According to these dedicated cat caregivers, one of the best things about their job is being able to restore sick, injured or distressed cats to health, especially after a poor prognosis from a veterinarian. The most distressing part of their work is when healing is impossible and they have to say goodbye, especially when it’s a kitten or a favourite, long-time sanctuary resident. The cats are like family and they suffer the loss of each one.
I’d like to introduce you to our five wonderful “Cat Medics”.
LESLIE:
Leslie began helping Carol Reichert at feral cat feeding sites eleven years ago. Her lack of fear of the feral cats led her to become more involved in capturing and treating those in need of medical attention. Using food as a reward, she developed a technique for teaching them to trust humans, her goal being to make feral kittens adoptable and the sanctuary's permanent feral residents more comfortable. Leslie supplements the considerable knowledge of animal care she initially gained from Carol with internet research and by conferring with our veterinarians.
Over many years, working with the sanctuary cats, Leslie has seen some rather weird cat behaviour, for example, an obese cat named Tiaz who had completely lost trust in people. Giving her antibiotic injections and fluid therapy was a two-person job! When approached, Tiaz would flip onto her back, scream and try to bite her caregivers. To everyone’s enormous relief, Tiaz made a complete recovery.
Among Leslie’s many favourite cats at the sanctuary, a lively little white girl named Lumi, who was surrendered to RAPS because of aggression, is her most favourite. Thanks to Leslie’s efforts, Lumi’s behaviour dramatically improved, but then she became very ill and almost died. During Lumi’s treatment, a strong bond developed between cat and caregiver and Lumi now follows Leslie everywhere.
Leslie and her family have four cats at home, including a gorgeous friendly Himalayan cross named George Clooney.
GAYE:
Gaye also has a long relationship with RAPS, having heard about our Society from Carol Reichert when they worked together as flight attendants. When Gaye trapped a mother cat and kittens, she contacted Carol who agreed to take the little family in to the cat sanctuary. Gaye began visiting and eventually became a volunteer there. At first, she helped Carol with evening medications and closing up, learning from Carol’s expertise. When the demands of RAPS’ newly-opened City Animal Shelter grew dramatically for Carol, Gaye stepped into her animal care role at the cat sanctuary. She continues to expand her knowledge through collaboration with the other Animal Care Team members and by observing the veterinarians in action.
Gaye has five cats at home, including two that were born at her home to a mother cat that she was fostering for RAPS. She also has a nine-year old rabbit named Rambo, who had been rescued from an unsuitable home.
Gaye’s favourite sanctuary cat is Chatter, who she trapped “accidentally” while trying to capture another stray cat. The cute orange and white guy was un-neutered and very hungry when trapped so he came to live at the cat sanctuary. He’s now neutered, well-fed (and very chatty) and follows Gaye on her rounds all day long.
Like so many staff and volunteers there, Gaye finds that RAPS’ cat sanctuary is a uniquely peaceful and happy place, and that spending time looking after the cats is wonderfully therapeutic during stressful or unhappy times
CATHERINE:
Whenever Catherine would walk their old dog Riley past Carol Reichert’s house, one of Carol’s cats would come out to greet them. Eventually, Catherine met Carol, who invited her to visit the cat sanctuary. Catherine accepted the invitation and the rest is history. After beginning as a volunteer, Catherine stepped in to help with medications when someone was needed in that role.
Although she had no previous training in animal care, Catherine is a natural with cats and totally fearless when dealing with even the nastiest ones. She’s recently developed a fitness program for cranky Tiaz, whose antics Leslie described above. Every day, Catherine transports Tiaz to a grassy outdoor area and makes her move around. She describes her favourite sanctuary cat, Freddy, as “the meanest, nastiest, most cheerfully vicious cat I have ever met”. But that didn’t stop her from convincing him that he actually enjoyed having his chin and cheeks rubbed. Catherine claims that everything she knows about dealing with feral cats came from Freddy. Sadly, Freddie is no longer with us but he still holds a special place in Catherine’s heart. Just a few of her current favourites are Josie, Sissy, Stanley, Basil, Chaplin, and Sylvester, most of them feral or ex-feral.
At Catherine’s home, there are three cats, all of them rescues, and one dog, rescued from a puppy mill.
ANN:
Ann’s relationship with RAPS began in 2008, when she answered an advertisement in a Richmond Paper for volunteers at RAPS’ City Shelter. She signed up immediately and soon expanded her volunteering to include the cat sanctuary. There, she became interested in animal care because she wanted to do more for the cats than just the routine care. When a position as part of the Animal Care Team became available, she was a natural to step into it.
In a very short time, Ann has grown from someone who just likes cats into a fearless and compassionate cat caregiver. She has a special love for what she refers to as “challenging” cats, the ones who are distrustful, angry, and unsociable. She enjoys turning a nasty, fearful cat into one who simply acts like a cat, and she’s had plenty of success in doing just that with more than one challenging feline. Her two favourite cats at the sanctuary fit that description. They are handsome tabby Gunther who came to us scared (and scary) but is now pretty laid back, and orange Gilbert who was at first an unapproachable stray from a family’s backyard. Gilbert now follows Ann around the front courtyard, looking for treats and affection.
At home, Ann has one elderly gentleman cat named Stubbs, a rescue cat from the streets of Burnaby, and Muffin (a.k.a. The Muffinator), a real character cat that she adopted from RAPS.
Ann invites anyone who likes cats to consider volunteering with RAPS, to sponsor one of our cats, or support our cause in any way they can.
LISA:
Just one week after she met Carol Reichert at the “Give Voice to Animals” movie screening, Lisa started volunteering at RAPS. She began by helping Carol and Leslie to administer medications and, having worked previously in a veterinary office, soon became a vital part of the Animal Care Team.
Accompanying Lisa on her shifts is her little dog, Rosie, adopted from our City Shelter. Rosie is an honourary member of the Animal Care Team – she helps out by making sure no wet food ever stays on the medicine cage floor and by keeping cats company on vet trips. Well-behaved and cute, Rosie also lifts the spirits of volunteers and staff alike and, not much bigger than them, she’s well accepted by the cats.
Lisa’s latest addition at home is Ike the cat, who is in love with Rosie and spends all day head-butting her and curling up with her.
Like most of us, Lisa finds it difficult to choose just one sanctuary cat as her favourite. However, she narrowed it down to Dottie, Ben, Randi and Olivia, just some of the many sanctuary cats that she’s helped to trap and save.
Unadoptable and feral cats, particularly elderly or sick ones, who are taken to most shelters are usually euthanized. When taken in by RAPS, they’re kept warm, well fed and healthy but keeping hundreds of them healthy is a demanding, endless job. Fortunately, the members of the Animal Care Team at RAPS’ cat sanctuary meet and exceed that demand every day. Our thanks to them and to our supporters who make it possible to keep our cats healthy and safely off the streets.
