Howard County Cat Club
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The Howard County Cat Club, A No-Kill Cat Rescue In Columbia, MD

STryper: Music To His Ears

12/31/2012

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The adopters knew exactly what they wanted in a cat. Color, gender and age didn’t matter. But they wanted a cat who was good with kids and loved music. Classical music, to be exact. And the cat had to like, or at least tolerate, listening to Alan sign while he played the piano.
Alan and his family came to our shelter to audition for cats. They loved Sizzle, but he left the room when Alan starting singing to him. Stryper, though, loved the music. Or maybe it was just that he loved Alan and Karen and the kids. He went to live at their house a week later.

Six years later, Stryper is still Alan’s piano buddy. He doesn’t sing along, but he does purr while the music plays.


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Taylor: I'm here and I'm happy

12/29/2012

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Photo by Diana Hanshaw
We’ve all heard about cats who find their way home from amazing distances. But it seems that lost cats also sometimes help their families find them. That’s what Taylor did.

Taylor was a “stray” who chose the wrong yard as his new home. The people had strictly indoor cats who didn’t like Taylor at all. And when he made it abundantly clear that he wasn’t a strictly indoor kind of guy, the people gave him to us. We thought he might enjoy living in a barn.



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In Loving Memory Of Mrs. P

12/27/2012

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PictureMrs. P and her friend Blaze
I have to admit that feral cats are my favorites. I love their resourcefulness and independence and their ability to not just survive but to thrive in what most of us would consider the harshest conditions. So I considered it a real honor to know Mrs. P and count her among my friends.


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Snuggles: Happy and Healthy Now

12/27/2012

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Photo by Christine Krebs
Snuggles tells his story:
"For 13 years, I took care of my family. I lived up to my name and snuggled with them when they needed reassurance and comfort. And I was kind and welcoming to all the cats who came into our home after me. I still don't know what happened, or how we all ended up in cages at a shelter. They said they were tired of cats, but how could that be? We were quiet. We used our litter boxes. We never scratched the furniture. And I snuggled with them when they wanted me to, even if I wasn't in the mood. How could they be tired of us, especially me?



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Tornado Kitty Comes In from the storm

12/27/2012

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As Hurricane Irene was wrecking havoc up and down the east coast this past weekend, I was thinking about another hurricane that occurred years ago and the orange cat who was literally blown in the door of a house in Anne Arundel Country. The people named her Tornado Kitty but refused to keep her. We had no room in our little shelter, but I thought a cat who had been through a hurricane deserved better than a cage at Animal Control. And that's how Tornado Kitty became our first -- and last -- cat to live in the Adoption Center at the Columbia PetSmart. She was there for four hours! Meanwhile, I was thinking about her in that tiny cage in a huge noisy store and working the phones, trying to find a foster home for her.


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Myles: Dumpster Kitty Goes Home

12/27/2012

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Myles tells his story:
"I try to be a happy-go-lucky guy, but life has been pretty tough for a couple of years. The people I lived with tossed me out of the car in the middle of a huge shopping center parking lot and drove away. I was so surprised and scared! I had no idea where I was or whether I'd ever have any friends again or how I'd find something to eat.

"I lived in that parking lot for two years. Sometimes, the people who worked in the stores gave me food. But mostly I was on my own, hunting and digging through the Dumpsters. Have you ever tried to hunt in a sea of asphalt? Take it from me. There's not much to catch.


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Best Friends

12/24/2012

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We didn't know much about Tabby when he came to our group home from death row at a Baltimore shelter. He was eight years old, his intake paperwork said. And he'd been given up because he "scratched the furniture too much." A big scratching post for a big cat probably would have solved that problem.


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A day in the life of our kitty group home

12/24/2012

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Photo by Diana Hanshaw
You'd think that a bunch of cats left to their own devices most of the time would fight nonstop. But cats have an amazing ability to adapt to whatever life and humans happen to throw their way, and that's almost always the case in our group home.


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Cherokee:  Happy at last

12/24/2012

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Photo by Diana Hanshaw
Cherokee tells her story:
"For six years, my human and I were best friends. I helped her with her school work, cuddled with her at night, and when she was expecting a baby, I sat near her and tried to comfort her when she wasn't feeling well. Then the baby arrived, and everything changed. Suddenly, our apartment was too small, and there was no room for the cat who had been her best friend before that huge man and the baby came along.

"The man took me to the Howard County Cat Club's group home. He just tossed my carrier in the door... didn't even say goodbye. I was so sad, I wedged myself into one of those little 'kitty condos' and stayed there for two days.

"Soon after I arrived, I got adopted. But I wasn't in the mood for new humans and a cat I didn't know, so I was returned.

"It took two years, but I got adopted again! I was so excited. I went to live in Washington, DC, in a residence for young women where I was supposed to be a working cat and catch mice. I loved it there. I spent evenings going from lap to lap in the main room, and at night, after all the humans were in bed, I worked on rodent control. I thought I was doing a good job and the women loved me. So you can imagine my surprise when they said they were replacing me with a mean cat, and I was going back to the Howard County Cat Club.

"Instead of going to the group home though, I went to the Highland Groomery and Kitty Bed and Breakfast for 'boarding.' I'm not sure what that means, but I'm still here and I think I can stay. I love my cat-sized four-poster bed and the kitty TV. I love sleeping in the bay window when the grooming shop is closed, and I love the other cats who live here and Wanda, the owner and her staff. I feel so fortunate. I wish every cat tale could have an ending as happy as mine."


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Hoss: Older And Wiser

12/24/2012

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Photo by Diana Hanshaw
Hoss tells his story:
"For years, I lived all by myself on the grass island of a shopping center parking lot. A feral cat colony lived nearby, and sometimes the kittens would come over and play with me. I liked that because I was very lonely. And I never felt well. I have FIV, and I always felt like I had a cold. My eyes hurt because I also have herpes, and all of my teeth fell out. It was a hard life, but I was glad at least I was outside.

"Then one day, someone showed up in the parking lot with a lot of traps and took all the cats away. Someone told me they were going to be trapped, neutered and returned.  I was so hungry, I went in one of the traps, too. But I didn't get returned with the others. Instead, I went to the Howard County Cat Club's group home. A lot of cats lived there, but they weren't the cats I knew, and there weren't any kittens to keep me company. I felt so alone. And I knew no one would ever adopt me because of the FIV, and I'm almost completely blind, and I don't have the most outgoing personality. I don't rub against legs and purr and kiss up to humans the way most cats do.

"I did get adopted though! The president of the Howard County Cat Club took me home with her. I'm very old and frail now. But I'm as happy as a cat who has never known real happiness can be. And my human and I love each other. She doesn't care that I don't rub against her legs and purr. We have a very special relationship and feel very connected on a psychic level. She likes that, and to be honest, I do too."

L

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    Author

    Missy Zane is president of the Howard County Cat Club and has lived with cats and loved them for as long as she can remember.

    These are some of our favorite cat rescue stories. We hope you enjoy them.

    Categories

    All
    A Day In The Life Of
    Aurora
    Best Friends
    Cherokee: Happy At Last
    Cosmo
    Davey And Goliath: Mr. Mom
    Hoss
    Jasmine And Company
    Kitty: A Work In Progress
    Kitty: The Final Chapter
    Leonardo And Friends
    Mrs. P
    Music To His Ears
    Patches And Lea
    Puck
    Taylor: Lost And Found
    The Pfisters Cats
    Tornado Kitty


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