THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE

I haven't been able to stop thinking about the Toront Feral Cat Project Recovery Centre since spending time there on Sunday - more specifically, I haven't been able to stop thinking about the kitties that have, do, and will continue to pass through their doors. Did I mention how impressed I was with their operation (pardon the pun), and the immense efforts they've made as well as the incredible feat they've undertaken? Well I am, and I am so thankful to know that these cats have these people in their corner.......

In thinking about it, I can't help but think of Flossy. Being there on the weekend, I was reminded as I watched the ferals come in, and spent time with two males who have ended up not being feral at all (which happens way more often than you might think), my memory went back to the very first time I saw Flossy. Terribly sick, grossly emaciated, terrified of her own shadow, and disgustingly filthy. I remember trying to pet her and feeling every possible bone in her tiny frame - how disturbing it was to hubby and I both; seeing an animal that starved was a first for both of us. Those first few weeks were really stressful and really touch and go - she had one of the worst URI's (Upper Respiratory Infections) I had ever seen, her appetite was pretty much non existent, and everytime we tried to touch her she cringed as though our very fingertips were poison.

I'll be honest - I worried sick in the beginning (and probably for quite afew months after), about whether she would make it and what her quality of life would be. Just as I know colony caretakers and rescue volunteers do when they first come upon a cat that seems to have faced more horrors in this life than all the care, medical treatment, concern, love, and protection can ever possibly erase; but where there is life, there is hope - plain and simple.

If the colony caretaker/rescue volunteers who came upon Flossy that day 1 1/2 years ago this month; hadn't followed their gut instincts and brought her in to safety - she would not have lasted out that coming winter. Because they did, she is a little girl with a very bright future.

Two Weeks After Rescue......

1 1/2 Years Later.....