Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

This morning, The Gryphon and I drove to the foster home of the kitty we're adopting, Luke. It's a nice Victorian home in a quiet suburb, and Luke's foster mom, if you will, was waiting for us in the front room with Luke, along with one of her resident cats.

She apologized that Luke was likely to be skittish, since he's not usually in that room. But it didn't take him too long to get acclimated. We coaxed him out with a cat toy from under the sofa, cat fishing. Before long, he was walking around, sniffing my purse and acting more comfortable.

I, of course, wanted some pictures of him. It was easy once he was distracted with playing. Eventually, we even got to hold him. Just like when we first met him, he was very happy to be held, provided that we took our time.

His foster mom is a real cat person with a lot of knowledge about cats. In fact, she has encouraged me to stay in contact with her, give her updates on Luke and ask her questions. I think I'll take her up on that.

One of the things she taught us was how to make a cat more comfortable if it's nervous. She showed us that if you hold them just behind their front legs and shake them up and down gently, it reminds them of being held by their mothers and tends to calm them down. You can also give them a kitty massage, focusing on areas where cats accumulate stress, such as next to their mouths and around their ears. She showed us some basic techniques, and The Gryphon did them with Luke. They seemed to help.

We talked about a variety of things, such as his food allergies. He's had issues with swollen glands and hair falling out which seem related to a food allergy. Now that he's on a special food, that has all disappeared.

I gave her some ingredient lists for some food that would be available at the pet store I frequent so she can run it by her vet and see if either of them would be appropriate. If not, I'll continue with the vet prescribed food that Luke is currently eating.

There was some paperwork to do. We had to read through the adoption agreement and initial it at certain portions. It set out rules for how to take care of Luke and conditions. For example, you have to get the cat spayed if it isn't already, and it has to be an indoor kitty. There are a number of other rules, which if the owner doesn't comply, the organization can take the cat back.

I asked if someone would be checking up on us, and she said she'd check back with us. I get the feeling it's the sort of thing that takes extraordinary circumstances to come into play.

We actually spent more time there than I expected: two hours instead of one. It's clear Luke's foster mom has taken a lot of care. She recommended such things as clipping his nails twice a month, or once a month if it's more doable. She said she always feeds her cats out of steel or ceramic containers, since they're easier to keep clean.

While we were there, two other resident cats came in to visit. They were very calm, although one of them was playing with Luke. She told us that he's a really good cat with the foster cats, many of whom are young.

The house had a number of touches that underlined her interest in cats, such as cat figurines on the end tables and one in the bathroom. Cat toys and scratching boxes were spread throughout the room, a heated cat shelf jutting out from the windowsill.

She recommended that we put Luke on a monthly parasite medication, just in case Una brings in fleas or something else from outdoors. She even told us what sort of toys he likes.

I was pleased to discover Luke wasn't skittish around the camera, which will be a good thing if he's going to be living with me! Without more adieu, here are more pictures of Luke.

Copyright 2005 by Alyce Wilson

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