stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2017-10-29 09:57 pm
stevenpiziks) wrote2017-10-29 09:57 pm
The Case of the Conniving Kitten
After we lost Bernard (re-homed with the vet) and after the Great Ceiling Cat Debacle and after going through six kinds of stupid hell with local pet rescue organizations, Darwin and I had both declared we would not get another cat. Dinah would be our only, and last, one.
However . . .
Darwin has a weakness for Scottish fold cats. In his view, they're the cutest cats since kitten boops on the nose were invented. I have no opinion of them one way or another, except for the fact that they're bloody rare and expensive--$400 and up! No way we'd ever pay that much for a cat of any cuteness level. But folds occasionally get put up for re-homing, and Darwin had put his name on a couple mailing lists that would alert him to one.
On Saturday, Darwin got an email alert. A Scottish fold cat was up! She wouldn't actually be available until November, but she'd be meetable at a pet affair that day. Darwin decided we should go look at her. So off we went!
When we arrived, we found a long double row of cats in cages, more than triple the number I'd run into elsewhere. We asked among the volunteers and learned the fold in question wasn't actually there, despite what the web site had said.
However . . .
Darwin started browsing among the cages. He came across a fluffy blue-point Siamese kitten who demanded to play with him through the bars. He batted fingers against paws for a while, then asked to hold her. The kitten climbed all over him and completely charmed him. He was a melted puddle of protoplasm under her adorable blue gaze.
Meanwhile, I wandered farther down the row, examining yet other cats. A few cages away . . . was that . . . ? It was! A black Scottish fold kitten. I summoned a reluctant Darwin from his intended's cage and said, "I probably shouldn't show you this, but--"
He stared. "Oh my god! He's so cute!"
A volunteer took the fold kitten out, and Darwin loved that one, too.
In the interim, I had quietly fetched a form from the volunteer table. "Which one should we ask for?" I said casually.
"This one," he said. "No--that one!"
"Do you want both?" I said.
"No! But I can't decide."
At this point, a volunteer said, "We've already had several people apply for the Scottish fold. No one's asked about the other one yet."
That settled it. Darwin went back to the Siamese's cage, and she batted at his fingers in approval.
The volunteer went over our form, asked one question, and said, "She's yours!"
Amazing the impact supply and demand have. The other events demanded two kinds of ID, a vet reference, two personal references, and a home visit. This event handed out cats like cards at a poker game.
We couldn't take her home that day. She hadn't been spayed yet, and needed some more shots. I would have offered to have it done, but I doubted the agency would have taken my word, plus it was one less hassle for me if they handled it, so I didn't say anything. We'll be able to get her in a couple of weeks.
The conniving kitten knew how to work it!
However . . .
Darwin has a weakness for Scottish fold cats. In his view, they're the cutest cats since kitten boops on the nose were invented. I have no opinion of them one way or another, except for the fact that they're bloody rare and expensive--$400 and up! No way we'd ever pay that much for a cat of any cuteness level. But folds occasionally get put up for re-homing, and Darwin had put his name on a couple mailing lists that would alert him to one.
On Saturday, Darwin got an email alert. A Scottish fold cat was up! She wouldn't actually be available until November, but she'd be meetable at a pet affair that day. Darwin decided we should go look at her. So off we went!
When we arrived, we found a long double row of cats in cages, more than triple the number I'd run into elsewhere. We asked among the volunteers and learned the fold in question wasn't actually there, despite what the web site had said.
However . . .
Darwin started browsing among the cages. He came across a fluffy blue-point Siamese kitten who demanded to play with him through the bars. He batted fingers against paws for a while, then asked to hold her. The kitten climbed all over him and completely charmed him. He was a melted puddle of protoplasm under her adorable blue gaze.
Meanwhile, I wandered farther down the row, examining yet other cats. A few cages away . . . was that . . . ? It was! A black Scottish fold kitten. I summoned a reluctant Darwin from his intended's cage and said, "I probably shouldn't show you this, but--"
He stared. "Oh my god! He's so cute!"
A volunteer took the fold kitten out, and Darwin loved that one, too.
In the interim, I had quietly fetched a form from the volunteer table. "Which one should we ask for?" I said casually.
"This one," he said. "No--that one!"
"Do you want both?" I said.
"No! But I can't decide."
At this point, a volunteer said, "We've already had several people apply for the Scottish fold. No one's asked about the other one yet."
That settled it. Darwin went back to the Siamese's cage, and she batted at his fingers in approval.
The volunteer went over our form, asked one question, and said, "She's yours!"
Amazing the impact supply and demand have. The other events demanded two kinds of ID, a vet reference, two personal references, and a home visit. This event handed out cats like cards at a poker game.
We couldn't take her home that day. She hadn't been spayed yet, and needed some more shots. I would have offered to have it done, but I doubted the agency would have taken my word, plus it was one less hassle for me if they handled it, so I didn't say anything. We'll be able to get her in a couple of weeks.
The conniving kitten knew how to work it!
no subject
A friend of ours fosters mom cat and kittens combos (one mom cat, however many kittens in her litter) for the local animal shelter. The latest bunch of kittens were born before the start of school, and are now back at the shelter awaiting adoption. Of course, our friend P. posts all sorts of adorable photos of them on her FB page, and so far, every time there's been a litter ready for adoption, one or two have ended up with a friend of P.'s thanks to the abundant photographic evidence of extreme cuteness.