From her new mom Deb: BRIGHT EYES DUMPED BY HER OWNERS AT 6 MONTHS BECAUSE SHE WAS PREGNANT She was the most loving and trusting kitty, and raised her wonderful 5 kittens and another stray kitten, Thanks Kathy for taking great care of them until they found permanent homes.
From her new mom Deb:
Denise....I thought about what we talked about yesterday and wrote some of my thoughts down in words. You are free to post it and edit it should you like however I just ask that you write my first name 'debbie' only. I tried to make it as tasteful and sensible as possible without offending and if you can think of a better way of putting my thoughts into words feel free to rewrite. I feel strongly that people separate animals from humans therefore they do not think that they are affected except for those people who do not separate. I think if we are able to communicate the similarities and how it affects us in our day to day lives maybe we can change one person and how they think and perhaps the key is in that? Even if it is controversial that is good---after all if it is controversial then people are talking about it and more aware of it.
Deb
I was asked recently why I 'risked' adopting a cat from a shelter rather than buying one from a breeder and the question took me off guard for not even two seconds. To see my perspective you will have to understand a little fact about me...I was adopted when I was a few days old. I was raised in a home where I had animals living around me. I did not necessarily have animals in my home until I was older however my neighbors had horses, dogs, cats, you name it they had it in their yard. I can not tell you why I grew to love animals however I can tell you that I look at them as if they were my best friend or relative. I have had the privilidge of adopting three cats so far in my life and all were from either state funded shelters or from saveadogandkids.org. All the animals were wonderful and I have even had the chance to have purebreds. There is no difference when two eyes are looking back at you and nuzzling their nose against your cheek. I told that person that I had the chance to buy a purebred cat but turned it down for the following reasons....purebreds can sometimes carry inherited problems (ie-bladder infections/blockages, etc) that are chronic and costly depending on the practices of the breeder. More importantly there are just too many animals that are neglected and left to die in shelters to justify me passing their lives up because they are not of 'pure blood'. It would be like my adoptive parents going to the adoption agency and requesting a pure blooded child of German descent or one only of English descent which I would not have qualified for nor can many. We do not tolerate stereotypes for human races so why does it matter in animals if they are purebred or not? It doesn't! I wish that those who can afford to buy purebreds would open their hearts and homes to cats or kittens from their local shelters first, if they have not already, and give those animals a chance and the money that they save adopting that animal instead of a 'pure bred' they could donate to help control and enforce the animal abuse programs and policies in their areas. Over the past generation Americans, as a whole, have lost the ability to perceive responsibility and compassion without greed and I feel that is reflected on the number of animals that are neglected, abused, and thrown out to die. For those individuals who have been guilty of those offenses I hope you realize one day what you have put those animals through and perhaps through that revelation you decide to make a difference and help a cause that has been needed for a long time. If we could only have one out of every three households in America open their homes up to adopt a cat or dog and love it unconditionally then we could do so much to lower the number of homeless animals in America instead of neglecting the problem.
Denise and Foster Mommy,
Just a quick email to let you know that Bright Eyes is doing fine. We kept her in our bedroom last night and she found another cubby hole to hide in though I would not let her stay in there very much. From time to time I brought her out and bonded with her. She was happy and content to stay under a blanket while I laid next to her on the bed and pet her. She also head butted me and rubbed her head against my cheek when I made kissing noises to her as well! Progress is definitely in the works and we all love what we know of her so far. She is a little timid still however but I am convinced that it is because of the change of atmosphere and she will gain more confidence once she is familiar with all of us. For now however it is me who she knows best and most until that time comes. Last night she was content to sleep next to me until in the middle of the night I turned over to lay a different way and she vacated the bed...she must not have liked that. But anyway I just thought you would like to know how things went. I brought her out into the living room and she laid with me on the couch under an afghan and was content with that as well. We will continue doing the baby steps until she shows she is not scared anymore.
Thanks again for
bringing her to us and I will try and stay in touch. I know it is
difficult with trying to help and it seems that everyone is against you however
try and stick to your guns the animals and a lot of people you know and even
some you don't know yet appreciate your hard work and dedication. Oh and I
should be deciding on a name for her in the next day or so-I just want the name
to fit the kitty and since she is so shy I haven't been able to see her true
personality yet :) Here is her new brother who has never gone outside and
sleeps in our bed too: "PC"
03/17/04
Just a quick note to say hi! It's been a couple months now and I couldn't be happier with the progress we have seen. For a while Bright Eyes (who we have named Zoe) stayed in our Master Bedroom but she gets along great with our other cat and roams around the house. I can't get over her wonderful personality. She is playful, sweet and loves attention (believe me she gets as much as she wants especially from me). She is 120% the cat I was hoping and looking for. I look at her all the time and wonder if her kittens found a good home as well. We are unable to adopt them but I am hoping that they were able to be adopted to good homes by now. Thanks again to both you and Kathy for taking care of Bright Eyes.
Debora
06/16/04
I was reading through my emails and I found your email in my Outlook and thought I would write again and give you an update. Sorry I haven't written in a while. Zoe is doing great. She has full reign of the house and lets you know it in her own sweet little way-I swear sometimes she is the feline version of myself! *grin* She is still a bit skittish if someone walks into the room or around her and she isn't expecting it but is getting better. I will have to send another picture soon as she has gained a couple pounds but by no means is overweight just looks older, happy, healthy and well fed. :) It never fails she will come down and greet me when I come in the door every time which I never knew how much I missed that until I adopted her. She had an upper respritory infection a month or two back but after visiting the vet she is good as new. How is your cat doing? I remember when we met back in January 2004 that your cat was diagnosed with an infectious illness so that he had to be separated from your other cats. I hope all is well with you and all your pets and friends. Please tell Kathy that Zoe and I said 'hi'! and I will work on getting that picture for the both of you :)
Sincerely
Deb
