I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July. Things were pretty calm around here---didn't hear too many big booms. Kiara is very thankful for that.
We had an adoption yesterday morning. A wonderful Niner left us. Oh My Guinness went to her home. Her new family spent many visits to pick her out. And at the end, Oh My Guinness did the picking---she went right up to her new mama and pretty much made it plain to see that SHE was the kitten to take home! Just how I like it.
Have you been enjoying the FFRC Giggle videos? They really are so wonderful. Many thanks to JustMe, SonJa and Dawnstar. And now, a new one is ready for your viewing pleasure. Of course it's wonderful---it's directed by Derecho! youtu.be/wrklL_wOujc This is Giggles #7.
Just in case you're worried about an incoming envelope, we do have a fair stack of them to open at next BOXES!
We've been working on the goals that we were hoping to be able to do because of Catathon. Here's a few things:
Lights under the walkway---meeting with electrician on Thursday
6 big recycle containers--bought
Screened in Porch--bill paid!
Fence to protect visitors on farm yard--bill paid!
Window in Dog Room--estimate pending
So....we're working on things!
If you get a chance to visit, please check out our Albert's Garden and the Angel Garden. We have some real pretty new angels that we've added. And the flowers.......so very beautiful!
I need to give you an update that is very hard for me. We lost another Porchie on Monday. Our dear sweet boy Caesar is no longer with us. He was hit by a car on Monday afternoon and was instantly gone. What truly upsets me too so much is the person who hit him, knew he had done so and didn't have the decency to stop. Caesar has been crossing that road his entire life here--he would enjoy watching the river. I always worried about him but he seemed to be "road-smart". But...........this proved to be wrong. My heart aches for this loss---he was truly such a sweet, gentle boy.
Some people may criticize me for some of our cats being outside. I do understand that. I worry about their safety all the time.But many many years ago, our wonderful neighbor Alice that Steve and I took care of had a powerful impact on me about this very subject. We had lost a couple ducks on the road (before putting up the fence). And we have lost farm animals due to predators. I asked her........should we pen them up? Her immediate answer was NO. They are enjoying their lives outside by being themselves. And she was right. I couldn't any more pen these farm animals up than I could some of these cats that are dropped off here. The cats that are the Porchies or Barnies are those that do not get along inside the Playground with the Covies. They are cats that have always been outside---that's where their hearts and "brains" are. To ask them to be something they cannot happily be, would not allow them to lead a peaceful life. I understand that MAKING them be inside cats or MAKING them be a Covie could happen, but what does that do to their peace level? I've tried it on many of them and what we end up with is a cat that desperately seeks an "out", to get thru a window or out the playground fencing. Their inner peace level is to be free. So, I have to come to terms with this. While it causes me a huge amount of grief and guilt, I still, in my heart, understand their needs. Caesar was a loved boy and a truly happy cat. My wish is that he could've lived a longer life. And yes, I do wish the person who caused his death could've found it in their heart to stop instead of driving right on down the road. We will rejoice in his life here and treasure our memories of him. He really was a very good cat. Thank you all for caring about him.
I'd like to mention something else here. One of the hardest things that I have to deal with when we have a death, is telling others about it. It is soooo hard for me. And I've been thinking about that. The reason it's so hard is that I know it will cause grief to others. I would never NOT have a cat or a pet that I desire because I'm afraid of having to deal with death. Death truly is a part of life. And memories.......how so very sweet they can be. I promised many years ago that I would always be honest with you all and I will keep that promise, even though it can cause sadness. But, my wish is that people don't dwell on the negative things. It's ok to grieve--it's RIGHT to grieve. And then it's ok to have the pleasure of memories. Our pets enrich our lives deeply and I would never ever give that up.
Thanks. You may say---for what? For being a friend to me and to FFRC. You all have become a very important part of my life and the life of these cats and kittens here at FFRC. A big thank you to you all.
This morning was another HumaneOhio spay/neuter date. Our numbers are climbing. And we are more determined than ever to spay/neuter as many as we can. We sent up 39 cats--12 boys and 27 girls. Seven of those are FFRC kittens--Cinnamon, Tex, Zadie, Effie, Paislie, Helga and Lisa.
This 39 cats added to our grand total, is 421 cats that we have helped with their spays/neuters. 254 females and 177 males. last year at this time, we were at 247. We have been trying to do two HumaneOhio's a month. We will continue with our spay/neuter program.
We will carry on, keep on loving these cats, keep on with our adoptions and spays/neuters and keep on doing what we do.....running this Rescue Center.
