Growing Up

Since she came to stay with us, we've kept Zazi separate from the rest of the house and in her own space (the bathroom). We've let her out into different rooms, and each time she got a little more used to life with humans in a house.

This week was a big deal - we've let her have the run of the house.

She has been having a ball exploring... we sometimes don't see her; but boy do we hear her.

Rattles, shakes, the occasional fa-DUMPH and every now and then, we'll look up and she'll be peering over the side of the staircase at us.

She's done so well, we're very proud parents! Laugh. She discovered the giant ottoman in the living room, and the fact that she fits perfectly under there. 

And oh boy, does she LOVE following Mr J. all around. She loves that he plays string with her and she will follow him as he goes from room to room. It's adorable.

Still working on the other cats accepting her; there's still the hissing and occasional food stealing - but for the most part, we're not afraid to leave them be together.

And... I think she's starting to grow. With a really good diet, peaceful quiet spots to sleep and the safety of our home....I think this little lady is going to grow into her paws and have the softest silkiest fur coat ever.

She's coming along so well. The trust is still coming....but I can tell this little darling is well on her way.

Look who's in her bed!!

She has that classic cat disgruntled face. "Excuse me, I'm trying to sleep here"

Escape Artist

Friday we had a LOT of progress!
There was much petting, and brushing - oh boy does Zazi love to be brushed - and we worked through of lot of the little tangles on her back.
Also got her ears all cleaned up; she had had some sort of tar on her little ears and inside a bit, too. Zazi was SO good throughout all this ! I was so proud of her.
And, for the first time, she let me put her on my lap. At first, she wasn't sure, and was looking up at me as if to say, "what fresh hell is this?!?" but with some soothing words and lots and lots of calming pets, she relaxed and stretched out for a short bit.
And when she'd had enough of that, I put her into her pink pink bed, and she stretched out allllll the way....I think she's grown an inch just this week! She had a little nap in her bed, until I moved of course, and then she watched me as I left the room.

 

She didn't eat much at all, but she will take small kibble bits out of my hand, if I put it on the tips of my fingers. She has had no problem at all accepting food from me, and this morning (Saturday) she ate an entire plateful of her wet food. About 3 tbsp worth - I was worried she'd chug it down and throw it up, ( Jay reminded me she used to guzzle down an entire cat tin's worth)but there were no accidents and she even chowed down on some more dry kibble.

Saturday morning was a fun adventure. Jay and Zazi played String (her favourite game) for quite some time. She gets so excited about chasing the string she comes right out into the middle of the floor.
Later on, after she'd had her breakfast and a bit of a pet, we were heading out to work on trapping the last two ferals still in the colony. We were already out in the car when I remembered I hadn't closed the window all the way....so I ran back inside to close it.
Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd that's when it happened. I opened the door, and a little grey streak ZOOMED past me. GAH!!!!  She must have been right beside the door watching underneath it, or ...who knows. But she was out. Thank goodness, she ducked into the first open door she came to and did NOT head down the stairs. She dove into the sewing room and under the desk. Then the ironing board. Then behind the folded up table. I dashed around trying to catch her, but I realized that it was probably futile and scaring her even more. So I stopped, grabbed her toys, bed, litterbox and food from the bathroom, and put them in the sewing room. I saw her scoot under the bed, and knew that she would be safe and nothing could hurt her in the sewing room (even though, okay, so it's not the tidyest room in the house), and we headed out to trap.
We had only a few hours to go try and trap, and I won't bore you with the details, but our day was not fruitful. (We almost caught an overly curious seagull, but nope. In the nick of time he changed his mind and did NOT go in the trap. Laugh.)
Coming home, we went up into the sewing room. Zazi was still under the bed - and we didn't want to leave her in that big room, as hiding under things is counter productive to our end goal. After a lot of moving things around and taking the mattress off the bed, we eventually caught her under my sewing machine. She was fine, and I think relieved to be back in 'her' room. I had held her closely under my chin and there was not a peep or a claw in sight. She snuggled right in and was perfectly calm. I put her back into her pink bed and pet and calmed her for a few minutes. I left her half asleep in her bed, to have some quiet time after her ordeal.

Sharing the Credit

Before I go any further; I should point out that Jay & I aren't in this alone.

There are dozens of people behind the scenes that made our TNR mission a success.

Sandy at S&J Cat Rescue - she boards as well as fosters ferals and adopts out rehabbed kitties
                                            
Pet Valu Kingspoint Plaza - Where one day, we hope to see Zazi adopted out from

Heather with AVA - loaner of cages, dispenser of advice and solid all around stellar lady. She is
                                 currently fostering Jumper and her kittens.


Last summer when we first saw Rosie & her kittens (Rosie, as she lived behind the Rose Theatre) we weren't sure who to contact for help. We reached several dead ends with local Humane Society & Animal Welfare Services - they don't do any rehab with ferals, basically they'll come take them and the entire family would have been euthanized. No. NO way. That was Not going to happen.

So we went down to our local awesome pet store; Pet Valu. They always had cages of animals to adopt out, we figured they'd have some contacts. And they did. We called "S & J Cat Rescue" and that's how we met Sandy. This wonderful lady who runs a cat boarding business and also manages several feral colonies, and rehabs good candidates for adoption.

As you know, this is full on kitten season and Sandy has her hands full right now...so she introduced us to Heather, a volunteer who does amazing work. She loaned us the traps, we caught our kitties, and Heather works with several Veterinarians to fix/vaccinate and check over all ferals brought in. They also do a quick assessment if kitties would be good candidates for socialization & adoption.

But here's the thing. Volunteers  and organizations can only do so much. They are always strapped for time, money and volunteers. So, that's where we came in.

Jumper. Sitting BESIDE the trap. For almost an hour.

Jay built shelters. He maintained them all winter and fed the kitties, earning their trust.

Hours spent staring at traps in the car. Waiting and waiting and hoping. That bright spark of hope and excitement when you saw that little face pop up in the long scraggly grass.
Willing that kitty with every fiber of your being to JUST step IN THE DAMN TRAP......
and then...ELATION!! When they finally were in and the lid snapped down.
Yes, they were terrified but a calm voice and a dark towel over the top usually did the trick.

Zazi went with Sandy to be spayed and vaccinated, and then spent awhile there while she recovered from her surgery. Sandy also took time to work with Zazi, even though she is crazy busy this time of year. And then Miss Zazi came to us.

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