PETS IN PRINT

As the house was in the process of being cleared by relatives, we were requested to take Mathilda as soon as possible.  She was described as “a cat from hell”, likely to do her own thing.  I found Mathilda hiding, petrified underneath a bed, with the sounds of the house clearance reverberating from downstairs.  Not only had Mathilda lost her owner, she had lost her home and her quiet life.

It was very upsetting to see this sad little cat, who flatly refused to eat, change to quite an aggressive feline, lashing out at all who tried to befriend her.  She was to stay with us for 14 months, her chances of a home ever decreasing.  She was depressed.  An animal psychologist was called in to offer advice.  She did not respond.  What was to happen to her?  And then, one day in June ’05, I received a call …………

 ………… “I arranged to visit Mathilda, with the psychologist, but neither of us got any response from her.  It was upsetting to see her so dejected.  We returned the next day with a lead and I tried to tempt her out of her pen, onto the lawn, but she was too afraid to venture out.

Straightaway, I asked if I could take her home and return her to the environment she had known for 10 years.  I already had Felix, 12 years old and a little overweight, but quiet and lovable.  Mathilda occupied the sun lounge, with glass doors on two sides, she could see the whole garden and see me moving around in the living room.

For the first two days, I walked her round the garden, on a lead, and on the third day left her safely tied, on a long lead, for a few hours.  Fortunately the weather was good and after a week I let her out on her own without the lead.  She rolled about in the cat mint and came in through the open patio doors when she was ready.

Knowing she had been used to music in the home, I put some classical music on for her in the evening and sat close by.  It was such an occasion when she first showed me affection, she jumped on my knee and nestled on my shoulder.

If Felix walked near her, she would spit and screech at him.  He would stop and look at her in bewilderment and then plod on – he never retaliated.  They were the only times I scolded her, by speaking sharply.  The cats were left in separate halves of the bungalow, while I was out.  Felix slept on my bed, Mathilda on the settee.  Sadly, just as relations were improving, almost a year later, Felix died from Kidney failure.

Nowadays, Mathilda sleeps on the bed and although she will not be picked up, she jumps onto my knee, at least twice a day, to be petted and combed.  Most rewarding is to see her set off on her walkabout, full of confidence and curiosity.  There never was a “cat from hell”, only a frightened little soul whose world had vanished but who still had enough spirit to look out for herself.  She has come through a bad time with that spirit unbroken – Mathilda will always be a little cat that likes her own way!

The most I had expected was to restore her freedom and confidence and give her a comfortable home – the affection she continues to show me is a real bonus.

Sylvia Dyke

Tess

It is nearly one full year since we first enquired about the possibility of adopting Tess. We followed her progress through the Pawprint each month and we eventually met her with Wendy in July 2006. We were in no doubt that we wanted to press ahead with the adoption. After dealing with the formalities, we took Tess home on 18 July.

Tess settled in immediately. She has two German Shepherd pals, 6 year old black and tan called Buddy and 12 month old Harley who is white. They all play very well together and even share food without any problems. She is very affectionate and loves to be fussed over.

Tess still likes short frequent walks and her only dislike is noise. She hates the Hoover being switched on!

She enjoys her life with us and we are glad you had the faith to nurse her back to health.

Thank you - The Lamberts

Tia’s view on her life with Denis and Muriel

I have found a game called gardening.  I watched Muriel take out some plants, do a bit of digging and then put some new plants in their place.  I decided this was a good game to play, so being helpful I took out most of the new plants and hid them under a chair in the house.   I was soon told this was NOT a game.

I am enjoying my walks and have made quite a few friends with the local doggies.  Denis is trying to teach me not to chase the rabbits, although I think this is good fun, especially if they run off into another field.  Denis really has no sense of adventure…

I have been poorly and was taken to see Colin at the Vets, who gave me some medicine which made me feel better.  During this time I had loads of cuddles which was nice.  Once I was better I was taken again to the Vets for “the op”.  I felt quite upset with D&M for not explaining about this, and to add to my embarrassment I had to wear a bucket collar after the operation which I did not like at all!  For about 12 weeks I felt unhappy (hormone problems I think) but now I am back to my loveable self (so they say).  During this time D&M showed me plenty of love and patience, and I now go again for my nightly cuddle from Muriel, which I refused then I felt out of sorts.

I still like being D&M’s chief food tester, as their food is a lot different from mine.  I am not supposed to do this, especially when I have pinched Denis’s lunch.  I hear the word NO quite a lot, but it seems I am the only one who is told this.  I wonder why?

We all enjoy football quite a lot each day, although I don’t think it is appreciated if D&M are busy doing jobs and a ball comes flying towards them, but they do stop what they are doing and play.  I look upon football as doing both D&M a favour, as it is good exercise for them and they will thank me one day for keeping them fit.

 Must dash – it’s time for my walk.

Flossie

In June 2005  sweet old Springer spaniel was found abandoned in Alsager.  She had no collar, she was not microchipped.  Her black and white fur was dirty and tangled.  Her ears which should have been the soft flowing tresses particular to spaniels were matted and damp.  The fur on her paws was overgrown and knotted between her toes so that her feet were uncomfortably splayed.  He little body had several lumps and bumps later diagnosed as cysts and cancerous tumours which perhaps indicated the reason why she had been so cruelly dumped.  Fortunately a local animal charity which I would soon come to be eternally grateful to stepped in to help.  They placed her in temporary accommodation, provided immediate veterinary care, gave her a name and placed an advert for a foster home.

Having finished yet another pointless Sudoku puzzle and having nothing pressing to do I turned the pages of the Sentinel. I don’t usually bother with the pages past the middle so I can only imagine that divine providence caused me to scan the columns of print.  That was when I saw it.  The small adverts in the “pet watch” category under the heading Alsager Animals in Need.

Foster home wanted for FLOSSIE, pretty spaniel found abandoned in Alsager.  She has the sweetest nature and the waggiest tail.  She is terminally ill.  Ring Hilary.

That advert wouldn’t leave my mind for the next three days.  I imagined the nightmare that the innocent doggie had been living.  Abandoned, alone and poorly too.  It was unbearable.  The instinct to find Flossie, take her home where I could protect her, cover her an give her everything I could to keep that tail wagging was overwhelming.  Needles to say I rang Hilary.  I had an idea that I was going to be a sort of guardian angel for her, to sweep in and rescue her like some vain hero.  In truth our roles reversed because I know that she is actually my guardian angel and that the purpose and love she agave actually rescued me.  Flossie gave back so much more than she took.

I have thanked God a million times that I saw the advert and a million times more that AAinN chose to home Flossie with me.  We spent fourteen wonderful months together and I wouldn’t have missed a single moment of it.  She blossomed almost immediately.  Her soft fur and expressive eyes, her gentle paws and noble posture gave no hint of her time on the street.  Flossie loved life.  She loved her food, her blanket, her garden, her walks, her doggie friends, her family.  She gave love at every opportunity.   It seems crazy that anyone could give her up, but their loss is my gain to say the least.  Every pet owner knows how precious the ways of their companion are: how comical, how special, how inspiring, how cute.  We cannot possibly capture the personality and spirit of our beloved animals with words on a page o matter how many descriptions we write.  But I think that Mark Twain got it right when he wrote of his affection for dogs,

“When I die I hope to go to his heaven, not man’s”

Now she is gone a lot of my conversations with people begin with “..do you remember when Flossie did this..?” or “that reminds me of the time Flossie did that..”  I have so many happy memories of her, she made a huge personal difference to my life and she continues to be a wonderful blessing that I carry with e everyday.  If a human being left such a legacy of love they would bestow every honour and award known to man.  As for Flossie I witnessed her win the heart of everyone she met.  Ad that’s no small achievement for anyone

Thank you AAinN and County Vets for all your help and support.

God bless Flossie, we love you baby.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Blessings on thee, dog of mine,
Pretty collars make thee fine,
Sugared milk make fat thee!
Pleasures wag on in thy tail,
Hands of gentle motion fail
Nevermore, to pat thee

(Elizabeth Barrett Browning)

Barney was such a sad looking dog when he arrived at the home of Janet and Walter Smith and no wonder with the awful afflictions and suffering that he had gone through. With lots of love, care and exercise, within a few weeks he was wagging his tail, was full of life and returned our love for him tenfold. Barney had a wonderful last 6 months of his life, especially our holiday in October, when he has the time of his life in the woods and on the beach and playing in the sea. Sadly, because of his declining health we had to say goodbye. Goodnight, God bless our 'Gentle Giant'. We miss you.

Betsy came into care in October 2001. The prospect of homing her at 16 years of age was nil. She gave us 3 years of love before passing away in February 2005. A sweet old girl who will always be loved and remembered by Doreen and Michael.

Maggie passed peacefully away in February 2005. An ailing old girl who nobody wanted, she knew that she was loved right to the end. Sadly missed by Eileen.

Arnie was a grumpy old soul, but extremely loving. He passed away aged 18 years after giving so much love to Yvonne and Mick after having him from six weeks old.

Topper was a tiny kitten that came into care on 15th May 2005, but lost his fight for life 12 days later. We tried so hard to save him, but to no avail. Doreen hopes that the few days that he had with her were the best and she misses him.

Bryan came into our care in July 2006.  He was fostered by Wendy initially and then went to live with Brenda. 

He had a lovely gentle temperament.