Day 5 Changing Our Itinerary

Day 5. Setting up the Cats in their New Home

We were exhausted, but happy we had a goodnight sleep. I usually get up first to walk our dog. She is a great dog that we rescued from a lady who was desperate to find her a home, as she told us her spouse threatened to take the dog to the animal “shelter” if she didn’t rehome it by the end of the weekend. I worked hard to bond with our new German Shepard after we brought her home. She was scared and unsure of what had just happened, and had no idea where her owner was. For a year, I would take her to work everyday, check on her and walk her during my lunch time. Even though I thought I was giving her comfort, she became car sick everytime I drove….she hated the car! Was it because she thought I would leave her somewhere too? Do dogs have PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), when they are torn away from everything they know in an instant? I am convinced they do. I loved my new furry buddy and wanted her to feel secure. We had her for 8 years. What has happened to her since? That is a sensitive subject that I will share with you in another blog post. But back to Day 5, after our morning walk, I fed all the animals, then met William for breakfast. Our pets always have breakfast before us.

We already knew what we had to get done today, but since our night stay was changed to a completely different location, we rearranged our planned itinerary. First things first: We had to empty the trailer, which was full of our family’s life possessions; things we were not ready to part with. Some of the items included our kids memorabilia, hobby supplies, pictures, photo albums and so on. Definitely sentimental items valued less than the storage fees we pay monthly. It's an interesting feeling to stand back, look at the items in your storage, and think, “40 years of life” placed in plastic see-through boxes. It's the “dash” between the birth year and death year on a person’s headstone.

We finished unloading the trailer, and the cats were still confused, scared and patiently waiting for their fate. But first, we had to stop at a local store to pick up supplies, including items for the cats that would make their transition easier. The three cats we took on this trip were all rescue cats. They were barn cats that worked their way into our hearts, and we couldn’t leave them behind. Ever hear the saying, “An animal might be free to get, but expensive to keep”? That was these three cats for us. We made a promise when we adopted them, and are going to do our best to relocate them with us.

We headed to my sister’s house. My sister has a heart of gold when it comes to animals, sometimes to her own detriment, one thing she and I have had in common all our lives. She has plenty of animals under her care, horses, sheep, cats, chickens, and now she took on our additional cats. She offered us her extra mobile home to house the cats while we were in transition. They basically have the run of the 3 bedroom domicile. But first they had to get used to their new home, and get used to her. The cats we brought on the first trip were already bonding with her, sitting on her lap, demanding canned food, and watching for her out the window when it's time for her to tend to them. These three new cats won’t be so easy to bond with as I said, they were adopted as feral barn cats and it took years for them to feel safe enough to bond to us.

After my grandmother (Babu) passed away, my sister took her rocking chair that she had on her porch of the old farm. I quickly jumped at the opportunity to move Babu's rocking chair into the main room of the trailer. Now my sister sits, bonding with the cats, as they jump on her lap, and give her the attention she enjoys, just as my Babu did so many decades ago.

We purchased cat kennels that could be built to accommodate any cat that needed its movement restricted to a smaller area. I decided two of the feral cats were going to be placed in the 2nd bedroom, where they would be away from the first group, as I knew it would take them a longer time to adjust, and they didn’t need the other cats harassing them, like they did at our home. At our house they were able to find their own space in the shop and around the property, but here, there is limited space, so setting up their own area would be best for them. I removed most of the items in the room that my sister was using as storage. I then built the cat kennels. The enclosure is two “stories” that gives them additional room to climb to different levels, to feel more secure. I also bought them small padded pillow houses that had a covered top that they can hide in. In each kennel I placed a puppy pad under the litter pan, and placed their food closer to their sleeping pillows. I wasn’t sure if these two cats would get along in the same kennel, because even though they were sisters, and adopted together, they didn’t spend any time together, possibly even repelled each other around food. I let one cat stay in the large dog carrier with her own litter pan and food, and left the door open. The other cat I put into the kennel. My sister later told me that within a week or so, they were best friends, sharing the kennels, then moved out of the kennels and would lay with each other in the open room. My instincts were correct, and they re-bonded.

The third cat is named Iris. Another rescue from the animal shelter, Iris was a quiet cat that had been passed over for other cats and kittens during adoption times. She was a beautiful smokey calico with big green eyes and a loving disposition. We asked that they pull her out and let us engage with her. We loved her and adopted her. Her 4 month wait was over. There was another cat, a strong male grey tabby with white on his nose. It seemed that Iris enjoyed his company because as she was walking around, we noticed she kept going toward his cage. We adopted him too, and he became my husband’s cat. He named him Steven.

Iris was a much more friendly cat then the two feral cats, so we put her in the room with the first group of cats so she would have company. She has free roam of the room, but chooses to stay in her kennel. When my sister does daily or twice daily checks on the cats, her time is focused on feeding and cleaning. After everything was built and all cats were fed, I pitched in for the next hour and straightened out the room and organized things for her. After we were sure everyone was set for the night, we headed back to our hotel. It was time to relax, and cheated by buying some microwave pizza and pot pies, then did laundry. It was a good day, and we accomplished a lot. A good day indeed.