The wonderful people at Purina are running a contest to fund a $25,000 renovation for cat and kitten shelters across the country. Each state is represented by a single shelter, and each shelter is represented by only one volunteer that has impacted the welfare of shelter/foster cats and kittens. For my home state of Oklahoma, the Central Oklahoma Humane Society was chosen – the amazing people that originally found me at Oklahoma City Animal Welfare’s facility. And OK Humane selected my Humom to represent them.
I wish that there were enough benefactors that each animal shelter could receive its own $25,000 grant, because I know there are deserving organizations in each state that could use the funding to improve their facilities, increase staff, or afford additional medical care and enrichment for the animals they care for.
But I don’t know their stories. I do, however, know my own (sort of).
I wish that there were enough benefactors that each animal shelter could receive its own $25,000 grant, because I know there are deserving organizations in each state that could use the funding to improve their facilities, increase staff, or afford additional medical care and enrichment for the animals they care for.
But I don’t know their stories. I do, however, know my own (sort of).
No one that knows me today knows how I made my way to the OKC Animal Welfare facility. It may have been that I was found in someone’s crawlspace, or was an unplanned litter from someone’s pet. In any case, I appeared there, and was brought over to Central Oklahoma Humane Society by their staff. My Humom, who had just recently finished with another litter of kittens, was asked if she had room for four little ones (the others were not related to me), and she gladly accepted.
At first, I was a problem child. I would not eat, either dry or canned food, either kitten or adult cat food, so my Humom had to boil and shred chicken and let me drink diluted juice from a can of tuna. I would not listen either. At first, they thought I was deaf because I didn’t react to any stimulus around me, and not even a sudden noise near me even made my ears twitch. And my feline hyperesthesia and heart murmur wouldn’t even be detected or diagnosed for several months.
But through patience and dedication, Humom was able to get me to eat, to interact with the other cats, and finally to thrive.
I always had a scowly face, from the first moment they saw me. Even Pops commented that I was “like Grumpy Cat’s little sister.” But I just use that as part of my charm.
It took a lot of work by Humom and the others to get me through my baby months. I had a lot of trips to the vet, which is when she trained me to use a harness since I was afraid of the carrier. Humom and the staff at OK Humane knew that finding the right family for me would be a challenge. Humom created my Facebook page initially to help “market” me to prospective adoptive families, with the expectation that they would turn the Page over to my new family when the time came.
But… what can I say, I have a way about me, and Pops and Humom decided to make me a permanent part of their family.
At first, I was a problem child. I would not eat, either dry or canned food, either kitten or adult cat food, so my Humom had to boil and shred chicken and let me drink diluted juice from a can of tuna. I would not listen either. At first, they thought I was deaf because I didn’t react to any stimulus around me, and not even a sudden noise near me even made my ears twitch. And my feline hyperesthesia and heart murmur wouldn’t even be detected or diagnosed for several months.
But through patience and dedication, Humom was able to get me to eat, to interact with the other cats, and finally to thrive.
I always had a scowly face, from the first moment they saw me. Even Pops commented that I was “like Grumpy Cat’s little sister.” But I just use that as part of my charm.
It took a lot of work by Humom and the others to get me through my baby months. I had a lot of trips to the vet, which is when she trained me to use a harness since I was afraid of the carrier. Humom and the staff at OK Humane knew that finding the right family for me would be a challenge. Humom created my Facebook page initially to help “market” me to prospective adoptive families, with the expectation that they would turn the Page over to my new family when the time came.
But… what can I say, I have a way about me, and Pops and Humom decided to make me a permanent part of their family.
I hope that you take the time to visit the Purina Cat Chow contest site and read about my Humom and the folks at OK Humane – they truly are my heroes. You can vote once a day, so please come back every day between now and March 15th when the contest ends and support our efforts! As they say in Chicago (and it’s actually acceptable this time), vote early and vote often!
KFOR in Oklahoma City featured the story of my beginning, my Humom, and the Central Oklahoma Humane Society, and the Purina Cat Chow contest! On the left is the awesome Lacey Lett from KFOR, that's Pops holding me, and on the right is the equally awesome Abby Harris with OK Humane. Lacey, when I turned my back during taping, it wasn't out of disrespect... it was so you could groom me.