Remember Me Thursday

Today September 22nd is Remember Me Thursday.

This is a very important date to remember all of the lost animals that didn’t find their forever homes.  Each year, animals are euthanized because they are unwanted.

Today, let’s light a candle and keep it going to remember them.  It takes all of us to do our part in making sure animals get as much love as they need and find their forever parents.  Did you adopt your current anipal into their forever home or did they adopt YOU?  Maybe today, lean a paw at your local shelter and/or make a donation to help.

Hold your babies tight today and say a little prayer my friends.  Continue the light and be their voice!  It takes all of us doing our part.  Thanks my friends!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Charlee and Chaplin

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name: We wrote a haiku about ourselves! Charlee and Chaplin
Two-toned cats in black and white
The Hipster Kitties

Age:  Charlee: We are exactly fifteen weeks old as of June 7th.
Chaplin: Yes, we’re still babies.
Charlee: Which I think means that nothing we do goes on our permanent records.
Chaplin: Yes, that’s right, Charlee. I looked it up.

Location:  Charlee: The San Diego area.
Chaplin: I thought it was Oceanside.
Charlee: Same thing.
Chaplin: Oh, okay.

Web/Blog Page:  Charlee: We wrote a free verse about it!
You can find us on Dennis’s Diary of Destruction
Which is at http://www.dennisthevizsla.com.
Although we should confess
That we haven’t seen Dennis destroy anything
Yet
Except for some scattered papers
That probably had it coming.

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  Chaplin: It was when we were being kept in a big crate in the foster care office at the shelter.
Charlee: We were very young and very small.
Chaplin: They kept wanting to hold us.
Charlee: I think my first thought was, “Put me down.”
Chaplin: My first thought was “Why are these people recording our meows? Is it because they know we’re a great poetry team?”
Charlee: Later, of course, we found out it was because they were playing the meows back for Dennis at his meal times, to prepare him for our arrival.
Chaplin: I don’t think he appreciated the poems.
Charlee: I think he appreciated the meals, though.

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  Chaplin: Probably when they put up not one cat tree for us, but two cat trees.
Charlee: And a cat hammock with a scratching post!
Chaplin: You don’t commit to that kind of infrastructure for kittens who aren’t sticking around.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?  Chaplin: Probably when I let Dennis start sniffing me. Once you have dog breath all over you, I’m told, you can never get elected Cat President.
Charlee: Being Cat President is overrated.
Chaplin: How do you know that?
Charlee: Next question please.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  Chaplin: Totally mom, because she likes to lie on the couch under a fleecy blanket and I like to make biscuits on the fleecy blanket, so I spend a lot of time on her lap purring and kneading dough.
Charlee: Totally dad. And I didn’t even have to do anything, either, except have a mustache.
Chaplin: You do things. I’ve seen you purring and rolling around on your back asking for belly scratches.
Charlee: That’s so he can see that my mustache looks like a three-leaf clover when I’m upside-down. Extra cuteness points.
Chaplin: Brilliant.

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  Charlee: Mom and dad think we’re just hipster poet kittens, but we’re really hipster poet performance artist kittens.
Chaplin: We keep doing interpretive dance for them, but they don’t get it.
Charlee: Yes, they just think we’re just wrestling.
Chaplin: We wrote a limerick about it.

There once were two cats who were dancing,
Pirouetting and mewing and prancing.
The humans kept saying,
“Oh how cute, they’re playing!”
And missed all the choreographing.

♥

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Teddy

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name:  My Dad had a name picked out before they even FOUND me at the Shelter – I am “Teddy Kimmell” but Mom calls me “Teddy Bear”

Age:  Eleven months old – I’ll be one on March 4th!  (Happy early birthday our friend XOXO Bacon/Houdini)

Location:  Warrenton, Virginia

Web/Blog Page:  http://onespoiledcat.wordpress.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  I was in a small cage at the shelter and when I saw them I thought “all I have to do is act adorable and I’ll get my forever home!”……….I did the ultimate smart thing – I stuck my little ginger paw through the bars on my cell to shake hands.    That was that………done deal.    Why?  Because when Mom and Dad had adopted my Angel brother Sammy 17 years ago that’s what HE did – stuck his paw through the bars and VOILA, got his home!

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  When I found cat beds, blankets, toys, food bowls all over the place – I knew that they had them there for ME and I knew that this was the home for me!

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   Well I’ve only been here since February 11th so I’ve been very, very good and have had NO “uhohs” ……….yet.   I don’t jump on counters or get in potted plants or ask to go outside or scratch on the furniture so I’m making SURE I don’t get in trouble!

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  I have both of them wrapped around my ginger paws…………AND I love them both and follow them both everywhere – hop up in both of their laps – I’m as in love with both of them as they both are with me.    This is just plain HEAVENLY!

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  Maybe that my parents adopted ME because I remind them of my Angel brother Sammy.    They adopted me because I was what they wanted – a kitten but not tiny, and a LOVE BUG who would be a “lap cat”………….not because I’m a ginger tabby like Sammy was.   

♥

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet General U.S. Grant and General W.T. Sherman

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

♥

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Name:  General U. S. Grant and General W. T. Sherman

Age:  7 and 5 months

Location:  Southern California USA

Web/Blog Page:  http://threecatyard.wordpress.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  We came from the same cattery Rhea and Davout came from, although Grant is a British Shorthair. He seemed nice, but Sherman was coming down with a cold and sneezed a few times on the trip from San Diego.  Both were very good and brave.

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  We had a different safe room to start than the others had, since Anna has the old one. It has fewer cubbies, but there is a big wood desk you can run under and feel safe. We took to it right away, and soon met Rhea and Davout and like them fine. Sometimes we sleep in safe corners around the house but are coming out.  Grant likes to rub against everyone and Rhea sometimes gives him a swat to make him stop, but he’s working on her patience.  Sherman likes to purr when held, but has things to see and won’t hang out with you for long.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   Neither boy has done anything bad or scary. Anna and her hissing doesn’t bother them when they invade her room, but Davout will sometimes pin them down by the scruff to keep them out of her room and upsetting her.  He does this to Rhea too.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  Grant tries to beg for extra meals and since they both are growing boys they often get one. Mostly Grant just watches Dad and both follow him around to see what he’s doing.

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  Humans are still learning about us like we are learning about them.

General W.T. Sherman

General U.S. Grant

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❤

♥

❤

♥

❤

♥

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Anna Comnena

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

♥

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Name:  Anna Comnena

Age:  8 and a half years

Location:  Southern California USA

Web/Blog Page:  http://threecatyard.wordpress.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  I had been abandoned by my family to a shelter. First they had a kid that abused me, then there were lots of cats in the shelter that worried me. I had a special place by a flower I liked, the picture on the internet was taken there and that’s where I stayed.  When they took me away across the yard for introductions, I was polite but soon worried that some cat would take my spot away so I went right back to it.

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  He put me in the same room the Rhea and Davout stayed. I loved it! So big! Dad soon learned not to put his hand over my head or I would swat it hard, but since I have no claws there it didn’t hurt so I’d snap with teeth too. After some learning, I learned to trust him enough to stop that.  After a time, I started to explore but Rhea and Davout coming close made me hiss at them over and over and run back to my room.  If they come in I get up high and hiss at them.  After a while Rhea started to chase me back to my room and we would fight, so the door is usually closed. I purr and purr when Dad comes to visit, but if I think another cat is outside the door. I start to fret and get upset.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   I always do the same thing and never change much, except I’m not as afraid of people as I was before.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  I have a room of my own, with lots of safe cubbies to sleep in and a window. That has to count.

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  That I am extremely stubborn. I am way more stubborn than that.

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Kona

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name:  Kona

Age:  7

Location:  Southern California

Web/Blog Page:  http://tailsbythesea.wordpress.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  I had been pulled out of a high-kill shelter in San Diego by Second Chance Dog Rescue and was living with my foster parents. My adopting mom walked in the door to meet me, and I walked up to her, stood on my hind legs, and put my paws on her chest. When she sat down, I walked over to her and put my head in her lap. The foster mom told my mom that I had never approached anyone like that before, and that this dog had made his choice. I knew this was going to be my mommy, and I let her know it!

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  A few days after I came to my new home, mom and I were at the dog park. I was playing with a group of dogs, running around and having fun, when I stopped and looked around for my mom. I couldn’t find her, and got scared. She was watching me, and when we made eye contact, I smiled and ran towards her, just like in those love story movies 🙂 She and I both bonded at that moment – we both remember it clearly.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   I had never had an accident in the house, and was proud of it. One day, while mom was at work, I had a bad tummy ache and couldn’t hold it. I felt soooo bad when mom got home and saw my boo boo, my head was down and she just gave me a hug and cleaned it up. She knew I didn’t mean to do it.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  I think I have my mommy wrapped more. She and I are so closely bonded, and when I give her my sad look, her heart hurts. On the other side of that, I come and sit close to her when she’s hurting, too.

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  My daddy sometimes thinks that I automatically understand human behavior. In other words, he gets mad at me cuz I don’t automatically know how to do things, or I don’t understand why I’m being punished. Mom has to remind him that I’m a dog, and dogs need to be trained, and it takes time. He’s getting better, though. Mom says I’m teaching him patience 🙂

 

 

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Chris

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name:  Chris

Age:  7

Location: Clearwater, Florida 

Web/Blog Page:  http://badcatchris.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  My dad was a shelter volunteer and they had me locked up at PetSmart. He came to clean our cages one morning and, to be honest, my first thought was, “Thank you for letting me out of this cage.”  I am not the kind of kitty that does well locked up. I was adopted a few weeks earlier and brought back the next day because some humans don’t understand love bites. The next thing I thought was, “This guy might be my ticket out of here,” so I jumped on his shoulders and worked my magic.

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  About five minutes after I got to my new home, I realized that none of the four native cats were willing to challenge to my authority. Here is me exploring the house on that first day :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp3pLnjQRCE

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   When I was young, dad covered our third floor balcony with screening so I, I mean we, could go outside. He didn’t realize that I was small and could squeeze under the railing like a cockroach. I jumped to the ground and after exploring, I cried at the door to come in. A nice lady, who was not my mom, opened the door and I went into a home that was very different than the one I left. It was very disorienting and scary. Fortunately, my dad found me and brought me home. Hey, I was still a kitten. I can’t be expected to understand the difference between first floor and third floor at that age.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  Dad is a sucker. I know how he responds to my “cry” when I want to go eat some grass or I give him the “sad eyes” when my food bowl is empty.

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  Dad called the blog “Bad Cat Chris” but I am really not “bad.” Just because I constantly try to escape, scratch the furniture, dominate the other cats, poop on the floor, get into cabinets, bite noses, annoy the parents at night and try to bring lizards in the house, that doesn’t make me bad. I am actually very good with people and all the humans love me.

 

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Rusty

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name:  My name is Russet, but everyone knows me as Rusty.

Age:  I was born on March 1, 2004, so I am  twelve years young.

Location:  Thomaston, Georgia, USA.

Web/Blog Page:  https://jansfunnyfarm.blogspot.com/

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  Hey, thanks for getting me out of jail, but if I’m going to live here, would you please have the taxi driver (Jan) buy a bigger traveling crate!  (She did.)  Jan must have scraped off three pounds of floof and skin stuffing me into the original one.

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  I have actually had three forever homes.  I lost my first one because my mom was elderly and I liked to rub against her legs and she was terrified one of us would get hurt.  She took me to the shelter but she was prepared to take me back if no one adopted me.  Jan saw my picture in the paper.  I am front declawed, so she called the shelter to tell them she was on her way and to not adopt me out to anyone because I was going to be her mother’s Thanksgiving dinner!  I wasn’t the meal.  Jan paid my fees with their Thanksgiving dinner money because Miss Mother (I’m a polite Southern kitty!) had lost her two dog companions and was lonely.  Miss Mother was elderly but in a wheelchair, so rubbing against her legs was not a problem.  Then Miss Mother went away and never returned.  Jan was sad and I was lonely.  One day Jan brought me home and made me an official Funny Farmer.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   Oh, that’s easy.  I like to go outside and lounge in the yard.  I was safe in the dog pen.  One day Jan realized I was missing.  She panicked, ran in the back door, put Merci on a leash and took out the front door to search.  As she ran past the back corner of the house, there I was on the back steps, looking up and yelling for her to let me in, she’d locked me out.  A few days later I went missing again.  That time Jan didn’t stop to put Merci on a leash.  The dog pen gates were locked, so she ran in the back door and out the front.  As she ran around the side of the house, she saw me race from the flower bed next door, through an opening between the house and the pen, and start screaming at the back door she’d locked me out again.  She cut off my Houdini route with a cinder block.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why? There’s no mom or dad around here, just Jan.  She’s ancient and poor, but she does her best to take care of all of us.  When she rearranged the living room, she moved a big bookcase to the corner near a window.  She put lots of books on top.  I’m a big guy.  I need room.  I  rolled over in my sleep and fell off the bookcase a few times.  Guess who has the whole top of the bookcase to himself now? 

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  I’m such a big guy, humans assume I’m slow and clumsy, but I’m agile and light on my feet.

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Spotlight Thursday – Meet Cupcake

Spotlight Thursday

Welcome my friends to SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY.  This is the time that I will introduce you to one of my fellow anipals so you can get to know them better.  Some of them, you may already know.  We hope that you enjoy this series!

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Name:  Cupcake

Age:  9 – but I’ve heard 9 is the new 5

Location:  New Jersey

Web/Blog Page:  Cupcake

What were your first thoughts when you met your new parents?  When Mom walked by my cage, I was saying the word, “Please. Please. Please. Please….” The first 82 times, she didn’t hear me, but then finally, MAGICALLY – she did, and she said, “This is the one! This is my new dog!”

What was the defining moment when you knew you were in your forever home?  After living on the street and in a shelter for the first few years of my life, the night Mom brought me home and I popped onto the couch, and she laughed at me and hugged me, I knew that cuddly place was the perfect home for me.

What has been your biggest “Oh no, now I’ve done it” moment so far in your home?   One morning, when I first came here, Mom forgot to push in her chair, when she got up to get something from the kitchen. I hopped onto her chair, climbed onto the table, and TOOK HER MEDICINE. It was delicious. It was less delicious a few minutes later when ASPCA Poison Control told her how to induce vomiting. My advice: If you’re lucky enough to get on the table, skip the pills and go straight for the scrambled eggs.

 Who do you have wrapped around your paws more – mom or dad – and why?  I don’t have a dad, so Mom is wrapped double-strength around my paws. I can tell because whenever I turn my big brown eyes on her and stare with that blank look I have, treats and snuggles come my way. She thinks I’m irresistible!

What’s the biggest misconception that humans think about you?  People think I am tortured when Mom dresses me up. You know – because I’m a dog and dogs are…. well…. dogs. But the truth is that like my friend Houdini I LOVE dressing up! When Mom puts a dress on me, I know that means something fun is about to happen – we’re going somewhere, getting company, or doing something special. So bring on the tutus, bandanas, sundresses, and sweaters because this girl is ready to party.

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Hope you enjoyed meeting my friend – check back next week for another Spotlight edition!

 

Thank You My Friends

My friends – everyone here at the Hotel Thompson wants to take the time today to say thank you.  Anytime you lose a member of your household, you feel lost and out of sorts.  YOU my friends have helped us with this grieving period through your sweet comments, cards, emails and phone calls.  There are times that we still get ready for bed at night and we call for Mouse Girl without thinking… we give our treats and get enough for her without thinking… there are so many things that we have done for over the years that included Mouse Girl that it’s hard to let it go overnight.  Today, we wanted to share a few things about our Girl in hopes that everyone sees what a special gal she was and still is watching over us.

In early 2008, Hemi’s brother Tybee passed away.  We had gotten Hemi and Tybee from a shelter when they were only 3 weeks old.  We brought them to the doctor, had them tested and bottle fed them until six weeks.  Fast forward three years and Tybee got sick.  We found out that Tybee had feline leukemia and all the testing we originally done was too early for that disease to show.   When he crossed the Rainbow Bridge, not only were we devastated but so was Hemi.  He would through a mourning period as well and wouldn’t eat, at times he wouldn’t sleep and he meowed for his brother.  In speaking with the vet, they suggested we get Hemi another friend since at that time we didn’t have any other anipals in the house.

I called a local animal shelter and made arrangements to meet a Maine Coon named Belinda.  We me and Jim got the shelter, Belinda wanted absolutely.nothing.to.do.with.me.  Can you believe that?  There was just no ‘click’.  However where Jim was standing, there was another Maine Coon that was determined to get Jim’s attention.  She was meowing to him and grabbing at his arm/shoulder through the crate she was housed.

Every time Jim would walk away, she would cry louder for him to return.  I walked over to her crate and she was trying to reach out for me.  We then got to hold her.  It was like coming home – she felt like she had always been in our arms.  She purred and jumped from me to Jim.  It’s true what they say – cats pick their own staff.

But there were other signs that this particular cat was ‘the one’ to adopt.  When I went to complete the paperwork, I found out this princess’s name was Mouse Girl and that she was born the same that my dad had passed away.

Of course, we considered these all “signs” that we were doing the right thing.  And upon getting Mouse Girl home, it was like she had been there for years.  She knew exactly where the litter boxes were, where the food/water was and where we slept.  It was quite strange.

And Hemi went right up to her, purred and started bathing her.  Two cats that had never met but seemed like they had known each other for years.  What are the odds of that?

They quickly became close buds and even drank from the fountain together – because you know a ‘bowl’ of water is just too common for them – LOL.

Life went on and although other anipals came to live here at the Hotel Thompson – Bacon and Houdini – Mouse Girl who was affectionately known to us as OMG (Oh Mouse Girl) was our girl… our princess… our baby because she was the only girl for all of these years

And although she was very loving to the other anipals, it took her time to adjust to me and Jim.  Not knowing her past history of when and how she came to the shelter, we picked up real quick that she didn’t trust very easily.  But me and Jim stood fast, gave her love and let her adjust according to her schedule.

It took her almost a solid year but she finally started coming to bed with us at night and sleeping at my feet.  And then she would come up to you and touch you with her hand as if to say, “Pet me.”

She was a big girl too which Maine Coons often are.  At her prime, she was well over 20 pounds; however, she never pushed her weight around.  If Hemi, Bacon or Houdini came up to her to play, she played.  And although there were times the boys got on her nerves and she had to do was sit on them, she didn’t.  They would squabble on one paw and then all of them would cuddle up together and sleep.

So to our beautiful OMG.  We ❤ you with all of our hearts and we thank YOU for picking us as your staff.  You will never be forgotten.

12/19/2008 – 05/08/2016