bait by a dog fighting ring, tell them about her injuries, mobility issues and medical needs. People then proceed to ask me if she is okay with dogs?

I will no longer answer that question. This cat was brutally injured by dogs on purpose, then thrown out like trash. They either thought she was dead or just threw her out to die from her injuries. You think she can live with dogs? I taught pre-school for 15 years and always said there was no such thing as a stupid question. I stand corrected. 

Now that Flower has been with me for two months as a foster, I have learned some things about her needs for a forever home and want to provide an update. Many people have asked. It is disheartening for me to detail things to people only to have them ask questions like “is she okay with dogs?” 

If you intend to make a serious inquiry to adopt Flower, then you need to read all of this and be very clear about her needs. Do not waste my time with questions about things like dogs that I have clearly stated from day one: NO DOGS. 

I don’t mean to be rude, but she deserves the BEST POSSIBLE forever home with ALL THE LOVE. This cat has been to HELL and back.

I never intended to foster. I am one person with three house cats of my own. I have a disability, I work full-time, and I experience continual and repeated criminal harassment from my neighbors that results in physical injury. Taking on Flower has been a challenge for me with everything else I am facing. It is very difficult for me to keep everyone safe with the way the neighbors behave. I have zero regrets about helping her. But I also don’t have spoons to deal with stupidity. 

I am not an official foster. When I contacted the shelter to report her injury, they said they were full. They would not help. I trapped her and got her to medical care. The shelter is not offering any support or advice or help to find her a forever home. They are full and overwhelmed. Their attitude was to shrug and say, “oh well.” We do not have any humane charities here that responds to injured animals. I have no regrets about trapping her or helping her. I truly believe that if she was outside for another winter, she would have seized up with the arthritis and froze to death, unable to move to reach the insulated cat shelters I provide. 

Back to Flower’s needs:

Flower needs to be adopted by an experienced cat person. However, she needs to be the ONLY PET in the home. She would be perfect for someone who may have lost a furbaby and is ready to love again. 

Flower has been here for two months. My house cats have been completely welcoming and accommodating. None of my house cats have hissed, growled, or in any way acted aggressively to Flower. They either ignore her completely or approach slowly in a questioning manner. 

Flower is terrified of my house cats. She was bullied by other cats outside. Due to her mobility issues, Flower cannot defend herself. Her only ways of defense are to hide and to hiss. Flower hisses and growls at my house cats. She is afraid of them. Even when they are ignoring her and pass by as a normal course of their day, she is scared. 

It would not be fair to Flower to have to share her forever home with another pet when she is clearly scared of other cats. We all know cat introductions are a long and tedious process to be sure they are done right. As I’ve said, Flower has been here two months with no aggression from my house cats. She sees them through a screen door. Yet she is terrified when the pass by. 

Flower should be with someone home a lot. A retired person or WFH home would be great. She loves attention and would flourish where she can be the center of attention.

To interact with Flower, you need to get on the floor. 

Flower cannot jump or climb. I have provided pet steps. They are too much for her. Her forever home may want to consider a ramp to see if that is an option. 

She may want to sit in your lap, but she cannot physically get there. You need to pick her up, put her on your lap, and put her back down. For safety reasons, I do this when sitting on the floor in case she gets scared or wants to leave my lap. If I am sitting on the floor, she has only a few inches down and won’t get hurt like she would a fall from a chair or couch.

Her interactions:

Flower cowers. She has been with me for two months now and still hides in her box. She does enjoy her morning treats (second breakfast). She will approach for treats. She is very intelligent and recognizes the treat bag. Once she has her treats, she returns to her box.

I do put the treats in a trail to get her to leave her room and praise her and give pets. She always returns to her box after treats. 

If you hold your hand out for her to investigate, she will headbutt your hand when she wants pets. She likes head scritches. Sometimes she will lick your hand. 

She does not walk around while I am in the room.

She very rarely will eat in front of me except for treats.

I have given her full access to the upstairs of my house to explore. She very rarely leaves her room. She prefers to stay in her safe space.

She requires a lot of patience. She saw me outside for 6 years feeding her and talking to her. It took her 6 years to go into the trap for help. She has been here for two months and still has not come out of her shell. 

We had a visitor two weeks ago. She was terrified and hid. This is a cat who will hide for several weeks or months. She will not come up to you. Cats like Flower sit in shelters forever before adopted because they are scared. Cats like Flower are euthanized in shelters.

Flower’s preference is to sit next to you while you pet her, and she purrs. 

Flower does not play with toys, probably due to her medical issues. She does have a few stuffies she likes to cuddle. Her stuffies, blankets, carrier, cat bed, etc. will go with her to her forever home. 

Her injuries and mobility:

Flower is at least 12 years old, estimated by the vet. The vet’s exact words for her are “geriatric special needs.”  She was in a home for the first 5 years of her life before she was kicked out, used as bait, and then outside for 6 years before I could trap her. For more on being used as bait, read part one.

Her dental health in general is good. She is missing one upper canine. 

Her entire pelvis was crushed. This is why she cannot jump or climb. She can run. 

She has a stub tail. It is unknown at this point why. She does wag her tail when you pet her and when she is happy.

She had severe injuries to her right arm and arthritis has set in. The entire reason why I trapped her was because she was limping. She needs extra heat. She has a heat disc I heat for her twice a day and put in her cat bed that will go with her to her forever home.

You need to keep an eye on her movements for any limping. She will need further treatment for that injury. It is unclear at this time if the vet can do something for the arthritis or if there is a possibility she would need to be a tripod. Any adopter needs to keep an eye on her for limping and be prepared for ongoing medical needs if she needs arthritis injections/treatment or potential surgery. 

Her eating and toileting: 

Due to her injuries and mobility issues, Flower’s food and water dishes should be elevated. I have a pet shelf that is being used for this purpose. It will go with her to her forever home. 

She eats and drinks normally. She is on a schedule for breakfast. 

She is not on a set schedule for dinner yet. We are still working on that.

She toilets normally. Be aware that due to her mobility issues, she should have a cat pan with a low step-in / step-out. You should consider one of the cat pans for senior cats or even for kittens to meet her needs. 

She does groom herself but also needs help. She is not physically able to use cat scratchers either vertical or horizontal – both have been provided. You will need to keep up on keeping her nails trimmed. She does not like her nails trimmed. I am working with her on this – trying to pet paws to get used to being handled, etc. Please be aware she may bite you when you cut her nails because she does not like it. This is the only time she has ever shown any aggression.

Flower allows all pets and handling. It is very easy to put her in a carrier for transport. The vet office was surprised at how easy she was to handle. This cat is NOT feral and never was. She is severely traumatized. She cooperated with the vet visit much more than expected and they were able to do a lot. 

This is the most submissive cat I have ever seen, and I used to volunteer in a shelter. 

My Thoughts

I’m not going to lie. This is hard for me emotionally. I want to keep Flower. I wish I could keep Flower. I cannot keep her and it breaks my heart. Flower needs a forever home and it’s not mine. There are three reasons I can’t keep her:

  1. Flower needs to be the only pet in a home. It is not fair to Flower for her to live here permanently when she is obviously scared of other cats. (It’s also very hard on me and the house cats to have her separated).
  2. I can’t keep them all safe. We have been physically injured by the neighbors since I reported the dog fighting ring. Battery is not a crime in NYS. Read more about the dog fighting ring in part one. Bottom line, the neighbor attacks are ongoing and continuous. I struggle to keep myself and my three house cats safe. Basically, I can’t. We have been physically injured by the neighbors and needed medical care twice. There is no way I can keep Flower safe too. The local government and sheriff department refuse to do anything about the criminal harassment we are experiencing. I have experienced retaliation for complaining.
  3. We are living in an ongoing pandemic. I am one of the ones that is supposed to “fall by the wayside.” I have had medical professionals and multiple people in the community tell me to my face that I need to hurry up and die already. I don’t want to die. I love being alive. Specifically, I need to outlive my cats to keep them all together. You have heard of bonded duos. I truly have a bonded trio with my house cats. There is no way I can take on a 4th. I very much worry about what will happen to my cats if something happens to me. 

Flower needs a forever home where she will be loved and cherished like she deserves. She should be in an experienced cat home that can meet her needs. She needs to be an only pet as she is so scared of other cats. Finding her a forever home is like finding a needle in a haystack. I have no shelter, rescue or anyone helping with this.

Combine that with the fact I am immune compromised and have a disability that impacts my driving. No, I cannot drive hours for her to meet you. I can do about an hour drive on a good way. I am willing to try to coordinate transport for her to a forever home. It will be challenging. 

I can tell you right now a “meet and greet” with Flower will fail spectacularly. She will be terrified and hide. She may hide from you for weeks or months when you adopt her. Are you prepared for that? Or are you going to get frustrated, kick her out, give her back or give her up to be killed? 

She needs a forever home with someone with A LOT of patience who is prepared to take on a cat who has experienced severe abuse at the hands of humans and has trust issues. She has ongoing medical needs. 

Flower needs a very special retirement home. 

Since it is just me helping her, any potential adopters will be very thoroughly vetted. Expect to have multiple conversations and provide references. Every single human has let this cat down. I am not going to let her down. I am doing everything I can to set her up for success in a forever home. 

Please also understand how hard this is for me. I never fostered before. I was shocked when the shelter said they would not help an injured animal. I couldn’t just turn away. I had to help. I trapped her. I’m giving her a home right now, but this is not the best for her permanently. 

I would love to keep her, but I truly believe based on her behavior, she needs to be in an only pet home. Part of me still has hope she will relax and stop hissing at my house cats and accept them, but the reality is, she fears them, no matter how friendly and welcoming they are. Flower would be most comfortable as an only pet. 

I am very attached to her. Every cat I have ever adopted has been for life. Fostering is hard. I did not expect this. I thought the shelter would take her when I reported her injured. I have no regrets about helping her, but this is hard. I love her so much, but I know I am not the best forever home for her. 

I am open to SERIOUS inquiries for a forever home for her. If you have made it this far, thank you for caring enough to read. 

Saving Flower (Dog Fighting Ring Bait Survivor) Part One

/ rachelgoes262 / 3 Comments

Flower has been mentioned in this blog on and off for the past six years. For the most recent post about Flower, see Last Stray Surviving. For more background about the active dog fighting ring and how I found out about it, see Clare’s Story. 

The dog fighting ring has been reported, but nothing is being done about it. The SPCA and the Sheriff Department state that it brings in too much money. People bet on dog fighting. When asked about the cat used as bait for the dog fighting ring, both the SPCA and the Sheriff’s Department have said, verbatim, “cats don’t feel pain.” This is how they justify animal abuse. Of course, this is false. Cats do feel pain. 

The local SPCA fired their humane officer and is set to close. While they have not publicly admitted it, I am wondering if this is due to their inaction about the dog fighting ring. I did not know there was a dog fighting ring here until I found a spray-painted cat (see Clare’s Story) taking refuge on my front porch. Since Clare, I have trapped and gotten four cats to rescue. 

Flower is the last cat in this area to help. As described in Last Stray Surviving, Flower had lived in the house next door. The dog was taken for neglect and Flower was kicked out of the house, as the local SPCA does not care about the welfare of cats. Those neighbors have since moved. Flower has been on her own outside since being kicked out of her home. 

She often takes refuge in my garage where I provide food, water, and insulated cat shelters to try to help the cats trying to evade being used as bait for the dog fighting ring. Members of the dog fighting ring often cruise throughout the village saying “here kitty, kitty” trying to trap their next victim. 

A few years ago, I saw that Flower had been spray painted and had a broken front arm. She had been used as bait for the dog fighting ring. I tried to trap her to get her medical care. I was unsuccessful. I have trapped and gotten four other cats to rescue. It was always whoever went into the trap was rescued. Flower never went into the trap.

In addition to the SPCA that is closing and says, “cats don’t feel pain,” there is a small non-profit cat rescue in my area that is run completely by volunteers. It is the rescue from which Simon was adopted. They are the rescue that helped me with three of the cats I trapped. In fact, it is that small non-profit rescue who told me that cats were spray-painted when they are being used as bait for dog fighting rings. I never would have known there was a dog fighting ring here if not for that first spray-painted cat. 

Anytime I trapped a cat to take to rescue was when this small cat shelter had room. They know I am trying to help the cats here escape the dog fighting ring so they are not used as bait. They would say they had a space. I would set the trap. Whoever went into the trap went to rescue. 

The fourth cat, Kenny, was super friendly and young. She was one of two kittens that had been thrown out of a pickup truck here. I was worried about her being easy to pick up as bait for the dog fighting ring. The small rescue here that had taken the other three cats was full. Through the power of Cats of Twitter, I was able to trap Kenny and get her to a rescue about three hours away from me. She is now in a loving forever home.

Flower is the only stray left.

Every time I walk into my kitchen, I look out the window for Flower. When it rains, I see her taking refuge in my garage. I take fresh food and water out to the garage every morning. Flower hides under my car. I talk to her. We have been doing this for six years. Over time, she has gradually let me get closer to her, but did not allow touching yet.

About two weeks ago, I looked out the window, and Flower was noticeably limping. She was favoring her front right arm. She was struggling to run, which is a bad sign when there is a dog fighting ring looking for bait.

I contacted the small shelter that helped me with the other cats. They are full. They do not respond to injured cats. The SPCA that is closing is responsible for responding to injured animals. Their response? “It’s fine. She’ll adapt.”  They also indicated that if they sent out a deputy that Flower would be shot as a mercy killing for an injured animal. 

This cat should not be shot and killed. This cat needs help.

So Flower limped along and everyone in this neighborhood smiled and nodded seeing an animal in pain. The neighbors around me love seeing people and animals in pain. If you read my other posts about the attacks and physical injuries the neighbors have inflicted on me and my house cats, you know they are sadists.

Call me stupid, but seeing an animal in pain is very distressing to me. I could not just watch her limp and do nothing.

So even though the rescue is full and won’t take her, I set the trap. Flower is injured and needs medical care.

I honestly did not expect to trap her. I have not been able to trap her for six years. I was not able to trap her when she had visible broken bones after being used as bait for the dog fighting ring.

I must have caught every cat in the village in my live trap. Of course, I released them all. Some even had collars. No wonder I’ve been going through so much cat food for the outside cats! I’ve been feeding every outside cat in the village. 

Trapping is very hard on me physically due to my disability. I said that after day five, I would stop trapping. I haven’t been able to trap Flower for six years. If I couldn’t get her now after five days, I would stop.

When the trap was set for those five days, the only food dish in the garage was inside the trap. I was literally starving her out. If she wanted food to eat, she needed to go into the trap. I know I am Flower’s only food source. I see her every day.

It was about lunchtime on day five when my security camera picked up Flower sneaking into the garage. Those days when they trap was set, Flower did not come around much. She gets overwhelmed with a lot of other cats, and there was so many cats coming to the garage for food and going into the trap instead!

I waited a bit and went into the garage on the afternoon of day five. Flower was in the trap!

I quickly brought her into my basement where I have a dog cage set up with cat pan, food, water, blankets, etc that I use when I trap cats. The cats I have trapped have stayed with me anywhere from 2-7 days depending on when I can coordinate transfer to the rescue, so that is where Flower went. 

The day I caught Flower was a Sunday afternoon. I called the vet office first thing Monday morning and was able to get her in to be seen Monday afternoon due to her injuries.

The shelter is full. I never would have trapped a cat with the shelter being full except this cat is injured. I only trapped her because she is injured and needs help. 

For the record, the shelter will no longer respond to me. They will not help with any advice or support for fostering, they are not helping to find her a home. Nothing. I am 100% responsible for helping this injured cat. I am responsible for her medical bills, care, fostering and trying to find her an appropriate forever home. I did the right thing and have no regrets, but way to shit on a person for doing the right thing. I’ve been completely abandoned by the shelter that had been helping me with the cats being used as bait for the dog fighting ring because they are full.

I cannot take on a fourth cat for multiple reasons. I cannot do this long term.

Here is what is happening with Flower medically and her status:

I am fostering her until I can find her an appropriate forever home. 

Right now, I am so overwhelmed with her care, my three house cats, working full time, and just life, that I don’t have enough spoons to find her a forever home. I need help. This is a lot of time and energy for someone who struggles with their every day. 

I was correct that Flower is the cat from the house next door that was kicked out and those people moved years ago. I thought she was about 7 years old. The vet said she is at least 12 years old. She is geriatric. She is a spayed female. Well, they confirmed female. They did not shave her to look for the tattoo for the spay, but there have not been any kittens. Based on what one of the children told me before they moved, I’m pretty sure she is spayed. 

She is riddled with fleas. They gave her flea treatment, worm treatments, rabies vaccine, distemper, etc. 

Flower is very gentle and sweet. She allows pets. She did extremely well with all handling at the vet office. They said they can’t handle feral cats how they handled her – this cat is NOT feral! 

She just needs love and patience. They were able to do more for her than expected. We were there for a long time and it totally put the vet schedule off because they were able to do so much with her. She even behaved better than Jude when he goes to the vet.

They said her teeth are ok. She is missing an upper canine tooth. 

They did a blood test for feline leukemia and feline AIDS. Both test came back negative.

She does not have a microchip. I told them I thought she would scan to the house next door, but there is no microchip.

They gave her medication at the vet office for her injuries. She ate it in baby food. They sent me home with medication to give her the next 3 days.

Injuries —

She has injuries to her hind legs up into her pelvis. The vet thinks these are old injuries. The limp I am seeing is that there is an injury to her right elbow. Again, the vet thinks this is an old injury. What it looks like is one dog attacked her hind end and the other one grabbed her right arm. 

Anyways, the vet says that they are old injuries, however, the injury to the right elbow is what is causing the limp I am seeing and caught on video. She thinks that arthritis has set in, given her age, living outside and the weather getting colder. 

Flower needs to be kept in an inside home. She will need a home that can handle a geriatric special needs cat and will need additional care to more properly ascertain the extent of her injuries and how to make her comfortable.

For now, she has pain medication and is fine in the dog cage with movement restricted. I did heat up the heat disc I had been using for her outside and put that in with her. I am trying to provide her with as much extra warmth as possible for arthritis. She is still hiding in the cat pan, which is normal behavior the first few days after trapping. She is traumatized with the whole situation.

The vet office does not normally help to find animals homes. That’s not what they do. However, now that they have examined her and see she is a geriatric special needs cat, they are going to try to help see if they can help me figure something out.

I am thinking that her issues are basically going to be mobility issues given her injuries, but I’m not 100% certain. At some point, she will need full blood testing for kidneys, thyroid, etc. 

So, Flower is currently with me as a foster situation. For those of you who follow us on Twitter (and now Bluesky), I have been posting an Evening Foster Flower update daily. She has been with me for about a week now. 

This obviously is an ongoing issue, which is why this is part one. Flower was injured. The shelter was going to euthanize her. I trapped her and got her medical care.

She will need a very special forever home who can handle a special needs geriatric cat who is completely traumatized from being used as a bait cat.

Despite her horrible life, Flower is a sweet and loving cat. She is very submissive and allows all handling. She will need a patient home with a lot of love. 

Now that Flower has been trapped, I am no longer putting food and water out in my garage for the outside cats. Many of the cats who were in the trap had collars. They are not homeless. I am leaving the insulated cat shelters for anyone who needs them.

Yes, we have an active dog fighting ring here that is still looking for bait. I have now trapped and helped five cats’ escape. I can’t do any more. Especially now that I am fostering Flower, I just can’t help anymore. I am surprised and dismayed that there is no help for injured animals here. If you find an injured animal, you are 100% responsible for it. I do not regret getting Flower medical care, but trying to foster a fourth cat is very, very hard. 

When Flower needs further medical care, I will probably set up a GFM for help. The extent of her medical issues is not yet known. This is going to be ongoing. Her initial vet visit was for the arm injury, vaccines, etc. 

I will need help finding her an appropriate forever home. I am trying to think about what that looks like, the process for finding her a home and vetting a home. Right now I am so overwhelmed with the day to day. 

The good news is, I no longer must worry about outside cats. I had been worried that if my house cats and I need to evacuate our home due to imminent risk of physical injuries from neighbor attacks, that I would not be able to help the outside cats. Now that Flower has been trapped, I only must worry about keeping everyone safe who is under my roof.

The neighbors are an ongoing problem and continue to threaten our safety daily. 

Flower needs a forever home. I can’t keep her. Right now I am focusing on the health and safety of everyone in this house.

So this is part one of Flower’s story. I’m sure there will be a part two, as she needs a forever home that can meet her needs. I cannot keep myself and four cats safe from the attacks from the neighbors. 

Happy Gotcha Day, Simon!

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

Happy Gotcha Day, Simon! 

Today is Simon’s Gotcha Day. He was adopted from the shelter and brought home 7 years ago today. Simon was a year and a half at adoption. Today he is 8.5 years old. 

I met Simon at the shelter in October and had been approved for his adoption. However, with Halloween on October 31, I asked the shelter if they could keep him until November 1. I did not want to have a new cat in the house getting used to new surroundings being further traumatized by Halloween. I figured it would be safer for him to just stay in the shelter until the day after so he could come home to a calm environment to get acclimated to his new home.

Kitty had passed away in the spring of 2017, and I had not planned on adopting again. I told Jude he was going to be an only child. However, despite playing with Jude every day and spending as much time with him as I could, I could tell that he needed more stimulation and interaction than I was able to provide. Yes, he mourned Kitty’s passing, but he was lonely too. 

I had a student who was doing a job shadow at the animal shelter with one of the veterinarians. I had to do a site visit for the students doing job shadows. That was how I met Simon. Jude had been begging for a new companion, and when I met Simon, I knew he was the one. 

Simon was 1.5 years old at the time, he was younger than I was thinking. After living through kitten phase with Kitty and Kip, I now prefer to adopt older cats. However, even though he was a young 1.5 years old, Simon was the perfect companion for Jude.

Simon is our Chief Cuddler. Everyone loves Simon. He gets along so well with both Jude and Jolene. Simon is very loving. He sleeps with me every night. He is often right next to my pillow or right up beside me near my shoulders. 

The only challenge with Simon is that he is painfully shy. When he goes to the vet office, he behaves well. He is very sweet. He allows them to examine him and do his vaccines. However, Simon prefers to hide. He is very shy.

Simon is shy to the point that no one other than the vet has ever seen Simon in person. Anytime someone comes to the house, Simon hides. His preferred hiding place is the cupboard under the kitchen sink. I even had someone who came to the house once a week for a year when Simon was adopted to help me with things, and that person never saw Simon. 

A few years ago, I was very ill. A friend came over to the house daily to help me with feeding the cats. She never saw Simon either. He would not even come out to eat. She had to put his food dish in the cupboard under the sink to get him to eat. She never actually saw Simon.

It worries me he is so shy because if something ever happens to me, I don’t know how Simon would cope. Obviously, he is okay with me and loves me. This is his home, and I am his person. But if something happens to me, someone is going to have to be painfully patient with his level of shyness.

Jolene goes right up to people. She is super friendly and must be in the middle of everything. Jude is food motivated. If you give him something to eat, he will be your best friend. Simon has never come out of hiding for anyone, even with people who visit regularly. 

You would never know how shy Simon is based on his popularity on social media. 

Simon is so sweet and loving. I feel so fortunate to be his human and that he chose to open to me when I met him at the shelter. 

When I adopted Simon, I literally picked him up from the shelter after work on November 1, and we had a vet appointment for his first well visit. He went from the shelter to the vet to home. He was the cleanest and most well taken care of cat I have ever adopted from a shelter. When he had his well visit immediately upon leaving the shelter, he had no fleas, no ear mites, was neutered and up to date on vaccines. 

Of course, I did the slow introduction process with Jude and Simon. It went easy and well due to the bonus fact that Simon was so healthy and did not need to be medically quarantined to avoid giving something to Jude.

In fact, Jude and Simon were playing “paws” under the door much more quickly than I would have thought. Their “slow introduction” process was the fastest of any cats I’ve had, and it was all on their schedule. 

Simon is the baby of the family, and everyone loves Simon. He is such a snuggle bug. He also loves to play with both Jude and Jolene. He keeps this house full of love.  

Simon is his own cat and has a unique personality. In addition to being painfully shy, he is also afraid of lawnmowers and thunderstorms. Simon hides when he is scared.

As baby of the family, Simon rarely performs coworker duties. When he does appear in the office, it is usually because it is close to mealtime or quitting time. Simon has started spending the last hour of work in the office with me. He knows when work is over, we all go downstairs, and it is family time. 

Simon brings so much love to our home. I’m glad Jude prodded me into getting him a companion instead of leaving him as an only child. Simon is truly the heart of our family. 

Happy Gotcha Day, Simon! We are so happy you are with us here in your forever home. I am very glad you chose me to be your mom. Simon is a good baby and we love him. 

Emergency Planning with Cats

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

September is emergency preparedness month. I use it as a reminder each year to go through my emergency supplies. I make sure everything is stocked and rotated. This year is especially eye opening given that we lived through our first tornado (touchdown 2.5 miles from our house), multiple tornado warnings, and ongoing attacks from the neighbors that result in physical injuries.

When I went through the emergency supplies this year, I took a hard look at what worked, what didn’t work, and what is practical given a true emergency. To my surprise, I found that there were many things in our emergency stash that are unnecessary and a few essentials that are missing. 

This post is not meant to be an exhaustive overview. It is also not going to be for everyone. Emergency preparedness looks different for people depending on family composition and life circumstances. However, I want to highlight some takeaways I have this year.

For reference, our family composition is one adult with multiple food allergies and a disability and three cats. 

In the past, we have had a blizzard bag. A blizzard bag is a bag of supplies to help us get through 4-5 days of sheltering in place. We have huge snowstorms where I live. While raising our taxes, officials have cut back on essential service such as snowplowing. In large snowstorms, we are often cut off from town for 4-5 days at a time. The snow is so deep that we do not even have mail service. The fire department uses snowmobiles to check on people.

Our blizzard bag is now called a tornado tote. The tornado tote is full of supplies to last us 48 hours. The tornado tote is easy to pick up and carry into the basement when a tornado comes. 

The tornado tote normally lives in the emergency wagon behind our front door. The emergency wagon contains supplies for up to 10 days. The thought process behind the emergency wagon is three-fold.

First, the emergency wagon helps us to shelter in place. If there is blizzard and we are cut off from town, all the supplies we need for 10 days are in the emergency wagon. It is in a central location. I know it has what we need without having to search all over the house for stuff.

Second, the emergency wagon is essential if we need to evacuate and can leave by car. In this case, I know that everything we need for 10 days is in the wagon. All I must do is take everything out of the wagon, throw it into the trunk of the car, and off we go. Again, everything is together in a central location. There is no running around the house searching for things or trying to figure out what we need.

Third, the emergency wagon is essential if we need to evacuate and must leave on foot. The wagon contains everything we need for 10 days. It has a handle. I can pull the wagon. The wagon would also help me transport all 3 cats. I can place their cat carriers on top of /in the wagon. A wagon would make it easier for all of us to leave when there is one human with three cats. 

This is the basic outline of our emergency plan. Now, for some specifics on this year’s lessons.

First off, I’m not going to lie, preparing for an emergency is expensive. The cost of groceries is expensive. It can be cost prohibitive to gather supplies for up to 10 days. One strategy I use to deal with this, is to try to add one day’s worth of supplies to your grocery list per month. 

In this manner, it will take a year, but at the end of the year, you will have your emergency supply. As an example, I add one gallon of water to my grocery list each month. I have 12 gallons of water. I rotate the gallons of water every month. As we have seen with the recent hurricanes, some people have gone without water for 2 weeks or more.

I also purchased LifeStraw. LifeStraw is small enough to put in our 48-hour bag. I waited until there was an online sale to order it. LifeStraw will be helpful if we have to evacuate and there is not enough time to get all the water gallons into the car or wagon. For the record, there are 3 water gallons in the emergency wagon. The rest of the water gallons are beside the wagon. 

Second, prepare for your pets. In going through our emergency supplies last month, I found the cat harnesses and leashes. When Kip and Kitty were alive, they were both leash trained. Kip would walk on the leash like a dog. 

However, Jude, Simon and Jolene are not leash trained. They have lived a pampered life compared to how things were when Kip and Kitty were alive. Jude and Simon will not allow me to put a harness on them at all. Jolene will let me put a harness on her, but she does the thing where she just flops over.

I can tell you right now, that if a cat will not wear a harness when they are relaxed and safe in their home, there is no way in hell you are going to get a harness on them in an emergency when everyone is stressed.

The harnesses and leashes are not practical. I took them out of the emergency supplies. 

What is practical for cats are carriers and pillowcases. 

We have a cat carrier for each cat and I have carriers that are medium, or one size larger than what people typically have for their cats. I do this for two reasons. 

First, I believe a cat in a carrier should have enough room to turn around. If your cat cannot comfortably turn around in their carrier, then your carrier size is too small. Second, given that we are a family of three cats and one human, I cannot handle three carriers by myself comfortably. Worst case scenario, I must put two cats in one carrier. I can handle two carriers. There needs to be enough room for two cats. Granted, it will not be a comfortable fit, but we are talking about an emergency.

While I have not tried it, I have heard from other pet parents that pillowcases are essential. The idea is that you grab the cat and stuff them in the pillowcase to get them out when you can’t get the carrier. Again, I have not personally tried this. To me, it sounds like a nightmare. I can’t get a harness on my cat, and you think I am going to stuff him in a pillowcase? But I do have three pillowcases in event of emergency. I want to be prepared. I do not have experience with the pillowcase thing, but it comes recommended, and I want to be prepared for a true emergency. 

As far as food and water bowls go, I got the collapsible kind that are used for dogs who travel. They are lightweight. Since they collapse, they do not take up much space in the emergency bag. I rotate the emergency food every year. 

For the human, I have been able to save up to buy freeze dried foods (MREs). I got these from a backpacking/hiking/camping company that specializes in food that does not require cooking or heating, just water to rehydrate. Again, these are expensive up front. However, they have a shelf life of 25 years, so I do not have to rotate and replace the human food supplies every year. For the record, I have tried some of them to see how they taste, and I must say they are excellent. 

There is a lot more I could talk about that goes into our plans and supplies for emergency preparedness. However, this year I just want to highlight the lessons I learned about the cat harnesses and the tornado tote. Given that we are living in an ongoing emergency, there is a lot to prepare. If you spread the cost out over the course of a year, it can be done even on a budget. 

When we had the tornado this year, it was the first time a tornado has ever touched down here in almost 200 years. Tornadoes are not normal. Yet, we had multiple warnings this past summer. All sort of weather records is being broken every day.

I would not say that I am a prepper. I am realistically prepared. Eleven months out of the year, the emergency wagon sits there, and I don’t think about it. When the tornado warnings go off, I grab the tornado tote and we all head to the basement. When we are snowed in for a blizzard, I know that if I run out of things, the emergency supply is there to sustain us if we need it. 

Be sure to include your pets in your emergency plan. Be realistic based on their needs and personalities. Pets are family. If you evacuate, take your pets with you. 

Clare’s Story

/ rachelgoes262 / Leave a comment
Clare is the cat that started all the neighbor drama. I had seen her briefly throughout the fall and winter of 2021. I figured she was homeless. Who in their right mind would let an indoor/outdoor cat outside in weather that was 20 degrees below zero (Fahrenheit)? No one. Seeing Clare outside is what prompted me to start providing insulated cat shelters to try to help her until I could figure out what to do.
 
I do know there are some “community cats.” There is the concept of trap-neuter-release. I do understand TNR on some level, but at the same time, I strongly feel that every cat deserves a loving home. It is not their fault they are homeless and on the streets. I also am strongly against animal cruelty. If I see an animal in pain or distress, I am going to do what I can to help.
 
One day in winter (now 2022), Clare appeared on my front porch and appeared to have been spray painted green. It was honestly hard to tell against the backdrop of the green outside carpet on my porch. However, when I saw Clare outside against the white of snow, it was obvious she was spray painted green. Why? Why would someone spray paint a cat? To me, this seemed strange. It also felt like animal abuse to me. Cats should not be spray painted. In addition to being spray painted green, Clare appeared to have injuries to her back end that were difficult to see from a distance, but obvious when she was walking.
 
Locally, our SPCA and Sheriff Department have the authority to investigate and respond to animal cruelty cases. I reached out to the SPCA and explained the situation to them. I let them know that Clare appeared to be injured on her back end and should receive medical care. The SPCA told me that the injuries and spray painting were all normal for outside cats and that “she would adapt.” After all, the person laughed, “cats don’t feel pain.”
 
As a cat mom of over 20 years, I found this to be alarming. Cats do feel pain. There was something wrong with this situation. I started to research how to trap outside cats so that I could catch Clare and get her medical attention. I also started calling around to all other animal shelters and rescues within a 50-mile radius. Many told me that I was out of their area. Shelters only cover a certain geographic area – typically the county in which they are located. 
 
Then I happened to remember that there is a second cat shelter in my county that is a small, private non-profit. I reached out to them and explained the situation. The people at this rescue were appalled at the situation. They explained to me that cats are typically spray painted when they are used as bait for dog fighting rings. It is rare to find spray painted cats, as they are almost always killed as part of the dog fighting ring. However, finding a spray-painted cat is a clear indication that there is an active dog fighting ring in the area.
 
The non-profit rescue (called SNAP) lent me a humane trap and worked with me to trap Clare. They took her in, got her medical care, and she became part of their rescue. The veterinarians who volunteer their time and services there confirmed that her injuries were consistent with being used as bait in a dog fighting ring, and that there were other, older injuries present as well.
 
After getting Clare to rescue, I started to notice other outside cats hanging around that seemed homeless. Almost all of them appeared with injuries to their back ends like what I had seen on Clare.
 
I reached out to SNAP again. Since taking Clare into rescue, they have taken an additional four cats from me that I have been able to trap. They have given them all medical care and they have been adopted into loving homes. One older cat, Tom, is even called the King of Main Street! He lives on Main Street with his owner and looks out the window at everyone walking by. People like to wave at him. His owner says he is the perfect lap cat. 
 
For everyone says that “Community cats” should be left outside in colonies as part of TNR, I respectfully disagree. 
 
There are now two cats left. Flower was kicked out from the house next door and they have since moved. I estimate Flower to be at least 6-7 years old. All the times I have set the traps for outside cats, I have yet to catch Flower. It has always been whichever cat ends up in the trap is the one that goes to rescue. Flower has never gone into the trap. I wish she would.
 
A few years ago, she showed up with a broken front leg one winter. I still could not trap her to get her medical care. 
 
A small dark tabby has appeared this summer. I call him Crosby. He is cross-eyed and has the same injuries to his back end that were seen on Clare and all of the others. Crosby is young – he is playful as a kitten. He chases squirrels and leaves. I estimate him to be one year old at most.
 
Flower and Crosby are the last two cats remaining to trap and get to safety. The problem is that SNAP is full. They have been full for a year now. All the local shelters are full. 
 
SNAP knows that Flower and Crosby are here. They know there is a dog fighting ring. However, they cannot take either Crosby or Flower due to no space.
 
Since my interaction with the SPCA, a few things have happened on the dog fighting ring front. First, it was in the news this summer that the SPCA fired their humane officer and is in danger of closing. They did not give explicit details, but I am wondering if it has anything to do with the refusal to look into the dog fighting ring or active involvement.
 
The second thing is that I had an interaction with the Sheriff department last year regarding animal cruelty. The officer accused me of lying. They said that it is no big deal because “cats don’t feel pain.” They used that exact phrase. It’s the same phrase the SPCA used when I had called them originally to report a spray-painted cat with injuries. 
 
“Cats don’t feel pain,” is the exact phrase that law enforcement is using to justify animal cruelty. 
 
SNAP knows that Flower and Crosby are here and will let me know when they have space to take one of them. When they do have space, I will set the live trap. Whoever goes into the live trap goes to rescue. 
 
The challenge is that SNAP has been full and does not show signs of having space any time soon. 
 
I am willing to trap either Flower or Crosby to get them to a loving home if I can find someone to take one or both that is trustworthy. The challenges with that are: one, finding someone willing to take one of them and two, properly vetting any potential person would provide a safe home. We are already dealing with a dog fighting ring here. I don’t want Flower or Crosby to go to a home where they will be abused, tortured or murdered. 
 
Given the abuse we have been experiencing with the neighbors since June 2023, we may have to move. If we do move, I want to get Flower and Crosby off the streets before we leave this house. Even if we do not leave this house, I want to get Flower and Crosby off the streets. But if we need to move for our own safety, then it will lend even more urgency to getting Flower and Crosby to safety. 
 
I am not going to leave this house and leave them behind to fend for themselves. My garage is a place of refuge for them where they get fresh food and water every day and there are insulated cat shelters to help them survive winter.
 
For Flower specifically, based on how I see her act outside, I think she would do best in a home that does not have a lot of other cats. Flower is okay with Crosby. However, she seems to get overwhelmed if there are a lot of other cats around. Flower would be okay as an only or with one other cat who was not aggressive. She is very shy. That brings a challenge also. 
 
In getting back to Clare’s story, I wonder if the fact I reported a dog fighting ring is what prompted the attacks we are experiencing from the neighbors that are causing our physical injuries. They are retaliating against me for my report by physically attacking me and injuring me and my inside cats.
 
In addition, why do they need to play music so loud? Is the loud music masking the sounds of the dog fighting ring when they have an active fight going on? I don’t have an answer. That is speculation.
 
The only thing I know for certain is that I found a spray-painted cat with injuries. Since then, I have found other cats with injuries too. I have trapped them as I am able and gotten them to medical care. I provide my garage as a safe place of refuge. That is the best I can do. 
 
If you have any leads to get Flower and / or Crosby off the streets, I am open. The closest cities to me are Ithaca / Binghamton, NY. Please be aware that I will thoroughly vette any potential home. If I catch them and get them to someone privately, I will have very high standards for a potential home. To be honest, I am not comfortable trying to home them myself, as I am worried about putting them in a bad situation. However, with SNAP being full, I am open to ideas to help get them into safe homes.
 
The problem with the neighbors started with Clare. Of course, it did not start with Clare herself. The neighborhood here is very bad. Clare just brought to my attention that something is wrong, and I reported it. Ever since, I have been dealing with harassment from the neighbors for reporting. The loud music could potentially be to cover up the dog fighting ring.
 
I have no regrets about reporting Clare’s injuries, trapping her, or getting her to safety. I have no regrets about getting any of the five cats I have helped get to safety. There is still Flower and Crosby left to help. 

House-iversary 6

/ rachelgoes262 / 5 Comments

When I bought this house 6 years ago, I had such high hopes having finally achieved the American Dream. The very first thought I had was, “we will never be homeless again. This is our forever home.” I was very eager to integrate into my new community. I walked to one of the local churches, frequented the library and started the book club there. I drafted a business plan to open a new business on Main Street and was in the process of securing funding to start the new venture when the pandemic hit.

The American Dream quickly turned into the American Nightmare once it became apparent how horrible the people are in this village, and how dangerous the people are who live on this street.

Over the years, I have documented numerous incidents of property damage. I have filed police reports regarding the damages and have receipts for repairs. Every time I must pay to make a repair to my property due to intentional damage caused, it takes away from funds I use to make upgrades to my home. 

During the time I have owned this home, I have made numerous upgrades to the property. A real estate agent last fall (2023) told me that with the upgrades I have made to the home, I had added at least $10,000 in value to this house. However, that would only be if the house was in a nice, respectable neighborhood instead of the one in which I am located. 

When the real estate agent did the appraisal for how much I could sell the house for, the bad neighbors have driven down my property value by over $20,000. One of the questions the real estate agent asked me when coming to view the house for valuation was, “do the neighbors have indoor plumbing?” How am I to know? What kind of a question is that?

You see, the reason why the real estate agent asked this question is because last summer they built an outhouse directly against my garage. My garage is the “fourth wall” that makes up their outhouse. The outhouse receives regular use, and the smell of human waste is strong every time you are outside on this property. I have no idea if those people have indoor plumbing or not. At the very least, it is obvious they no longer have an indoor toilet. 

I had absolutely no idea things like that could drive down my property value. However, that is only one small item of the bigger issues driving down my property value. 

The real estate agent who came to do the valuation said I would need to do a “bad neighbor” disclosure if I sell the house. It should have been done when I bought the house. It was not. I think part of the issue is that the person who owned this house passed away and left it to his grandchildren who do not live here. They probably had no idea how dangerous this neighborhood really is when they sold the home that was left to them as an inheritance.

The real estate agent said that they only show homes in this area in pairs for safety reasons. There are numerous complaints from people on my street and surrounding streets regarding noise and other concerns.

Here is the root cause of the problem. Noise.

There is a possibility we may not even be in this house next year to celebrate another House-iversary. To be honest, today is no celebration. This house has turned into an American Nightmare.

While property damage is annoying and costly, I draw the line when someone physically injures me and those I love.

Last year I was physically injured as a direct result of the neighbors’ actions. One of the cats was also. We had to seek medical care. The cat had to go to the vet, and I had to go to the doctors. Our ear drums were ruptured. I am still having problems from it. It impacted my work and my everyday life. All my paid time off from work was used last summer dealing with our injuries as a direct result of their actions. I had to pay out of pocket for medical care and anything with ears and hearing is not covered. 

Without going into all the details of this dangerous situation, I have learned that there is no way to get these people to stop. They are sadists who enjoy causing pain and injury to other people and animals. I reached out to a lawyer last fall, in September, who said I have a very strong case for battery with plenty of third-party evidence. However, battery is not a crime in New York. A lawsuit will not stop them from continuing to injure us.

I don’t want.to be injured again. 

There is no noise ordinance here. The village does not feel the need for a noise ordinance. Their exact words were: “well, I don’t have to live there.”  They don’t want working people like me who are trying to upgrade properties and open new businesses in the village. I am the undesirable in this situation.

The bottom line is that we were injured. This is unacceptable. It is not safe here.

Since there is no way to get the behavior to stop, the only way to keep us safe from physical harm is to leave. That’s why I contacted a real estate agent about selling the house. How much can I get for the house if I sell it and move? I need to pay off the mortgage.

The problem is this neighborhood is so bad, they have driven down my property value. All the upgrades I have made mean nothing in a location this bad. The real estate agent told me to stop putting money into the house and making upgrades. They said any more upgrades I do is not going to make a difference to the selling price on a street this bad.

Unfortunately, they have driven down my property value to the point where I would have to do a short sale to sell the house. That means, I can no longer sell it for a price that would pay off my mortgage. The mortgage company would need to approve the sale at a price less than the house is worth (by about $30,000). The mortgage company will not approve a short sale. The real estate agent says it has been taking twice as long for houses to sell here than any other place in the county due to the bad neighborhood. There are complaints of excessive noise, cars doing burnouts, unattended children and drugs. (I have no idea about anything other than the noise). 

If this house was in a better neighborhood, I would have no problem selling it. The real estate agent says it has “curb appeal.” With the upgrades I made, I would be able to sell the house at a profit – if it was in a better neighborhood that did not have neighbors with this extreme noise problem that bothers everyone on the street and even on adjoining and parallel streets (it’s that loud). 

House-iversary is no longer an annual celebration of finding our forever home so we would never be homeless again. While I love this house, it is completely unacceptable for my cats and I to live in fear because we never know when we are going to be attacked and physically injured again. We cannot control the behavior of bad neighbors. The only thing I can do is leave to keep us safe.

This is the most dangerous place I have ever lived in my life. I can’t even enjoy my own property. I go outside to garden and am instantly hit by the smell of human waste. I never know when they will blare their music. There were 5 days in July where I got a grand total of 15 hours of sleep. I am starting a new work position also. It is very hard to go on 3 hours of sleep per day. Their behavior disrupts my life. 

Most of the music comes from cars. On highways, there are signs saying vehicle noise is not supposed to be above 70 decibels. I wish I lived on a highway. The motor vehicle law does not apply to the village in which I live. 

In this village, it is perfectly acceptable for music to be well higher than the 70-decibel state law at all hours of the day or night. 

Thanksgiving 2023 I had arranged everything with someone in a different time zone over zoom and we coordinated our meals. When we went to sit down to eat, the music started and lasted for hours. What was supposed to be a family celebration ended up being yet another nightmare. We could see each other, but there was no prayer before the meal, no conversation, no nothing. All that planning for a family event was ruined. The music was coming from a vehicle parked across the street. They must have had family over for their Thanksgiving that they hated and did not want to talk to. Nothing could be heard over the noise even if you screamed (which we tried). 

I do go outside, but I must be careful when I go out. I always must look to see who is out to decide if it is safe for me to go out. Many times, when they have these parties, there are well over 50 people. If I am attacked, there is no one to help me. No one would respond if I were attacked on the street. We had one set of neighbors next door who were friendly and who had the same problems with the noise as we do. They moved in June. They told me they could not spend another summer like the one we had last year with the noise. 

We may not be here next year. The hardest part is trying to figure out – where will we go? The mortgage company will not allow a short sale. So, once I figure out where we will go, we will have to leave the house, and I will probably have to voluntarily allow it to go into foreclosure. It will be the only way to get my name off the mortgage since the mortgage company will not approve a short sale. I cannot afford two residences, and we are not safe here.

When I think about allowing the house to go into foreclosure, it breaks my heart. It makes me feel like they have won. They have driven us out of our forever home by their actions. I have dreams of updating and improving this house and that will all be gone. I had wanted to be a valued member of the community by starting the book club and opening a business. The reality is that we were physically injured last year. There is no way to get their behavior to stop. 

This may be the last House-iversary post as the American Dream is now the American Nightmare. The future is bleak. The choices are homelessness or be physically injured again. Neither choice is appealing. 

Happy 10th Birthday, Jolene!

/ rachelgoes262 / 3 Comments

Happy 10th Birthday, Jolene! The goddess and queen of our household brings so much joy and life to our home. While physically smaller than the boys, Jolene is in charge of everyone and everything. Even at the vet office, she comes out of the carrier and into the exam room like she owns the practice, and everyone adores her.

Jolene was unexpectedly sick earlier this month and had to have an emergency vet appointment. During her treatment and recovery, there was a noticeable difference in our home. Without Jolene at her best, it felt like the life had gone out of our home. We are so happy she has fully recovered from her illness and is back to her cheerful self. 

Jolene is extremely intelligent. She is one of the most intelligent cats I have ever met. Sometimes she behaves more like a dog. Jolene knows and responds to her name. She comes when called 99% of the time. The only times she does not come when called is when something is wrong – she is physically stuck somewhere, is guarding a mouse in the live trap tube, or is not physically well. 

Jolene gets along well with both of her brothers and with every person she meets. She is curious, loves to explore, and can be quite the diva when she wants attention. She is loving and kind. I really could not ask for anything more. We are so blessed Jolene chose me when I went to the shelter – for a dog, no less! 

It was estimated that Jolene was 5 years old when she was found outside the shelter in a box with her kittens. She watched all her kittens be adopted, then it was her turn. I had gone to the shelter looking for a cat-friendly dog. I wandered into the cat room to help socialize some kittens. I never would have noticed Jolene if she had not made herself known. Jolene was in a cube way at the back, on the bottom. She frantically pawed at the enclosure. The orange movement is what caught my eye. I saw her over in the corner on the bottom and took her out. She hugged me and would not let go. We went into a private “visiting room” at the shelter. 

I had not wanted a third cat, but Jolene picked me out. I am so glad that she did. She has livened up all our lives. In addition to being an older mom, Jolene has a disability. She only has 4 teeth. All her teeth were rotten when she had been dumped at the shelter, so they had to be removed. Despite this, she does not let it hold her back. I thought she would need to be soft food only, since she only had 4 teeth. However, she kept stealing kibble from Jude and Simon, pretty much insisting on eating the same food as the boys. They get soft food for breakfast for liquid and kibble for dinner for their teeth. Jolene eats the same as Jude and Simon. You would never guess she only has 4 teeth.

Spending most of her life prior to adoption outside, Jolene is our Lead Hedgewatch-er. She knows absolutely everything that goes on both inside and outside the house from bugs to mice to birds to squirrels to the outside stray cats. She often runs from room to room to look out various windows to follow someone’s (usually a stray cat’s) progress as they walk about outside. 

Jolene gives so much love to all of us. She has two favorite stuffies that she moves around every single day. She loves a beanie baby that looks like a ghost bear, carrying it around the house like a kitten. She also moves around a giant crinkle carrot toy quite a bit. I often find ghost bear in bed with me, and she also puts it in Jude and Simon’s carriers to show them she loves them too. 

Every year for Jolene’s birthday, I like to remind people to adopt the differently abled pets. Adopt the older ones, the moms, the ones who are shy. Jolene sat in that shelter for a long time. Her kittens were adopted first. She was a 5-year-old mom cat with a disability shoved in the bottom corner at the shelter way at the back of the room. If she hadn’t pawed so frantically for me to see the orange movement, I never would have noticed her. I walked into that room to help socialize kittens. 

Please take the time to visit the shy ones who hide, the older ones, the moms. They all have as much love to give as a cute little kitten. Just because a cat is older does not mean they are “set in their ways.” Jolene adapted to our routine. It just takes time. She brings so much love and joy and life to our home. It seems like things were so gloomy before Jolene entered our home. We were never unhappy, but she just brings that much happiness.

It’s like Jolene lights a fire under Jude and Simon and gets them to play. Jude would not play a lot until Jolene came along. Jolene truly brings out the best in everyone she meets. 

We watched a documentary recently about cats on Nova and learned that orange cats were not common in the wild. Orange was a recessive trait. Orange cats could not camouflage and hide in the wild. Orange cats did not last long in the wild – they could not hide and were prey.

 It was the ancient Egyptians who specifically bred orange cats, to honor their sun god. Mummified cats have even been found with orange fur. They were considered gods/goddesses. Jolene is definitely a goddess. She is queen of our home. 

Adopt don’t shop. Consider the shy, the elderly, and the moms.

Happy 10th Birthday, Jolene! We love you! 

Lifetime Supply

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

I know, I know. This is a minimalist blog with a post about a lifetime supply. Lifetime supply implies a large quantity of items possessed and stored. It’s true. I do have one item of which I have a lifetime supply. It’s a small item, and it helps to bring me comfort and peace in challenging times. It’s a thing that is going to sound weird but hear me out. 

Toothbrushes.

Yes, toothbrushes. No, I am not insane. 

To be optimistic, my personal goal is to stay alive for 15 more years. I want to outlive my cats. It’s becoming ever more challenging to stay alive in an ongoing pandemic. This year has been especially challenging since the Fauci speech about “falling by the wayside” giving people permission to tell other people to die right to their face.

This very instance happened to me three times in June. Two of those people were unmasked medical professionals. One said, “no one should be wearing a mask. Covid is over. You should have been dead by now.” A second unmasked health professional said to me, “why aren’t you dead yet? People like you should die.” I’m very happy to be alive. I work. I own a home. I pay taxes. I feel that I contribute positively to society. Even if I don’t, I just enjoy being alive.

While my optimistic goal is to live for 15 more years, it is more realistic in the ongoing eugenics and genocide in this country that I may be able to live for 5 more years. If I’m lucky. We will see.

So, when I talk about having a lifetime supply, I’m going with the optimistic goal of 15 years. If you change your toothbrush once every 3 months as recommended, then that is 60 toothbrushes over the next 15 years.

Of course, every time you go to the dentist, they give you a free toothbrush. So that is at least one free toothbrush a year, depending on how often you go. (I used to go twice a year pre-pandemic, but these past few years have been challenging,)

Using the conservative estimate of one free toothbrush a year, that means that 45 toothbrushes will need to be purchased over the next 15 years.

How exactly did I fall into this trap of a lifetime supply of toothbrushes? 

Well, I needed to purchase toothbrushes. While choosing toothbrushes to buy, I was looking at unit price. I was trying to decide more between the 2-pack, 4-pack or 6-pack of toothbrushes. I was thinking I just need a package of toothbrushes and trying to decide which package was cheapest.

Then I saw a package of 25 toothbrushes. Figuring out the unit price. I could not believe how much more affordable it was to buy them in bulk. It worked out to be .52 cents each. I bought the box of 25 and put them in the cupboard.

Then I was thinking that maybe I should buy a second box since the price was so good. I had taken a toothbrush out of the box and started using it. I wanted to be sure that it was a good toothbrush and not just some cheap one. The toothbrushes work well. I like the way the handle is angled to be able to reach my teeth better.

I purchased a second box of toothbrushes since they work well, and the price is right. I was thinking that I won’t ever have to worry about buying a toothbrush again. I now have enough toothbrushes to last me until I die.

It sounds so simple, but it’s one less thing to worry about.

Now I realize this all has been a little morbid, but there is a spot of happiness. When I open the cupboard to brush my teeth and see those boxes there, I know it’s a lifetime supply. Seeing all those toothbrushes, I think, “well, I’ve got quite a bit of living to do.” It lifts my spirits to think that my life is going to be long enough to be able to go through all those toothbrushes. I’m sure I will think differently once I am down to one box instead of two, but for now they bring me hope. 

Every time someone tells me I should die, or I don’t deserve to live, I can look at that lifetime supply of toothbrushes. I think what a long time I have ahead of me to still use all of them. I love being alive. It’s becoming harder to stay alive, but I enjoy being here. 

I have a very full life that I love. I hope I can outlive my cats so I can keep them together. In a world where eugenics and genocide are increasing, sometimes it is hard to remain positive. I’m one of the people that is supposed to “fall by the wayside.” However, I love being alive. I don’t want to die.

While a lifetime supply of toothbrushes may sound weird, to me they are a positive. I look at them and think, “oh, look at all the time I have left to live.” I am so happy to be alive. 

Sentimental Items are the Hardest

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

Sentimental items are the most difficult to declutter. I saved them until last. It was easier to go through sentimental clutter when I had gone through everything else in the house. Sentimental items are hard because they have meaning. We want to be surrounded by things we love and things that have meaning. 

Sentimental items are not bad. However, it is possible to have too many sentimental items if you place every single item into the “sentimental” category. Don’t use the sentimental category as a catch-all for things you don’t want to deal with in your decluttering journey. 

You are the only person who can answer questions about sentimental items because those items hold meaning specific to you. To someone else, that blanket may just be a blanket, something to keep warm. However, if it was a blanket your grandmother made, then for you that is a more meaningful item than just a blanket. Yes, it keeps you warm, but it has so many memories attached to it too.

The thing to remember is that we are attached to people, not things. Do you really need 10 items to remind you of your grandmother, or will 5 items do? I can’t answer that. Only you can. Decluttering sentimental items is tough for a reason. There is so much emotion involved.

When it comes to decluttering sentimental items, the only advice I have is to leave them until last. If you start out decluttering sentimental items, you will become frustrated and discouraged. Don’t go there. Minimalism is about decluttering stuff to have more room for people you love. That is what makes sentimental items so hard.

I have been going through my own process in decluttering sentimental items. For me personally, I got rid of everything from childhood. I had a very bad childhood. It’s not something I want to remember. Why keep items from that time? They just remind me of pain.

Photos are meaningful to me. I created a photo album I like to call “My greatest hits.” It is a curated collection of the best moments of my life. These are the memories and moments I want to remember when I’m on my death bed. Those are the photos in my one album of greatest hits. Only my best and most treasured life moments, events and people are in there.

There are some items that I have set aside with a note on them that they will be donated or trashed (depending on item), when I move. Some things in this house I will not take with me when I move again.

Some of those items, like my couch, I am using. The couch is over 25 years old and has been through several moves. I have decided that it is not up to another move. If I move again, the couch will not go with me. However, I am keeping the couch right now because I am using it. I am not going to bother purchasing a new one when the one I have works perfectly fine. I just won’t move house with this couch again.

Then there are items with notes on them that say “donate (or trash when move” that are not currently being used. Honestly, those are items that can probably leave now. One of those items is a small box of photo negatives. In the digital age, it Is very challenging to find a photo lab that can process prints from negatives. I already have prints from those negatives. It may be time to get rid of the negatives, since most of those photos are already in my greatest hits photo album. 

What is the point in hanging onto something like photo negatives that are not being used? It is very unlikely that I will either need to be able to make prints from them again. They are sentimental clutter and can probably leave. 

As my minimalism journey is winding down, I am coming down to things that are hard choices to make. Sentimental items are difficult. 

Don’t beat yourself up if you have a lot of sentimental items. Yes, you are still a minimalist. If those things bring you joy, there is no set number of items for people to have. As long as you have enough time for the people in your life and your stuff does not take all of your time, you are fine. 

Sentimental items are the hardest. Leave them until last. 

Happy 8th Birthday, Simon!

/ rachelgoes262 / 2 Comments

Today the baby turns 8! Simon brings so much joy to all our lives. He is our Chief Cuddler and is very loving to everyone. He snuggles and plays with both Jude and Jolene. 

As the youngest, Simon rarely appears for coworker shifts. Usually, if he is in the office, that means it is getting close to mealtime or quitting time. His internal clock also tells him when work is over, and it turns to family time for cuddles. 

Simon tends to be the indicator for when it is time to turn the heat on in the fall. Simon sleeps with me every single night. He is always right next to me, on top of the covers. When Simon is under the covers, it is time to turn on the heat! I made the mistake of turning the heat off this spring when we still had some 40F nights, and he indicated his displeasure by burrowing under the covers with me. I did turn the heat back on. 

Simon rides well in the car and is perfectly behaved at his vet visits. Everyone that meets him loves him. Of the three, Simon is the shyest. He always hides under the kitchen sink if anyone comes in the house. However, the staff at the vet office always comment on how sweet and loving he is, once he comes out of his shell. 

We are all kept young by Simon’s playful antics. He plays equally with both Jolene and Jude. They take turns chasing each other through the house and wrestling. Simon’s favorite toys are small toy mice, that are often found under the refrigerator. Every week I use a yard stick to fish out all the cat toys he has gotten under appliances.

Simon also loves catnip bananas and can often be found “calling his friends” on the nana phone. He is an avid bird watcher and loves doing his Hedgewatch out the kitchen window.

He embodies pure sweetness, kindness, and love. Whenever I get down about what is going on in the world, all I must do is look at Simon to see a beautiful soul. 

We are so blessed to have Simon in our home. A phrase I often say is “Simon is a good baby.” It is true. Simon is the sweetest young man. Happy 8th Birthday, Simon!